Sweet Cherry celebrates 21% turnover growth

Leicester-based independent publishing house Sweet Cherry has reported an increase in turnover of 21% in 2021.

By the end of September, sales of its books reached £1.4m, exceeding last year’s million-pound milestone of £1.1m. The children’s press’ UK sales soared by almost 55%, increasing to £843,000, aided by increasing demand for its CBeebies Numberblocks maths and Alphablocks phonics activity books for home learning. 

US sales also grew by 12% following the launch of a new picture book series by New York-based yoga teacher Lauren Hoffmeier, which featured in the New York Times.

One of the most significant areas of growth was in foreign rights sales, which increased by nearly 45% to £135,000, attributed to to Sweet Cherry’s growing list of illustrated and easy-to-read editions of literary classics, including Sherlock Holmes, Dickens, Austen and Shakespeare, which are accompanied by free English audiobooks.

Managing director Abdul Thadha said he was "so proud of Sweet Cherry’s sales growth year on year". He said: "In 2020, we hit our first million and I’m delighted to see our Leicester business defeat the pandemic with further growth in 2021."

The press recently launched two imprints to celebrates its 10th anniversary.