Simon & Schuster (S&S) and Veen Bosch & Keuning
(VBK) today announced that they have signed an agreement under
which the leading Dutch publisher VBK will become part of S&S,
one of the world’s preeminent publishing houses.
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The acquisition includes all of VBK’s publishers in the
Netherlands and Belgium, as well as sister companies Thinium and
Bookchoice. In S&S, VBK has found a strategic partner to
realise its long-cherished international ambitions while
maintaining autonomy. Terms of the all-cash transaction were not
disclosed.
In recent years, VBK has grown to become the largest book
publisher in the Netherlands and is a distinguished and venerable
collection of imprints, publishing many of the most popular and
acclaimed Dutch and international authors. S&S, which is
celebrating its 100th anniversary this year, has approximately
1,700 employees and publishes 1,300 new titles annually that are
available in more than 200 countries around the world.
Through S&S’s extensive international network of companies
in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and
India, VBK’s authors will be given better opportunities to publish
their work outside the Dutch-speaking region. Importantly, VBK will
retain its independence: the company will continue to operate
autonomously and as such will also maintain its editorial
independence. VBK CEO Geneviève Waldmann will continue to lead the
Dutch business and will join the S&S Leadership Team.
VBK finds in S&S a like-minded partner in the field of
innovation. The scale at which S&S operates offers significant
growth opportunities for VBK in areas such as technology,
production, and distribution. The companies’ shared ambition is
that the work of VBK’s Dutch-language authors will find untapped
audiences on a global scale.
For S&S, the acquisition of VBK represents its first foray
into ownership of a non-English publisher, and fits well in its
strategy to expand its publishing reach in key geographies. Through
VBK, S&S will gain greater access to the Dutch and broader
European markets. The companies aim to provide a better avenue to
sell, produce, and distribute its titles in Europe and to publish
more S&S titles locally.
“We would like to offer our writers a larger and international
platform. By joining S&S, we can expand on this ambition and
our pursuit of further digitisation and innovation. S&S and VBK
are a perfect match. Both publishing houses, which are led by
experienced publishers, have been around for over a century and
serve a broad portfolio of writers. Creativity and entrepreneurship
are shared core values, which are also reflected in the
organizational culture where authors typically work in small teams
with committed editors and collaborators,” says Geneviève Waldmann,
CEO of VBK.
Jonathan Karp, President and CEO of S&S, adds: “In the
discussions with VBK about a possible collaboration, we immediately
noticed that as publishers we share the same values and have the
same way of working. We have great confidence that VBK, under
Geneviève’s leadership, will continue to flourish. Our common goal
is to expand the audience for our authors and their books in an
increasingly international publishing industry. We are very excited
about VBK’s growth opportunities. It will maintain its independence
and operate as an autonomous division within our company. I look
forward to welcoming all VBK colleagues.”
VBK, Thinium and Bookchoice will remain Dutch companies, based
in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Weesp and Antwerp. All employees of the
group, the publishers and sister companies will be included in the
acquisition. Based on the joint belief that employee engagement and
a strong ownership culture are decisive factors in strengthening
the combined publisher, all VBK employees will be able to benefit
from the S&S broad based ownership program.
The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions,
including standard review by competition authorities.
About Simon & Schuster
Simon & Schuster was founded in 1924 by Richard L. Simon and
M. Lincoln Schuster. This year, the publishing house, one of the
global Big Five, celebrates its centennial. The publishing company
is led by Jonathan Karp – President and Chief Executive Officer –
and has numerous well known publishing imprints in its portfolio,
including Simon & Schuster, Scribner, Atria Books, Avid Reader
Press, Gallery Books, Pocket Books, Simon Element and Simon &
Schuster Books for Young Readers. The publishing house specialises
in literary and commercial fiction, non-fiction and children’s
books and reaches a worldwide readership with physical and digital
(both e-books and audio) editions. S&S has 1,700 employees and
publishes 1,300 new titles annually that are available for sale in
more than 200 countries. Bestselling and acclaimed writers
published by Simon & Schuster include Colleen Hoover, Stephen
King, Jesmyn Ward, Bob Woodward, Walter Isaacson, Doris Kearns
Goodwin, Tony Robbins, Annie Proulx, Fredrik Backman, Bob Mortimer,
Judy Blume, Ruth Ware, Hillary Rodham Clinton, Anthony Doerr,
Hannah Grace and Nicci French.
About VBK
Together with Bookchoice and Thinium, Veen Bosch & Keuning
Publishers Group is part of the Shared Stories Group. VBK is the
largest publisher in the Netherlands and has a diversity of
imprints: Alfabet, Ambo|Anthos, AnkhHermes, Atlas Contact, De
Fontein, Houtekiet, KokBoekencentrum, Kosmos, Mozaïek,
Luitingh-Sijthoff, Omniboek, Ten Have, Van Dale, Zomer &
Keuning and Zwartjes & Labovic, some of which have a history
that goes back more than 150 years. The company is led by publisher
Geneviève Waldmann as the CEO of the group. VBK has 280 employees
and publishes 1,500 titles annually in the Netherlands and Belgium.
Portfolio authors include renowned names such as Geert Mak, Lucas
Rijneveld, Murat Isik, Herman Koch, Sacha Bronwasser, Haruki
Murakami, Dan Brown, Anya Niewierra, Charlie Mackesy, Jamie Oliver,
Jeff Kinney, Nicci French, Charlotte Labee, Jan Brokken, Mel Wallis
de Vries, Adriaan van Dis, Jozua Douglas, Nelleke Noordervliet,
Kevin Hassing, Elke Wiss, Mathijs Deen, Coen Verbraak, Zoete
Zusjes, Baantjer, Mensje van Keulen, Jo Claes and Marc de Bel.
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Media inquiries
For VBK Clemens Sassen, HSC, M: +31 (0)6 46 11 11
89, E: clemens@hscomms.nl
For S&S Adam Rothberg, SVP Corporate Communications,
M: 1-917-270-1717, E: adam.rothberg@simonandschuster.com Frank
Jansen, FGS Global, M: +31 (0) 62 15 42 369, E:
frank.jansen@fgsglobal.com