We also make decisions regarding potential acquisitions or divestments. The strategic direction is reassessed yearly to factor in new trends, risks and opportunities.
Even though we encourage local management, we also see a strength in collaborating in areas such as governance, capital structure, IT Security & privacy, M&A, production, sustainability, publishing rights and above all through knowledge transfer.
Our strategic focus areas for the years to come include profitable growth, digitalisation and sustainability. The publishing houses continue their endeavours to publish high-quality literature and grow their shares of selected market niches.
Over the last few years Bonnier Books has grown with increased profitability. The business has been streamlined by divesting certain operations which were not aligned with our desired offering and geographical footprint. Meanwhile, we have expanded our portfolio of publishing houses through acquisitions and invested in BookBeat which has increased our exposure to the fast-growing audio segment. We are also strengthening our digital in-house competencies to ensure an appropriate IT architecture needed to deliver on our strategy. Last but certainly not least, Bonnier Books’ dedication to contribute to sustainable development is evident in our commitment to the Science Based Targets initiative, and more initiatives will follow.
Board representation
Bonnier Books governs our businesses through each business’ Board of Directors. The chair of the Board is always a representative of Bonnier Books and the board members are approved by Bonnier Books’ CEO.
We want to embrace the diversity of our businesses and create the best conditions for their continued success. ‘The Bonnier Booksʼ Way’ outlines our overarching approach to doing business.
The book industry is local, with both tastes and market structure differing between geographies. It is important for us to recruit and retain the right individuals with knowledge of these differences, and to create structures, both centrally and locally, that allow talented people to flourish. In the coming years, we are looking to provide tailored training to current and prospective publishers and expand our local presence through regional hubs in our markets.
With our long history, we know that our actions will shape our business and society in the long-term: decades and maybe even centuries from now. We are aware of the challenges in our industry: freedom of expression, diversity and responsible production, to name a few. Bonnier Books is in the process of addressing these challenges. Over the last few years, we have set scientifically based climate targets and established structures for sustainability reporting to measure our progress.
Bonnier Books’ businesses operate independently with managers who are free to make their own decisions to reach clearly defined strategic targets. Bonnier Books provides strategic direction and a governance structure to better realise the value in each business. We also make decisions on potential acquisitions and divestments. The strategic direction is reassessed yearly to factor in new trends, risks and opportunities.
Decentralisation requires and enables focus, which is a prerequisite for long-term profitability. For us this means that we should always remember to be the best player, rather than the biggest player. It also means that we should always strive to be the best in our selected niches, rather than average performers across the board.
While we are decentralised, we also see strength in collaboration within Bonnier Books on areas where local differences are smaller. This includes areas such as governance, capital structure, acquisitions, IT, production, sustainability and publishing rights. With our mix of businesses, ranging from mature market leaders to nimble start-ups, we know that we can draw strength from each other.
We aim for simplicity and clarity in everything we do, and we aim to ensure that responsibility and mandate are always linked. Our ambition is to be curious and interested in new perspectives while maintaining our focus. Everything we do should be characterised by a strong will to get things done.
Bonnier Books incorporates a wide variety of publishing houses and book retailers/services across Northern Europe. We are currently present in Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway, Germany, Poland and the United Kingdom.
Bonnier Books is owned by Bonnier Group.
Visiting address
Sveavägen 56
SE-111 34
Stockholm
Postal address
PO Box 3159
SE-103 63
Stockholm
Delivery address
Luntmakargatan 45
SE-111 34
Stockholm
Phone
+46(0)8-696 80 00
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