Little, Brown and Company
Little, Brown and Company is a publishing imprint under Hachette Book Group, releasing fiction and nonfiction across genres via sub-brands including Back Bay Books, Mulholland Books, Voracious, Little Brown Spark, and Algonquin. It serves general readers through retail, e-commerce, and book club channels.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1837
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Little, Brown and Company does
Little, Brown and Company is a US trade book publishing imprint established in 1837 and currently operated as a division of Hachette Book Group, the US publishing arm of the French-listed Hachette Livre (the third-largest publisher globally). The imprint publishes fiction and nonfiction across more than ten genres, including Children's Books, Cooking, Fiction, Gardening, Mind/Body/Spirit, Mystery and Thriller, Nonfiction, Romance, Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Teen and Young Adult, and Travel. Its catalog is anchored by long-standing relationships with multiple bestselling and literary-prize-adjacent authors such as Malcolm Gladwell, David Sedaris, Donna Tartt, Julia Alvarez, James Patterson, Madeline Miller, Attica Locke, Walter Mosley, and Kerry Washington.
The imprint's product architecture is organized as a multi-brand ecosystem: Back Bay Books covers literary fiction and nonfiction, Little Brown Spark focuses on self-help and personal development, Mulholland Books specializes in crime, thriller, and suspense, Voracious targets food and cooking content, and Algonquin Books handles literary fiction and regional titles. Distribution runs through three principal channels — direct-to-consumer sales via the Hachette Book Group e-commerce storefront (with a newsletter-driven 20% off promotional lever), third-party physical and online retailers including Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and independent bookstores, and a dedicated Book Club Hub for organized reading groups with reading-group guides and curated selections. Marketing combines email/newsletter, organic social (Facebook, Twitter/X, Instagram), author events, and editorial content marketing such as book lists and author interviews.
Revenue is generated primarily through one-time unit sales of titles across formats (hardcover, paperback, e-book) under wholesale and direct-retail arrangements. Pricing is variable by title and format, with promotional discounts available to newsletter subscribers. The imprint does not publicly disclose standalone revenue or financial figures; the firmographic dataset records 501-1,000 employees at the Hachette Book Group level rather than for the imprint specifically, and parent-company financials are reported only at the consolidated Hachette Livre level. Customer segments include general consumer readers (primary), book club and reading-group participants, and teen/young adult readers, with a horizontal segmentation approach spanning the full adult trade spectrum.
Little, Brown and Company firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Little, Brown and Company
- Legal name
- Little, Brown and Company
- Website
- https://littlebrown.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1837
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Little, Brown and Company is a publishing imprint under Hachette Book Group, releasing fiction and nonfiction across genres via sub-brands including Back Bay Books, Mulholland Books, Voracious, Little Brown Spark, and Algonquin. It serves general readers through retail, e-commerce, and book club channels.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Little, Brown and Company industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Trade Book Publishing
- NAICS
- Book Publishers (513130)
- SIC
- Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Children’s Subscription & Book Club Publishing (MPAJAFAO)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Young Adult (YA) Publishing (MPAJAFAD)
Keywords
Where Little, Brown and Company is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Little, Brown and Company business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Book Sales: Revenue generated through the publication and sale of physical and digital books across multiple genres including Fiction, Nonfiction, Mystery & Thriller, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Romance, Teen & Young Adult, Cooking, Travel, and Children's Books. Books are sold through retail channels, e-commerce, and book clubs.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Individual book sales with variable pricing by format |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Little, Brown and Company product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Little, Brown and Company is a book publishing imprint that selects, edits, produces, and markets trade books in physical (hardcover, paperback) and digital (e-book) formats across fiction, nonfiction, mystery & thriller, sci-fi & fantasy, romance, teen & young adult, cooking, travel, and children's categories. It operates through dedicated sub-imprints (Back Bay Books, Little Brown Spark, Mulholland Books, Voracious, Algonquin Books) and reaches readers via Hachette Book Group's e-commerce store, major physical and online book retailers, and a Book Club Hub.
Product overview
Little, Brown and Company is a book publishing imprint under Hachette Book Group. The company operates as a unified publishing platform with multiple sub-brands/imprints: Back Bay Books (literary fiction and nonfiction), Little, Brown Spark (self-help and personal development), Mulholland Books (crime and thriller), Voracious (food and cooking), and Algonquin Books (literary fiction and regional titles). Together these imprints publish across genres including Children's Books, Cooking, Fiction, Gardening, Mind Body Spirit, Mystery & Thriller, Nonfiction, Romance, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Teen & Young Adult, and Travel.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Back Bay Books: Book publishing imprint
- Little, Brown Spark
- Mulholland Books
- Voracious
- Algonquin Books
Products and services
- Little, Brown and Company (main imprint) Core book publishing imprint under Hachette Book Group that publishes fiction, nonfiction, mystery, thriller, and other genres for general adult readers.
