Belt-Tightening in Canada

By Joshua Kerbel -- Publishers Weekly, 12/10/2008 11:24:00 AM

While some in Canadian publishing circles believe that business will not be as bad in that country as in the U.S., others have already taken belt-tightening measures. Last week, Corus Entertainment, the parent company of Kids Can Press, made staffing changes that included the departure of v-p of sales and marketing Judy Brunsek. According to Sally Tindal, director of communications for Corus, a review of KCP’s operations resulted in shifted job responsibilities and the elimination of three positions—one in sales and marketing, one in editorial and one in production. With the changes, Lisa Lyons, president of KCP, will add sales and marketing to her responsibilities, with the director of sales and the director of marketing reporting directly to her.

Additionally, Thomas Allen Publishers, part of Thomas Allen & Son, is "postponing" the release of most books on their spring 2009 list until next fall. Requests for comments on this change were not returned by the company. Over at HarperCollins Canada, CEO David Kent confirmed that they “have a corporate-wide freeze on salaries announced last week,” but added, “Other than the obvious belt-tightening objectives, we haven't made any draconian steps.”

Jamie Broadhurst, v-p of marketing at Raincoast Books, said the restructuring implemented by the company in January has positioned it well for the downturn. “I would stress that although there is definitely a downturn in Christmas sales nationally for some of our major customers, there is also very real regional strengths, especially here in the west. Some western Canadian customers are reporting record holiday sales.” Both Kent and Broadhurst are pretty bullish on the power of children’s books in this economic downturn, and the economic benefits of having the right books in the right places. “When parents cut back on spending, the last place they usually do is on their kids," said Kent. “We have some fabulous kids' classics that have been holding up well.”