Raincoast Books
Encyclopedia
Raincoast Books is a Canadian
book distribution and wholesale company. Based in Vancouver
, British Columbia
, Raincoast was founded by Mark Stanton and Allan MacDougall in 1979 as a consignment wholesaler that shared overhead, warehouse space and staff with the pair's sales agency, Stanton & MacDougall. Today, Raincoast has over 90 employees and three divisions: Raincoast Distribution, Publishers Group Canada, and BookExpress.
and Canada
. Companies distributed by Raincoast include Chronicle Books
, Drawn & Quarterly
, Hay House
, Lonely Planet
, Moleskine
, and New Harbinger. Raincoast was awarded Book Distributor of the Year by the Canada Booksellers Association in 2004, 2005, and 2006.
, Ontario
, PGC distributes independently owned book publishing houses including Grove Atlantic, New World Library
and Egmont Books
in Canada.
bookstores and retailers. BookExpress carries bestselling books from publishers including Random House Canada, Penguin Books
Canada, HarperCollins
Canada, H.B. Fenn, Andrews McMeel, Scholastic Canada, Diamond Book Distribution
and Firefly.
book publisher. The Raincoast publishing program produced a range of fiction and non-fiction titles for both adults and children. Authors who published work with Raincoast included Anne Fleming
, Alison Pick
, Colin McAdam, Nick Bantock
, George Bowering
, Paul William Roberts
, Naim Kattan
, Roy Miki
and Bill Gaston
. As a publisher, the company was noted for using high amounts of recycled paper in their books. On January 7, 2008, Raincoast announced that they would cease to publish new books due to the rise in the Canadian dollar
.. Raincoast also ceased to be the Canadian publisher of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter
books in 2010.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
book distribution and wholesale company. Based in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...
, Raincoast was founded by Mark Stanton and Allan MacDougall in 1979 as a consignment wholesaler that shared overhead, warehouse space and staff with the pair's sales agency, Stanton & MacDougall. Today, Raincoast has over 90 employees and three divisions: Raincoast Distribution, Publishers Group Canada, and BookExpress.
Raincoast Distribution
Raincoast Distribution provides Canadian representation to general trade and gift publishers from the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Companies distributed by Raincoast include Chronicle Books
Chronicle Books
Chronicle Books is a San Francisco-based American publisher of books for adults and children.The company was established in 1968 by Phelps Dewey, an executive with Chronicle Publishing Company, then-publisher of the San Francisco Chronicle. In 1999 it was bought by Nion McEvoy, great-grandson of...
, Drawn & Quarterly
Drawn and Quarterly
Drawn and Quarterly is a Canadian comic book publishing company, headed by Chris Oliveros, and based in Montreal, Quebec. Its focus is on graphic novels and underground or alternative comics. Drawn and Quarterly was also the title of the company's flagship quarterly anthology during the 1990s...
, Hay House
Hay House
Hay House is a New Thought and Self-help publisher. It was founded in 1987 by author Louise Hay, when she self-published her books Heal Your Body and You Can Heal Your Life...
, Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet is the largest travel guide book and digital media publisher in the world. The company is owned by BBC Worldwide, which bought a 75% share from the founders Maureen and Tony Wheeler in 2007 and the final 25% in February 2011...
, Moleskine
Moleskine
Moleskine is a brand of notebooks, planners, diaries, sketchbooks and albums manufactured by Moleskine Srl, an Italian company based in Milan...
, and New Harbinger. Raincoast was awarded Book Distributor of the Year by the Canada Booksellers Association in 2004, 2005, and 2006.
Publishers Represented by Raincoast Distribution
- AMACOM
- Beginning Press
- Berrett-Koehler Publishers
- Bilingual Books, Inc.Bilingual Books, Inc.Bilingual Books, Inc. is a privately-held publishing company that develops foreign language learning products. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the company publishes interactive computer software, books, audio programs and phrase guides for 20 different languages.- History :Bilingual Books,...
- Blue Apple Books
- Chronicle BooksChronicle BooksChronicle Books is a San Francisco-based American publisher of books for adults and children.The company was established in 1968 by Phelps Dewey, an executive with Chronicle Publishing Company, then-publisher of the San Francisco Chronicle. In 1999 it was bought by Nion McEvoy, great-grandson of...
- Drawn & QuarterlyDrawn and QuarterlyDrawn and Quarterly is a Canadian comic book publishing company, headed by Chris Oliveros, and based in Montreal, Quebec. Its focus is on graphic novels and underground or alternative comics. Drawn and Quarterly was also the title of the company's flagship quarterly anthology during the 1990s...
- Gibbs Smith
- Hay HouseHay HouseHay House is a New Thought and Self-help publisher. It was founded in 1987 by author Louise Hay, when she self-published her books Heal Your Body and You Can Heal Your Life...
- Laurence King
- Lonely PlanetLonely PlanetLonely Planet is the largest travel guide book and digital media publisher in the world. The company is owned by BBC Worldwide, which bought a 75% share from the founders Maureen and Tony Wheeler in 2007 and the final 25% in February 2011...
- Magnetic Poetry
- MoleskineMoleskineMoleskine is a brand of notebooks, planners, diaries, sketchbooks and albums manufactured by Moleskine Srl, an Italian company based in Milan...