- Back Bay Books Sub-imprint of Little, Brown and Company specializing in literary fiction and nonfiction paperback editions.
- Little, Brown Spark Sub-imprint focused on practical nonfiction, self-help, personal development, and mind/body/spirit titles including mental health content.
- Mulholland Books Sub-imprint specializing in crime, thriller, and suspense fiction.
- Voracious Sub-imprint focused on food and cooking content, including cookbooks and culinary titles.
- Algonquin Books Sub-imprint known for literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, and regional titles.
- Book Club Hub Dedicated program serving organized reading groups with curated selections, resources, and Reading Group Guides to support group facilitation and book club discovery.
Companies that use Little, Brown and Company
Customer profileNamed customers9 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Little, Brown and Company technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Little, Brown and Company partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators1 record
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Little, Brown and Company competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- W. W. Norton & Company: Independent trade and academic publisher with a strong literary and nonfiction list. Comparable in editorial quality and literary author roster, though smaller in scale.
- HarperCollins: Big Five publisher operating multiple trade imprints (William Morrow, Avon, Harper) across literary fiction, thriller, romance, and nonfiction. Closely comparable in genre mix, author profile, and distribution model.
- Simon & Schuster: Big Five publisher with imprints like Scribner, Atria, and Gallery. Comparable as a multi-genre trade publisher serving the same bestseller-driven literary and commercial market.
- Penguin Random House: Largest trade book publisher globally and a fellow Big Five member. Directly comparable as a multi-imprint literary and commercial trade house publishing the same broad mix of fiction, nonfiction, mystery/thriller, and lifestyle titles to the same retail and DTC channels.
- Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group: Penguin Random House imprint focused on literary fiction and nonfiction. Comparable as a literary prestige imprint with similar author profile (Pulitzer/National Book Award winners) and genre emphasis.
- Bloomsbury Publishing: UK-headquartered trade publisher with strong literary fiction, nonfiction, and children's/YA programs. Comparable in genre breadth and reliance on literary bestsellers, though smaller and more internationally focused.
- Macmillan Publishers: Big Five publisher whose trade division includes imprints like Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Henry Holt. Directly comparable as a literary-leaning trade publisher with similar genre breadth and author caliber.
Emerging players
- Workman Publishing: Trade publisher with strength in cookbook, lifestyle, and gift categories. Comparable to Voracious (Little, Brown's food/cooking imprint) and the lifestyle nonfiction segment of Little Brown Spark.
- Sourcebooks: Independent trade publisher with notable strength in romance, YA, and nonfiction. Comparable as a nimble multi-genre trade house, though smaller and more niche-segment focused than Little, Brown.
- Scholastic: Major children's and YA book publisher. Comparable for Little, Brown's children's and Teen & Young Adult segments, though Scholastic is more focused on the school-channel and younger-age markets.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
Little, Brown and Company social profiles
Digital presenceLittle, Brown and Company financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Little, Brown and Company leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Little, Brown and Company subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
Little, Brown and Company funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Little, Brown and Company M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Little, Brown and Company
What does Little, Brown and Company do?
Little, Brown and Company is a book publishing imprint that selects, edits, produces, and markets trade books in physical (hardcover, paperback) and digital (e-book) formats across fiction, nonfiction, mystery & thriller, sci-fi & fantasy, romance, teen & young adult, cooking, travel, and children's categories. It operates through dedicated sub-imprints (Back Bay Books, Little Brown Spark, Mulholland Books, Voracious, Algonquin Books) and reaches readers via Hachette Book Group's e-commerce store, major physical and online book retailers, and a Book Club Hub.
Is Little, Brown and Company a public or private company?
Little, Brown and Company is a private company. It is classified as corporate owned and is currently operating.
When was Little, Brown and Company founded?
Little, Brown and Company was founded in 1837. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Little, Brown and Company based?
Little, Brown and Company is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Little, Brown and Company make money?
One revenue line is on record: book Sales.
Who are Little, Brown and Company's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are W. W. Norton & Company, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Penguin Random House, Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Bloomsbury Publishing and Macmillan Publishers. Emerging players are Workman Publishing, Sourcebooks and Scholastic.
Does Little, Brown and Company have an API?
No public API is recorded for Little, Brown and Company.
What industry is Little, Brown and Company in?
Little, Brown and Company's product category is Trade Book Publishing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAFAO, Children’s Subscription & Book Club Publishing, with a secondary code of MPAJAFAD, Young Adult (YA) Publishing. Its NAICS code is 513130 and its SIC code is 2731.