Barnes & Noble sells Union Square Publishing to Hachette

Barnes & Noble announced on 18th November that it is selling Union Square & Co Publishing (formerly Sterling Publishing) to Hachette Book Group. The publisher was acquired by Barnes & Noble in 2003 and now includes adult imprints Union Square & Co, Puzzlewright Press, Sterling Ethos and SparkNotes, as well as the children’s imprints Union Square Kids and Boxer Books; and the gift and stationery publishers Knock Knock and Em & Friends.

Emily Meehan has led Sterling since 2021, and in her tenure oversaw the rebranding in January 2022 to Union Square & Co—influenced by its New York City Union Square Park headquarters. Meehan will remain in her post following the sale and will report into Ben Sevier, president and publisher of the Grand Central Publishing Group, a division of Hachette Book Group. All Sterling Publishing’s staff, publishing assets and trademarks will transfer to Hachette Book Group.

James Daunt, c.e.o. of Barnes & Noble, said: "Union Square has been a tremendous success under Emily’s guidance. She and her team have transformed its publishing and, we began to realise, also to outgrow the infrastructure of a bookseller. Union Square will enjoy under Hachette the resources of a great publisher. As booksellers, we look forward to continuing our close relationship with Union Square and to its continued success."

David Shelley, c.e.o. of Hachette Book Group, said: "I couldn’t be happier to welcome Sterling Publishing Co Inc and Union Square & Co to Hachette. When we make an acquisition, we want to be sure that we can learn a lot from the company, and that we can add value to them with our ability to reach readers internationally. Both criteria are absolutely met in this case. Union Square is an extremely innovative and dynamic publishing house that has seen great growth in recent years, and I can’t wait to help get their authors’ work to even more readers around the world."