The London-based publisher’s shift to a younger and more diverse audience has seen revenues grow by 12.5pc
The Folio Society’s books no longer appeal just to old white men after the London publisher embraced new genres and more diverse authors, its chief executive has said.
Joanna Reynolds said a decision to branch out from traditional classics to fantasy and science fiction had helped the business achieve consistent profits after years of losses.
Since taking over the upmarket bookseller in 2016, Ms Reynolds sought to move the business away from being a “traditional, old-fashioned book club”, which had been “losing money for six years”.
“When I came in, the average age of our customers was 60-plus,” she said. “They were mainly white men and the UK was our biggest market. You had to be a member to buy books.