Canongate buys Severn House Publishers

Canongate Books has acquired independent Severn House Publishers from owner Edwin Buckhalter and his family for an undisclosed sum.

The deal was financed in part by Handelsbanken, which has taken over from the Royal Bank of Scotland as Canongate’s bankers, and will enhance its overall annual turnover by over a third.

Buckhalter founded the Surrey-based independent house in 1974 and has grown the specialist fiction publisher that focuses on the US library and large print market into a "highly profitable and respected list", according to Canongate. Turnover for the publisher in 2016 was £3.26m, down slightly from 2015 when it was £3.57m. In 2011, Severn House acquired crime imprint Creme de la Crime.

Following Canongate's purchase of the publisher, Buckhalter and Mandy Shaw will remain in consultancy roles but step down as chairman and company secretary respectively. The four remaining members of the Severn House staff, including publisher Kate Lyall Grant, will continue in their current roles and move into Canongate’s west London offices.

In a connected development, Kate Gibb, until recently Canongate’s finance and operations director, has been promoted to chief operating officer of Canongate and will also sit on the Severn House board of directors alongside Jamie Byng, Canongate’s c.e.o., and David Young, Canongate’s chair, in her expanded role.

Byng said he was "delighted" with the deal because the two companies were "extremely complementary".

“Severn House is a very impressive publishing operation and I have great admiration for Edwin and the manner in which he has grown his company into such a successful and interesting business with an excellent team of staff and a terrific list of authors", Byng said. "When we were presented with this opportunity to buy Severn House, it became clear very quickly that the two companies were extremely complementary and I am delighted, as are the Canongate Board and shareholders, that we have concluded this deal."

He added: "I’m also very pleased that Kate Gibb is moving into the position of chief operating officer. Kate played a critical role in the acquisition of Severn House and her contribution to Canongate continues to grow in so many important ways.”

Buckhalter said "it was immediately obvious" to him that Canongate would provide a "perfect fit" for its lists.

“It is no secret that I am long past retirement age, and recently we have been approached by several companies (for acquisition) on both sides of the Atlantic", Buckhalter said. "But when we were introduced to Canongate, it was immediately obvious that this was a perfect fit for two apparently disparate lists. I have always been impressed by Canongate's creativity, entrepreneurial spirit and fierce independence, and I am confident that their youthful outlook and energy will add new dimensions and potential for our authors."

He added: "With Canongate's expertise, Severn House and its imprint Crème de la Crime will continue to flourish, retaining name and personality. I can't think of a better future or safer hands for the company I started more than forty years ago."

Recent results filed for Canongate revealed that the company's turnover rose marginally to £8.54m in 2016, in another "solid year" which included an “encouraging” 6% increase in backlist sales. Pre-tax profit for the company was also up, 7.6% to £128,506. In July Canongate publisher Jenny Todd announced her decision to leave the company after 12 years, with Byng taking on her direct reports.