Although its big political book of 2004 didn't sell as well as expected, Avalon Publishing Group had a successful 2004 and opened 2005 by taking complete ownership of its Shoemaker & Hoard imprint. In a wide-ranging interview with PW, Avalon CEO Charlie Winton said sales increased about 8% in 2004, to $31 million, with operating profit up 15%. The best-performing units were the travel group (up 15%) and Carroll & Graf (up 23%).
Although ambassador Joe Wilson's Politics of Truth did sell about 65,000 copies, Winton said the sell-through wasn't "quite what we hoped." The house did well with several other titles, however, including Everyday Low-Carb Slow CookerCookbook by Kitty Broihier (65,000 copies); Shake Hands with the Devil by Lt. Gen. Roméo Dallaire (30,000 copies); The Bush-Hater's Handbook by Jack Huberman (48,000); and Too Soon Old, Too Late Smartby Gordon Livingston (60,000).
Michele Martin, who took over as senior v-p and publishing director of the New York division in July, said the house emphasized "more publicity, than marketing" to sell books. There are fewer book tours ("expensive, even the big houses do less") and they've cut consumer advertising. "We work the lefty nonfiction media circuit," she said, "and the Jon Stewart show really sells books."
Winton was bullish on the travel group, which has recovered from the shakeout in travel publishing following 9/11. Bill Newlin, senior v-p and publisher of Avalon Travel, said that despite a cutback—from about 100 titles a year to 80—the travel group contributed about $11 million in sales. "We went through a lot of painful work in 2002 to make the books cost effective," Newlin said.
In 2005, APG is offering books by Caleb Carr and nonfiction from Margaret Atwood as well as a newly discovered play, Beat Generation by Jack Kerouac, and a book of artwork by Grateful Dead legend Jerry Garcia. Winton said the house has managed to lure the occasional name author with "personal relations. We're not going to out pay anybody, but authors can talk directly to the CEO, and we offer them a chance to do something different."
As part of its growth plan, APG, which had a 51% stake in Shoemaker & Hoard, took full ownership of the imprint last month. S&H will be relocated to APG's California office, along with Jack Shoemaker, who will continue as publisher and will become a v-p of Avalon. S&H editor-at-large Trish Hoard will remain in Washington, D.C.
From a corporate standpoint, Winton said, "We're trying to stabilize our lists and avoid scrambling for books. We're offering new fiction and trying to nurture new writers. We think we're operating like an old, traditional publishing house."
