‘Growing and global’: IPG survey shows UK independent sector is on the up

A majority of British independent publishers have seen domestic sales surge in the past 12 months, while just under half have experienced spikes in export revenue, according to a recent members’ report from the Independent Publishers Guild (IPG).

"The Independent Publishing Report" was produced for the IPG by independent research agency Shift Insight and supported by Publishers’ Licensing Services (PLS), based on a survey from the trade body’s community.

The IPG’s more than 600 members range from British Book Awards’ (i.e., the Nibbies) reigning Independent Publisher of the Year, Profile Books; north of England-headquartered scholarly powerhouse Emerald Publishing; digital-first fiction house Boldwood Books; the recruitment specialist How2Become; micro-presses including Newcastle’s Zymurgy; and publicly traded Bloomsbury. The organisation’s current publisher of the year, given out at its annual industry awards, is picture-book list Magic Cat, which also won the 2024 Small Publisher of the Year Nibbie.      

The report’s results found that 53% of IPG members had increased sales year-on-year in the home market, more than double the number (24%) who had seen a decline, with the remaining 23% keeping sales broadly level. Nearly a quarter (23%) reported “significant” growth of 11% or more.    

IPG members’ domestic sales are broadly similar to the performance in foreign markets. A smidgeon under half (47%) of respondents said export revenue was up on the previous year, while just 21% reported a contraction. Almost a third (32%) increased their licensing and co-edition sales, while 14% recorded a drop. North America was their largest source of overseas sales, followed by mainland Europe and Australasia.  

Bridget Shine, chief executive of the IPG, said: “Trading conditions have been far from easy for many publishers this year, but our report makes it clear that independent publishing as a whole is in robust health. In the week of the Frankfurt Book Fair it also confirms that IPG members are truly global businesses, with a profile and appeal that stretches far beyond the UK.” 

Perhaps most interestingly, the report underscores the UK indie community’s track record of breaking new voices: nearly half (45%) of independent publishers said first-time authors provided more than 20% of their new titles in their latest financial year. Undoubtedly related to this, growth has been notably higher in frontlist sales versus backlist, where 31% of independent publishers have seen a year-on-year drop in sales.