Hit Obama books turn city publisher into Jamie Bling

Published on Wednesday 4 November 2009 08:54

WITH his two-day-old stubble and wild hair, Jamie Byng may look like he has just stepped off a desert island.

But, despite his unkempt look, the Edinburgh publisher is riding a huge wave of success which is making him millions of pounds – and it is all thanks to US president Barack Obama.

The enfant terrible of British publishing has just announced a record turnover of 7.35 million in just six months.

That success is being driven by huge sales of the US President's two autobiographies, Dreams From My Father and The Audacity of Hope.

The 40-year-old discovered the works of the then aspiring Democrat politician three years ago, before he rose to worldwide fame. Snapping up the UK and Commonwealth publishing rights may yet be the best decision he ever made.

Sales are eventually expected to pass two million – boosted by an innovative new e-book edition for iPods – and have put him on course to beat last year's profits of 2.6 million.

Although coming from a wealthy family – who helped him buy his company, Canongate Books, when he was 25 – he is now on course to become a wealthy man in his own right.

Mr Byng, who cut his entrepreneurial teeth on the Edinburgh nightclub scene, says the "Barack bounce" looks set to reap him rewards for "many years to come".

He said: "Being the publisher has been hugely significant for Canongate.

Not only are his books of great quality and importance, but they look set to sell for many years to come."

Canongate's deal to sell the Obama books has been declared by commentators as one of the 100 defining cultural moments of the noughties.

This year's sales success comes after the Obama books were credited with firing Canongate's profits last year, as they rose by more than 850 per cent.

The firm is investing more in e-books as it feels the "digital revolution" will have far-reaching impacts on the book industry.

The firm – which also revealed it has lost more than 170,000 due to the collapse of Woolworths – previously counted its biggest success as the Booker Prize winning novel Life of Pi.

It is preparing for further success towards the end of this year with releases including The Pocket Book of Boosh, based on cult TV show The Mighty Boosh, Nick Cave's The Death of Bunny Munro and the first book version of the YouTube phenomenon Simon's Cat.

Mr Byng said: "The group is a tightly run, focused and well-financed business, ambitious in its plans and unafraid to innovate and experiment despite the uncertainties within the industry. Our list has never been stronger and we have an extremely talented, experienced and committed team."

&#149 http://www.canongate.net/