Brodart

What Brodart does

Brodart Co. is a privately held, full-service library solutions provider founded in 1939 and headquartered in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. The company originated from founder Arthur Brody's invention of the plastic book jacket cover while a student at Columbia University, and over 85 years has built a vertically integrated offering for public libraries, K-12 school libraries, and multi-branch library systems across North America and the Pacific Rim. Its product portfolio spans four interconnected lines: Books & Library Services (collection development, cataloging, and shelf-ready processing with access to millions of titles from 80,000+ publishers and 2+ million books stocked in warehouses), Supplies & Furnishings (50,000+ products distributed through shopbrodart.com and brodart.ca), McNaughton Subscription Services (McNaughton Lease and Purchase Plus recurring programs with allowances-based ordering, six-month replacement guarantees, and lost/stolen protection), and Bibz Analytics (a web-based predictive collection development tool that ingests circulation data from customer ILS systems to forecast branch-level demand for new titles).

The company monetizes through a mix of recurring subscription revenue (McNaughton Lease/Purchase Plus), transactional book and supply sales, and shelf-ready processing services. Pricing is not publicly disclosed; quotes are provided through dedicated field sales representatives, inside sales teams with service-specific phone lines (Books, McNaughton, Supplies), and proprietary self-serve e-commerce platforms. Customer acquisition is sales-led, supported by content marketing, case studies, a referral program (McNaughton Refer a Friend), and merchandising materials that libraries use to drive patron engagement with subscribed collections. Bibz Analytics integrates directly into the free Bibz online ordering system, providing a data-driven add-on that uses historical circulation patterns and title attributes to generate circulation rank predictions, representing the company's primary technology differentiator.

Brodart operates without disclosed institutional ownership, funding rounds, mergers, or leadership transitions in available materials, suggesting a stable, founder-family-controlled private corporation. The company employs 501-1,000 people and serves as one of the most established players in the North American library supply ecosystem, with brand longevity, publisher relationships, and integrated service workflows functioning as the principal competitive barriers.

Name

Brodart

Legal name

Brodart Co.

Website

https://brodart.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1939

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

501–1,000 employees

Short description

Brodart Co., founded in 1939 and headquartered in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, is a privately held library solutions provider serving public libraries, K-12 schools, and library systems across North America and the Pacific Rim with books, shelf-ready processing, supplies, furniture, subscription services, and predictive analytics.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Library Supply and Collection Development Services

NAICS

Book, Periodical, and Newspaper Merchant Wholesalers (424920), Libraries and Archives (51921)

SIC

Wholesale-Paper & Paper Products (5110), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961)

akta.pro primary industry

Library & Institutional Supplies Distribution (CRAOALAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Library Collections & Cataloging Services (Acquisitions, Metadata, Circulation) (EDAEAGAE), Digital Library & Electronic Resources Operations (e-Resources, Repositories, Licensing) (EDAEAGAF)

Keywords

• Library supply services
• Book distribution
• Library furniture
• Collection development
• Subscription book leasing

Headquarters

HQ city

Williamsport

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Books & Library Services: Sale and distribution of books to libraries, including collection development, cataloging, and processing services. Brodart offers millions of titles from over 80,000 publishers with online tools, bibliographic support, and dedicated consulting.
2. Supplies & Furnishings: Sale of essential library supplies and high-quality library furniture through e-commerce platforms (shopbrodart.com for US, brodart.ca for Canada). Products include book repair essentials, custom signage, and library furnishings.
3. McNaughton Subscription Services: Lease and purchase subscription programs for popular books. Libraries can lease multiple copies of newly released books (McNaughton Lease) or purchase books for permanent collections (Purchase Plus). Includes shelf-ready delivery, cataloging, and processing.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Brodart equips libraries with books, furniture, and supplies through three interconnected service lines: Books & Library Services (collection development, cataloging, processing, and online ordering with access to millions of titles from 80,000+ publishers), Supplies & Furnishings (50,000+ physical library products sold through dedicated US and Canadian e-commerce sites), and McNaughton Subscription Services (lease and purchase subscription plans for popular titles). The Bibz Analytics platform augments these offerings with data-driven circulation rank predictions integrated directly to library ILS systems.

