Small Is Beautiful

SCB Distributors owner Aaron Silverman compares his relatively small full-service distributor with "PGW the way they were in 1987." Whether 13-year-old SCB, which, like PGW, is located in California, can grow as large as the U.S.'s number-one distributor over the course of the next 15 years is anyone's guess. But Silverman does anticipate sales of $10 million in the next two years.

Currently, SCB represents 82 publishers. "We have some single-book publishers, but they face a much higher bar," Silverman said. "The book has to be on a subject we know we can sell. We get 10 to 30 solicitations a month from single-book publishers, but we take on only five a year." Given the recent troubles at LPC Group and Seven Hills, Silverman is quick to note, "We are financially solvent. As far as I'm concerned, our business is very solid. We're very judicious in bringing on new publishers." Buddhist publisher Parallax Press in Albany, Calif., has been with SCB the longest, since 1990. Earlier this year, SCB signed several clients that left LPC when it closed its Chicago warehouse: Greenery Press in Emeryville, Calif., which publishes erotica; Circlet Press in Cambridge, Mass., which does erotic and gay and lesbian-themed science fiction and fantasy; and U.K. publisher Codex Books. In addition to erotica, about a quarter of the SCB list consists of books on cinema and film. The distributor rounds out its list with Pet Friendly Publications, which does books on traveling with a pet. Silverman tries not to be overextended in any one category and to select new clients that complement the publishers on his roster.