Sterling Publishing president Marcus Leaver is leaving the Barnes & Noble subsidiary to join the Quarto Group based in London next month in the newly created position of COO. In a statement Quarto chairman and chief executive Laurence Orbach described Leaver as “an outstanding person [who] brings a wealth of experience of book publishing at senior levels on both sides of the Atlantic.... Marcus will be joinging the Board of Quarto and, from the start, will be contributing to the strategic direction of the business.” Prior to joining Sterling as COO in 2005, Leaver served as CEO of the Chrysalis Books Group in London.
At Sterling, Theresea Thompson, who has been with B&N since 2003, most recently as v-p of newsstands, will be promoted to executive v-p of Sterling and oversee all operations, including proprietary publishing. She will also retain responsibilities for bargain books, which she added to her newstand duties in July.
Leaver's departure comes shortly after B&N ended its search for a buyer for Sterling.
