Harry Potter publisher Bloomsbury sees profit ‘materially’ ahead as customers keep reading
Bloomsbury, the Harry Potter book series publisher, has today said revenue and profit for its current financial year is expected to come in “materially ahead” of previous expectations.
The UK’s leading independent publisher said it had seen “exceptionally strong trading in the consumer division for a number of titles,” which had led it to upgrade forecasts ahead of the key Christmas trading period.
Titles that contributed notably to trading included, Waterstones Book of the Year 2023, Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundel, TV chef Tom Kerridge’s new cookbook and the Harry Potter Wizarding Almanac.
The market had been expecting the company to report revenue of £274.2m and profit before tax of £32.9m for the financial year ending 29 February 2024.
Commenting in today’s update chief Nigel Newton said: “I am delighted to report a strong period of trading which is principally driven by the continued phenomenal demand for fantasy fiction. Bloomsbury has consistently built its success on the immense talent of our authors and the exceptional hard work of our teams who support them.”
Young readers are increasingly contributing to publisher bottom-lines thanks to a social media driven uptick in interest in the written word.
New research from the Publishers Association published last year found that BookTok, the social media trend focusing on books and literature, is playing a key role in getting Gen-Z reading again.
In a poll of over 2,000 16-25 year olds, 59 per cent said that BookTok or book influencers have helped them discover a passion for reading, with over half turning to it for recommendations.