Product overview

Brodart is a full-service library solutions provider offering a portfolio of interconnected products and services. The core offering includes Books & Library Services (collection development, cataloging, and processing with access to millions of titles from 80,000+ publishers), Supplies & Furnishings (50,000+ products via shopbrodart.com), and McNaughton® Subscription Services. The McNaughton subscription program includes McNaughton Lease (rotating book leasing with return options) and Purchase Plus (permanent collection purchasing), with specialized plans for Adult, Young Adult, Children's, Graphic Novels, DVD, Audiobound, and Spanish language titles. Bibz Analytics serves as a data-driven add-on tool that integrates with McNaughton's free online ordering system (Bibz™) to provide circulation-based predictive analytics for title selection. Additional branded programs like Hot Off The Press, My Lucky Day, and Community Share support merchandising and outreach initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• McNaughton® Subscription Services: Book leasing and subscription program for libraries — the original leasing program for libraries since 1975. Allows libraries to lease multiple copies of newly released books and return them when popularity fades.
• Bibz Analytics
• Purchase Plus
• McNaughton Lease

Products and services

• Books & Library Services Collection development, cataloging, processing, and online ordering service delivering millions of titles from 80,000+ publishers to public and K-12 libraries, with online selection tools, bibliographic support, and dedicated field sales consulting.
• Supplies & Furnishings Over 50,000 physical library products including furniture, custom signage, and book repair essentials, sold via e-commerce storefronts shopbrodart.com (US) and brodart.ca (Canada) to libraries, schools, and businesses.
• McNaughton Lease Subscription leasing program letting libraries lease multiple copies of newly released popular titles and return them when demand wanes, with allowances-based ordering, lost/stolen protection, free shipping, six-month replacement guarantee, and a 20% retention option.
• Purchase Plus Subscription-based purchase program letting libraries build permanent collections of hot titles at a set annual price, with format-specific plans including Adult, Young Adult, Children's Hardcover, Paperback, DVD, and Audiobound.
• McNaughton Hardcover Graphic Novels Plan Subscription plan of hardcover graphic novels for children, teens, and adults, allowing libraries to expand graphic novel collections timed to popularity cycles.
• Bibz Analytics Web-based data analytics tool for librarians that ingests ILS circulation data and branch attributes to assign circulation rank predictions to new and forthcoming titles, integrating directly with the Bibz ordering system.

Quantifiable outcome

• Free shipping on subscription orders
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

AI capability2 records

Feature1 record

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Demco: Demco is a major supplier of library furnishings, supplies, processing equipment, and programming materials to public, school, and academic libraries. It competes directly with Brodart's Supplies & Furnishings division (shopbrodart.com) on furniture, signage, repair supplies, and processing services.
• Baker & Taylor: Baker & Taylor is the largest wholesale distributor of books, video, and music to libraries worldwide. It is the most direct competitor to Brodart's Books & Library Services division, serving the same public and school library customers with comparable collection development, cataloging, and processing offerings.
• Quality Books Inc. Quality Books is an independent distributor providing book acquisition, collection development, and cataloging services to public and school libraries. It is comparable to Brodart as a smaller-scale, library-focused wholesaler offering selection-list and shelf-ready services.
• Gaylord Brothers: Gaylord Brothers supplies library furniture, equipment, archival supplies, and processing materials to public and academic libraries. It is a long-standing direct competitor to Brodart's Supplies & Furnishings business, with overlapping e-commerce and dedicated-rep sales models.
• Perma-Bound Books: Perma-Bound is a library book binding and book distribution specialist serving K-12 school libraries with reinforced bindings, processing, and collection services. It competes with Brodart's K-12 School Services division for school library budgets and offers a similar shelf-ready model.
• Ingram Library Services: Ingram Library Services, part of Ingram Content Group, supplies print books, e-books, and processing services to public, school, and academic libraries. It competes head-to-head with Brodart on collection development, shelf-ready services, and bibliographic processing, and offers a broader parent company distribution network.

Emerging players

• OverDrive: OverDrive operates the leading digital library lending platform (Libby/OverDrive app), distributing e-books and audiobooks to public libraries and schools. It is the primary digital-format substitute competing for library collection budgets against Brodart's print-focused offerings, though it does not directly compete in physical books or furnishings.
• Hoopla Digital: Hoopla provides on-demand digital lending (e-books, audiobooks, comics, video, music) to public library patrons. It is an emerging digital substitute competing for the same library acquisition budget that Brodart addresses with physical book subscriptions and McNaughton Lease.

Regional players

• Middleman-forte Inc. / The Library Store: The Library Store (Middleman-forte) is a regional library supplies and processing distributor serving primarily Midwest and East Coast public and school libraries. While smaller in scale than Brodart, it competes in the same library-supplies and processing niche with overlapping product categories.

Broad incumbents

• EBSCO Information Services: EBSCO provides research databases, e-books, discovery services, and library management software to academic, public, and school libraries. While not a direct print book distributor, EBSCO overlaps with Brodart in serving the library channel with subscription-based content and analytics tools adjacent to Brodart's Bibz offering.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BrodartPulse
• Facebookfacebook.com/brodart
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/brodart

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Brodart