A Surprisingly Strong Year of Book Sales Continues (publishersweekly.com)

Fiscal 2022 First Quarter Operating Results Overview *Total net sales were $145.8 million, a decrease of $(17.4) million or (10.7)%, compared to a Company first quarter record of $163.2 million last year. Total comparable net sales, including both physical stores and e-commerce, decreased by (13.0)%. *Gross profit was $43.8 million, or 30.1% of net sales, compared to $54.8 million, or 33.6% of net sales, last year. *Operating income was $1.1 million, or 0.8% of net sales, compared to $14.9 million, or 9.1% of net sales, last year. *Net income was $0.8 million, or $0.03 per diluted share, compared to a Company first quarter record of $11.0 million, or $0.36 per diluted share, last year.

Penguin Random House has named Madeline McIntosh, previously president of the Penguin Publishing Group, CEO of Penguin Random House US. The position is a newly created one. Additionally, Allison Dobson, formerly senior v-p of strategy and finance at Penguin Publishing Group, has been promoted to president of Penguin Publishing Group, succeeding McIntosh. Dohle, who will remain based in New York City, said the creation of McIntosh’s position speaks to “the size and importance of the U.S. business for Penguin Random House worldwide." He added: "Now is the right time for dedicated leadership in our U.S. market." Under the newly announced PRH structure, McIntosh, who will report to Dohle, will be responsible for all PRH US adult and children’s publishing groups (among them Crown, Knopf, Penguin, Penguin Young Readers, Random House, and RH Childrens). The publisher's operations, sales, author platforms, digital publishing development, and audio publishing departments will now report to McIntosh. Click Read More below for additional information.

In its Government Reform Plan, the Administration made the case for privatizing the Postal Service, and preparing for an eventual change through recommendations coming in August from the President's Task Force on the Postal System. The business community – mailers and suppliers in the paper, printing and technology industries collectively generating $1.4 trillion in sales annually and supporting 7.5 million jobs – strongly believes privatization is not the answer for a postal system in financial distress. "Our troubled postal system can be fixed in a two-step process that does not resort to a draconian solution unproven at the gigantic scale of the U.S. Postal Service," said Art Sackler, Manager of the Coalition for a 21st Century Postal System (C21), which broadly represents the industry. Those two steps would be removing $tens of billions in liabilities to prefund retiree health care imposed on the Postal Service in the short-term, and considering whether and what business model or other changes would have to be made to sustain USPS in the long-term. "The mere prospect of privatization will sow confusion, uncertainty and concern about maintaining mail and package delivery around the country, and stimulating still more volume and revenue loss when the major problem has been a drop off in mail," Sackler added. Click Read More below for additional information.