Petit à Petit

What Petit à Petit does

Petit à Petit (legal entity: SAS Éditions Petit à Petit) is a French comic book publishing house founded in 1997 and headquartered at 55 ter rue Jouvenet, Rouen, France. The company specializes in the Docu-BD format — a hybrid genre that combines narrative comic storytelling with factual documentary pages — and operates a catalog of 250+ titles spanning city histories (Les villes en BD, 19 cities), music biographies (Pop Rock en BD), history, arts, sports, maritime navigation, plus fiction BD including the horror series RIP, the Kotodama docu-manga label, and the literary Ici Même imprint. The publisher also offers pedagogical complements targeted at schools and libraries. Technically, the company runs a WooCommerce/WordPress e-commerce storefront (boutique.pap-im.fr) with PayPal and credit card payment processing, while product information is hosted on its corporate site petitapetit.fr.

Commercially, Petit à Petit generates revenue primarily through one-time book sales via its own e-commerce site and through the Francophone book trade, supported by a two-tier distribution model: La Diff handles diffusion (sales, representation) to bookstores across France, Belgium, Switzerland, and Canada, while Hachette Livre Distribution manages physical logistics and delivery. A secondary revenue stream comes from foreign rights licensing through Mediatoon, which represents the publisher's catalog at international book fairs. Pricing ranges from €2.00–€8.45 for the budget Petits prix collection, €8.90 for manga volumes, €15.90–€18.90 for standard Docu-BD singles, up to €49.90–€99.80 for integral/luxury editions. Marketing relies on organic social (Instagram, Facebook, X/Twitter), an email newsletter with a €2 acquisition incentive, and an event-driven calendar including Le Grand Off d'Angoulême and Grandes Rencontres Hachette. The company operates with 1-10 employees, is privately held as an SAS with no parent or institutional investors disclosed, and reports no funding rounds.

Name

Petit à Petit

Legal name

SAS Éditions Petit à Petit

Website

https://petitapetit.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Petit à Petit is a French comic book publishing house founded in 1997, headquartered in Rouen, that publishes Docu-BD — a hybrid documentary-comics format — across 250+ titles spanning city histories, music, sports, and arts, plus fiction BD, manga, and literary graphic novels distributed across Francophone book trade via La Diff and Hachette Livre Distribution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Comic Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Adult/Seinen/Josei Comics Publishing (MPAJAGAJ)

Keywords

• Comic book publishing
• Documentary comics
• Graphic novel publishing
• City history comics
• Manga publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Rouen

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Book Sales (Direct & Trade): Petit à Petit generates revenue primarily through the sale of physical comic books and graphic novels across its diverse catalog. The catalog includes Docu-BD series (city histories, music, sports, arts), fiction BD, manga under the Kotodama label, and titles under the Ici Même imprint. Products are sold via the publisher's own e-commerce site and through book trade channels (independent and chain bookstores).
2. Foreign Rights Licensing: Petit à Petit licenses translation rights for its comic book catalog internationally through Mediatoon, which represents the publisher at international book fairs and manages foreign rights sales worldwide.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Petit à Petit is a French comic book publishing house that produces and sells Docu-BD, a hybrid format combining narrative comics with factual documentary pages. The catalog spans city histories (19 cities), music biographies, history, sports, arts, navigation, manga (Kotodama label), fiction BD, and literary graphic novels (Ici Même label), distributed through its own e-commerce site and book trade channels across Francophonie.

Product overview

Petit à Petit is a French comic book publishing house (Éditions Petit à Petit) specializing in Docu-BD—a distinctive format combining narrative comics with factual documentary pages. The core product portfolio centers on the Docu-BD collection, which encompasses thematic sub-lines including Les villes en BD (city histories), Pop Rock en BD (music biographies), Histoire en BD (historical events), Arts en BD (art and cinema), Sport en BD, and La navigation en BD. The company also publishes Fictions BD including the horror series RIP, manages the Kotodama manga sub-brand, and operates the Ici Même art-house label. Products are distributed in Francophone territories through La Diff and Hachette Livre Distribution, with international rights handled by Mediatoon.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ici Même: A sub-label of Petit à Petit publishing house, featuring literary comics and graphic novels
• Kotodama

