Two Blackwells See Red: U.K. Bookseller/Publisher May Be Sold

By Amanda-Jane Doran, PW Daily for Booksellers -- Publishers Weekly, 1/16/2002

The historic Blackwell academic bookselling and publishing business is facing a rift at board level, which could result in the sale of the 120-year-old British company.

The split in the board is between Toby Blackwell, the retired chairman, and his nephew Nigel Blackwell, the present chairman. Toby Blackwell favors an immediate sale of the businesses, whereas Nigel favors restructuring with the intention of taking the company public within the next two years.

Toby Blackwell holds 30.1% of the shares and appears to have the support of voting shareholders, giving him a further 12.5%. Blackwell Ltd., the bookselling business, has 9.3% of the voting shares in Blackwell's publishing business. Toby Blackwell will lobby for support for the sale at the next Blackwell Ltd. board meeting on January 24.

Meanwhile, Blackwell Publishers, led by Nigel Blackwell, has countered by offering to provide "greater liquidity for shareholders" following a corporate finance review. The company declined to comment.

Blackwell, which opened its first store in Oxford in 1879, now operates 70 bookshops across the U.K. Blackwell expanded into book and journal publishing in the 1920s and is now one of the biggest private companies in Britain, valued at approximately £400 million ($576 million).

Blackwell publishes 660 journals a year and more than 600 textbooks. Total sales for 2000 were £141 million ($203 million), although profits fell by £2.3 million ($3.3 million) to £10.9 million ($15.7 million) following asset writedowns. There was also a £10-million ($14.4 million) loss on Web investments.

If the company is put up for sale, acquisition candidates include Taylor & Francis, Vivendi, Pearson and John Wiley.

This article originally appeared in the January 16, 2002 issue of PW Daily for Booksellers. For more information about PW Daily, including a sample and subscription information, click here.