Three years after New England— based Red Wheel/Weiser purchased West Coast publisher Conari Press and moved it east, the editorial staff at Conari is returning to its roots. At the beginning of next year, the entire Red Wheel/Weiser Conari editorial department will relocate to San Francisco, where special sales director Brenda Knight is already based. At the same time, Red Wheel/Weiser Conari will consolidate its Maine operations department and the Boston sales and marketing department in a new office in Newburyport, Mass.
The timing of the decision to create a West Coast/East Coast operation was hastened by the loss of the company's lease for its Boston office at the end of the year. Several editorial staffers have chosen not to leave New England. In addition to replacing them, president Michael Kerber plans to add several new positions, bringing the total to 21.
Since many Conari authors are located on the West Coast, said publisher Jan Johnson, "we will be able to tap into all of the Bay Area energy, which fits our publishing program so well." Kerber said the move "will put us in a better position to acquire a company. We don't have anything in play, but every company we've considered recently has been on the West Coast." Johnson will head the California-bound editorial team, while Kerber will remain in Massachusetts.
In related news, Knight has been promoted to associate publisher, where she will help expand the company's gift book line while continuing to oversee the company's gift reps. The gift market now accounts for about 20% of Red Wheel's revenue. Going forward, said Kerber, "we'll be developing books specifically for the gift market. We want to do books that are designed and developed in a different size with more color." The first gift line will debut in fall 2006.