Products and services

• Docu-BD Collection The flagship documentary comic book collection combining narrative comics with factual documentary pages. Covers cities, music, history, sports, arts, professions, and more. Over 215 titles in this collection.
• Les villes en BD (Cities in BD) Multi-volume city history series in comic format with complete histories of French and European cities, blending fictional narratives with historical facts.
• Pop Rock en BD Documentary comics dedicated to music history, profiling iconic rock and pop artists with illustrated narratives and factual content.
• Fictions BD Original fiction comic book series including horror titles, literary adaptations, and contemporary fiction aimed at adult readers.
• Kotodama (Manga Label) Docu-Manga label publishing illustrated documentary manga works adapted for French audiences, with series covering Japanese culture including sushi and idol culture. Priced at €8.90 per volume.
• Ici Même (Art-house Label) Art-house comic book label publishing graphic novels, autobiographical works, and literary adaptations from international authors. Priced between €22.00 and €32.00.
• Compléments pédagogiques Pedagogical comic resources designed for educational use in classrooms, supporting history, geography, and cultural education.
• Petits prix (Budget Collection) Affordable Docu-BD titles at reduced prices, featuring discounted editions of various titles. Priced from €2.00 to €8.45.

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• La DiffcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorLa Diff is Petit à Petit's diffusion partner responsible for representing and selling all of the publisher's titles to bookstores and retailers throughout Francophonie (France, Belgium, Switzerland, Canada). This is a core commercial partnership enabling the publisher's retail distribution.
• Hachette Livre DistributioncoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHachette Livre Distribution handles the physical logistics and delivery of Petit à Petit books to retail points of sale across Francophonie. This partnership provides the warehousing and fulfillment infrastructure necessary for trade distribution.
• MediatooncoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMediatoon represents Petit à Petit's foreign translation rights internationally, attending global book fairs and managing relationships with international publishers interested in licensing the publisher's catalog. Contacts: [email protected] and [email protected].
• ICSI (Institut pour une Culture de la Sécurité Industrielle)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPetit à Petit partnered with ICSI for the production of '73 Secondes, La catastrophe de la navette Challenger,' a Docu-BD about the 1986 Space Shuttle disaster. ICSI provided expertise and likely co-funding or content validation for this industrial incident documentary.
• Le Palais idéal du facteur ChevalminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership for the production of 'Les 1001 pierres du Facteur Cheval,' a Docu-BD biography of Ferdinand Cheval (the Postman Cheval) and his famous Ideal Palace. The Palais idéal provided access, expertise, and likely co-promotion for this cultural heritage title.
• Agglomération de la Région de CompiègneminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Agglomération de la Région de Compiègne collaborated with Petit à Petit on the Docu-BD 'Compiègne Du Moyen Âge à nos jours,' providing local historical resources and likely co-funding for this city guide publication.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Glénat: Major French publisher with both BD and manga catalogs. Comparable because it publishes manga in French (competing with Petit à Petit's Kotodama label) and operates themed nonfiction BD series.
• Casterman: Belgian-French BD publisher (Tintin, art-house graphic novels). Comparable as a Francophone BD publisher with a strong literary/art-house imprint profile similar to Petit à Petit's Ici Même label.
• Dupuis: One of the largest French-Belgian BD publishers (Asterix, Spirou, Lucky Luke). Comparable as a Francophone comic book publisher operating across multiple imprints and genres, including nonfiction and educational titles, and competing for the same bookstore shelf space.
• Futuropolis: French BD publisher specializing in literary, historical, and reportage comics. The most direct comparable in editorial philosophy — Futuropolis pioneered the "BD reportage" genre that closely mirrors Petit à Petit's Docu-BD format.
• Delcourt: Independent French BD publisher with broad genre coverage and manga sub-imprints. Comparable as a mid-sized independent Francophone BD house pursuing multi-segment catalog strategy similar to Petit à Petit's portfolio approach.
• Le Lombard: Historic Belgian BD publisher (Tintin magazine, Thorgal). Comparable as a Francophone BD house with broad thematic catalog and active festival presence (Angoulême), competing for similar independent-bookstore distribution.
• Bamboo Edition: French BD publisher known for humorous and genre series. Comparable as an independent French BD house competing for similar bookstore and festival audience, though with a more humor-focused catalog.
• Dargaud: Major French BD publisher (Asterix, Blake and Mortimer, Tuniques Bleues). Directly comparable as a multi-imprint Francophone BD house with broad thematic catalog including historical, adventure, and documentary-style comics.
• Rue de Sèvres: French BD publisher focused on literary, historical, and documentary graphic novels. Highly comparable as a smaller independent publisher specializing in nonfiction and educational BD, the same niche Petit à Petit occupies with Docu-BD.

Emerging players

• Ankama Éditions: French publisher with BD, manga, and webtoon activities. Comparable because it bridges BD and manga publishing (overlap with Kotodama label) and pursues digital-native growth alongside print.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/PETITAPETIT__
• Facebookfacebook.com/petitapetit.editions
• Instagraminstagram.com/editionspetitapetit
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/editions-petit-a-petit

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 Petit à Petit