Bonnier Publishing, the English-language book publishing division of Sweden’s Bonnier Group, has formed Bonnier Publishing USA. The new company is composed of Weldon Owen US and the children’s book publisher, Little Bee Books, which Bonnier started in New York City in 2014.
According to Bonnier, Weldon Owen and Little Bee have more than 40 employees and combined sales of about $40 million. The goal of the newly formed unit is to ramp up sales at Bonnier Publishing USA to $100 million by 2019.
The new combined company will be headed by Shimul Tolia, currently president of Little Bee, who has been named CEO. Roger Shaw, president and publisher of Weldon Owen US, will head Bonnier’s West Coast operations and report to Tolia.
To accommodate its growth plans, Bonnier intends to open a new office for its U.S. division on Park Avenue South in New York. The new office will triple the space Bonnier now occupies and will serve as the headquarters of Bonnier Publishing USA. Weldon Owen’s offices will remain in San Francisco.
Since its launch in 2014, Little Bee has increased its annual output to 150 titles this year; it plans to release 175 titles next year. Weldon Owen was absorbed by Bonnier Publishing, which is based in the U.K., from sister company Bonnier Corp. earlier this year. Overall Bonnier Publishing, which is headed by Richard Johnson, has annual revenue of about $180 million.
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misidentified Roger Shaw as "Robert."
