For a 50-year-old imprint, Clarkson Potter has had few leaders. Its founder, Clarkson Potter, led from 1959 to 1977; he was followed by Carol Southern, Jane West and Lauren Shakely, current senior v-p and publisher. Shakely, who's been at the imprint known for its good-looking lifestyle books for 21 years, says the lack of dramatic turmoil among Potter's upper management has helped create an imprint that feels more like a family-run outfit. Yet Potter is part of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, which is part of media giant Bertelsmann. Change has certainly come, yet Shakely said an emphasis on editorial quality has stuck with the imprint since its beginnings.
Shakely said that as Potter's parent company has changed over the years, the role of the imprint has evolved. It began as an independent house with a diverse list ranging from a Jackson Pollock biography to children's picture books. But when Potter became part of Crown in the 1980s, it discovered the lifestyle book—a discovery that has led to the house's present status as a leader in the cooking, home decorating and craft categories. Books on outfitting a home in French country style, for instance, “put Potter on the map for a particular kind of well-crafted, elegant quality book for women,” Shakely said. Then, in the '90s, Potter began looking for a way to expand and become more commercial. “We deliberately and strategically went after trying to become the most important cookbook publisher in the land,” Shakely said. By that time, Crown was owned by Random, and the corporation's competitive outlook, combined with its powerful marketing and publicity groups, resulted in steady growth for Potter.
Today, Potter is home to more Food Network stars than any other publisher, including Rachael Ray, Ina Garten (aka the Barefoot Contessa) and Giada De Laurentiis, along with domestic guru Martha Stewart. In 2008, five of Potter's books spent a combined 15 weeks on PW's adult hardcover bestseller list. Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics debuted in the top spot when it pubbed in November and has remained on the list for 12 weeks; Rachael Ray'sBig Orange Book spent 12 weeks on the trade paperback list. Over the years, Potter has also published Lee Bailey, Tom Colicchio, Colin Cowie, Bobby Flay, Diana Kennedy, Alice Waters and many others.
Not all of Potter's authors are big names. Among its 2008 hits were books by relative unknowns like Screen Doors and Sweet Tea by Martha Foose and Little Cakes from the Whimsical Bakehouse by Kaye Hansen and Liv Hansen. Shakely said her editors are more concerned with how a book will fit in the market than the author's platform (or lack thereof). “The main thing is: is it a good book, does it deserve to be a book?”
Potter is holding steady in the tough economy. In addition to its flagship imprint, it also has more specialized lines: Potter Craft, Potter Style and Watson-Guptill. “Typically, the kind of books we do, do pretty well in a recession,” Shakely said, “so long as we're wise about packaging and pricing them, and pay attention to what people are interested in.” That includes changing some book formats from oversize to a “reasonable size” and analyzing Random's sales information to predict the best time to release a book.
Shakely noted that everyone who has held the top position at Potter throughout its history has come from within the imprint and through editorial. “We've managed to pass on what we know almost like a family kind of business, from person to person, in a way that has been beneficial,” she said.
