The Quarto Group and Quarto Distribution Services have announced plans to distribute Clever Publishing’s titles in the U.S., marking the Russian children’s publisher’s entry into the North American market.
Clever, which launched in 2010 in Moscow, specializes in books and games for readers ages one through seven. The debut list is set for fall 2018 and will feature 50 titles, including Clever’s bestselling mini board books and flash cards, and Look-and-Find books. The house has a backlist of 1,000 titles, and runs both a bricks-and-mortar and online store in Russia. With 10 million books sold throughout Europe and Asia, it is one of the fastest growing European publishers.
John Groton, director of distribution services at the Quarto Group, told PW the partnership emerged from an unscheduled meeting between the publishers at BookExpo this past June in New York City. “We were very impressed with their presentation,” he said. Though Russia is its primary market, Clever has had books translated into more than 25 languages. Groton also spoke of a previous connection between the two publishers, as Clever has published co-editions of a selection of Quarto’s QED and Wide Eyed Editions titles, including atlases and encyclopedias.
Quarto currently handles North American distribution for some 25 publishers, and continues to expand its children’s list. Groton said, “We’ve grown our children’s publishing greatly in the last four years, with Frances Lincoln, Wide Eyed Editions, and Walter Foster Jr. It’s the fastest growing part of our publishing program, so this [partnership] is a great addition.”
Alexander Alperovich, CEO and co-founder of Clever, told PW, “We thought about the U.S. market for several years, doing thorough research and discussing market trends with our U.S. publishing partners. Last year, we decided we were ready to test the waters, so we developed the entry strategy and went ahead.” Alperovich said his team believes the time is right for expansion, saying, “We saw that interactive, board, and educational books for younger kids were showing considerable growth and that there was a market opportunity. Moreover, we saw several successful examples of European publishers entering the U.S. market that proved that the American customer was looking for some fresh ideas. And we already had a large backlist and felt comfortable that we would have enough content not only for a launch in the U.S. market, but also to support sustainable growth going forward.”
Alperovich said of the debut titles, “We have carefully looked through our backlist and chosen those titles that were bestsellers both in the Russian market as well as in the international arena in terms of foreign rights sales. And we have also consulted with our U.S. editorial consultant, William Luckey, who has done tremendous work compiling and customizing the list.” Publicity efforts include a U.S. website with a full catalogue, and social media, digital, and trade marketing.
Clever plans to open a U.S. office in New York City in January. The team will bring on three to five new employees in 2018, growing to about 20 employees within the next three years. Alperovich said the team is also considering the possibility of opening a Clever retail store in the U.S.
The new line will be previewed for the first time at BookExpo 2018. Tony Davis, director of sales and marketing for North America, will be highlighting the fall list at the Quarto booth, as well as hosting two book giveaways.