- The Mountaineers Books
- New Harbinger Publications
- Owlkids Books
- Parenting Press
- Pop Sandbox
- Portable PressUncle John's Bathroom ReaderUncle John's Bathroom Readers are a series of books containing trivia and short essays on miscellaneous topics, ostensibly for reading in the bathroom. The books are credited to the Bathroom Readers' Institute, though Uncle John is a real person, and are published by Portable Press, an imprint of...
- Princeton Architectural PressPrinceton Architectural PressPrinceton Architectural Press is a leading publisher of architecture and design books, with over 500 titles on its backlist. It was founded in 1981 by Kevin Lippert in Princeton, NJ and moved to New York City in 1985. Since 1996, Princeton Architectural Press has been distributed in the...
- Quirk BooksQuirk BooksQuirk Books is an independent book publisher based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States.The company was founded by David Borgenicht, co-author of The Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook, which has spawned sequels, as well as a TBS television series and a board game. Quirk develops "Coffee...
- Raincoast Books
- Silver Dolphin
- Thunder Bay PressThunder Bay PressThunder Bay Press is a publisher known for its Then and Now books. It publishes nonfiction promotional books, often containing specially commissioned photography. Subjects include cooking, sports, history, transportation and nature. It is owned by Baker & Taylor Publishing Group....
Publishers Group Canada
Publishers Group Canada (PGC) was acquired by Raincoast Books in 2000. Based in TorontoToronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, PGC distributes independently owned book publishing houses including Grove Atlantic, New World Library
New World Library
New World Library is a San Francisco Bay Area-based American publisher of books for adults and children. The press focuses on publishing books concerning the mind, the body and the spirit....
and Egmont Books
Egmont Publishing
The Egmont Group is a media corporation founded and rooted in Copenhagen, Denmark. The business area of Egmont has traditionally been magazine publishing but has over the years evolved to comprise media generally....
in Canada.
BookExpress
BookExpress is a wholesale division supplying CanadianCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
bookstores and retailers. BookExpress carries bestselling books from publishers including Random House Canada, Penguin Books
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
Canada, HarperCollins
HarperCollins
HarperCollins is a publishing company owned by News Corporation. It is the combination of the publishers William Collins, Sons and Co Ltd, a British company, and Harper & Row, an American company, itself the result of an earlier merger of Harper & Brothers and Row, Peterson & Company. The worldwide...
Canada, H.B. Fenn, Andrews McMeel, Scholastic Canada, Diamond Book Distribution
Diamond Comic Distributors
Diamond Comic Distributors, Inc. is the largest comic book distributor serving North America. They transport comic books from both big and small comic book publishers, or suppliers, to the retailers. Diamond dominates the direct market in the United States, and has exclusive arrangements with most...
and Firefly.
Raincoast Publishing
Between 1995 and 2008, Raincoast Books was also a CanadianCanada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
book publisher. The Raincoast publishing program produced a range of fiction and non-fiction titles for both adults and children. Authors who published work with Raincoast included Anne Fleming
Anne Fleming (writer)
Anne Fleming is a Canadian fiction writer.Born in Toronto, Ontario, she attended the University of Waterloo, first enrolling in a geography program then moving to English studies. In 1991, she moved to British Columbia. She teaches at the University of British Columbia Okanagan campus in Kelowna...
, Alison Pick
Alison Pick
Alison Pick is a Canadian novelist and poet. She has published two novels and two collections of poetry.Pick was born in 1975 in Toronto, Ontario and grew up in Kitchener. In 1999 she graduated from the University of Guelph with a B.A...
, Colin McAdam, Nick Bantock
Nick Bantock
Nick Bantock is a British artist and author based in Saltspring Island, British Columbia. Bantock is well-known for his popular series, The Griffin and Sabine Trilogy, and for making collage popular...
, George Bowering
George Bowering
George Harry Bowering, OC, OBC is a prolific Canadian novelist, poet, historian, and biographer. He has served as Canada's Parliamentary Poet Laureate....
, Paul William Roberts
Paul William Roberts
Paul William Roberts is a Canadian writer who lives in Toronto, Ontario.Born in Wales and educated at Exeter College, Oxford, where he gained a second in English Language and Literature, Roberts moved permanently to Canada in 1980...
, Naim Kattan
Naïm Kattan
Naïm Kattan, is a Canadian novelist, essayist and critic of Iraqi Jewish origin.Born in Baghdad, Iraq, he studied at the University of Baghdad from 1945 until 1947 and at the Sorbonne from 1947 until 1951. He emigrated to Montreal in 1954...
, Roy Miki
Roy Miki
Roy Akira Miki, CM, FRSC is a Canadian poet and scholar.Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba to second generation Japanese-Canadian parents, he attended the University of Manitoba, the University of British Columbia, and Simon Fraser University, where he is currently a professor emeritus. He lives in...
and Bill Gaston
Bill Gaston
Bill Gaston is a Canadian novelist, playwright and short story writer.Gaston grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Toronto, Ontario, and North Vancouver, British Columbia....
. As a publisher, the company was noted for using high amounts of recycled paper in their books. On January 7, 2008, Raincoast announced that they would cease to publish new books due to the rise in the Canadian dollar
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
.. Raincoast also ceased to be the Canadian publisher of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter
Harry Potter
Harry Potter is a series of seven fantasy novels written by the British author J. K. Rowling. The books chronicle the adventures of the adolescent wizard Harry Potter and his best friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, all of whom are students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...
books in 2010.