What ECW Press does

ECW Press is an independent Canadian book publisher incorporated as Essays on Canadian Writing Limited in Ontario, founded in 1974 by Jack David as a graduate student at York University and now operating from its headquarters at 665 Gerrard Street East in Toronto. The company publishes a diversified catalog of close to 1,000 active titles across fiction, poetry, mystery and crime, nonfiction, biography and memoir, sports, and pop culture, releasing 50+ new titles per year, with books distributed throughout the English-speaking world and translated into dozens of languages. Co-publishers Jack David and David Caron lead a compact editorial team that also runs a BIPOC Writers Mentorship Program and a submissions policy prioritizing underrepresented voices.

The business model is direct-to-consumer and rights-led: ECW Press sells physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks through a Shopify-powered storefront with multi-currency pricing in CAD, USD, EUR, GBP, and AUD, supplements D2C sales with wholesale distribution through English-speaking-world partners, and produces narrated audio editions through a partnership with Bespeak Audio Editions. Titles retail at $9.99-$150 CAD with pay-as-you-go unit pricing, and the company supports book clubs with dedicated guides, engages readers through Goodreads and NetGalley, and runs an email newsletter and active social presence (Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest).

The company has no external funding, no parent company, and no public listing, with sole ownership held by founder Jack David since 2003 and co-publisher David Caron joining in 2004. ECW Press became the second publisher in Canada to be B Corp certified in 2022, with a 99.8 reassessment score in 2025, and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2024.

Name

ECW Press

Legal name

ECW Press Inc.

Website

https://ecwpress.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

ECW Press is an independent Canadian book publisher founded in 1974 in Toronto, releasing 50+ titles annually across fiction, poetry, nonfiction, sports, and pop culture, serving individual readers, book clubs, and libraries through a Shopify storefront, wholesale distribution, and audiobook channels.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Book Retailers and News Dealers (459210)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Genre & Category Publishing (Romance, Mystery/Thriller, Sci‑Fi/Fantasy, etc.) (MPAJAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Audiobook Publishers (Trade & Consumer) (MPAJAIAA)

Keywords

• Independent book publishing
• Canadian literature publishing
• Audiobook publishing
• Fiction and poetry books
• Pop culture analysis books

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Book Sales: Direct sales of physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks through their e-commerce storefront, with distribution throughout the English-speaking world.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

ECW Press is an independent Canadian book publisher that produces and sells physical books, ebooks, and audiobooks across diverse genres including fiction, poetry, mystery, nonfiction, biography, sports, and pop culture. The publisher releases 50+ new titles annually, maintains a backlist of close to 1,000 published works, and distributes throughout the English-speaking world with translations into dozens of languages. Sales occur directly through its Shopify-powered e-commerce storefront with multi-currency support (CAD, USD, EUR, GBP, AUD) and through wholesale distribution partners.

Product overview

ECW Press is a Canadian independent book publisher offering physical books, digital ebooks, and audiobooks. The core offerings consist of books across diverse genres (Fiction, Poetry, Mystery, Nonfiction, Biography/Memoir, Sports, Pop Culture) and audiobooks produced via Bespeak Audio Editions. The publisher releases 50+ new titles annually with support for a substantial backlist of nearly 1,000 published works distributed throughout the English-speaking world.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Books Physical and digital books across fiction, poetry, mystery & crime, nonfiction, biography & memoir, sports, and pop culture, published and sold directly to readers via ECW Press's Shopify storefront and through distribution networks throughout the English-speaking world.
• Audiobooks Audiobook editions of ECW Press titles, many produced through the Bespeak Audio Editions partnership and narrated by professional voice actors including authors themselves, available through the ECW Press platform and audiobook channels.
• Pop Classics Series A sub-brand series examining pop culture phenomena through analytical essays, covering films such as Jurassic Park, Dirty Dancing, and Clueless, as well as music icons like Metallica and other cultural touchstones.

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

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Bespeak Audio EditionscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for audiobook production and distribution, with narrated editions of ECW Press titles produced through Bespeak Audio Editions
• ShopifycoreTechnology or IntegrationE-commerce platform powering the ECW Press online store for direct consumer sales of books, audiobooks, and ebooks
• B Corp CommunityminorOthersWorldwide community of over 5,700 companies certified as B Corporations, sharing best practices for social and environmental responsibility

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• House of Anansi Press: Toronto-based Canadian independent trade publisher with a similarly diversified literary and cultural nonfiction list. Closest comp in geography, model, and scale to ECW Press.
• Coach House Books: Toronto-based Canadian independent literary publisher focused on fiction, poetry, and drama. Operates at a similar small scale with comparable author development and DTC marketing programs.
• Dundurn Press: Canadian independent publisher of fiction, nonfiction, and mystery titles headquartered in Toronto. Direct comparable on genre mix (especially mystery) and distribution approach.
• Biblioasis: Canadian independent literary publisher based in Windsor, Ontario, focused on fiction, poetry, and nonfiction translation. Directly comparable on curation ethos and small-scale independent model.
• Arsenal Pulp Press: Vancouver-based Canadian independent literary and cultural publisher with a strong social-justice curatorial lens. Comparable on independent scale and commitment to diverse voices.

Broad incumbents

• Penguin Random House Canada: Canadian arm of the largest global trade publisher. Competes for authors and shelf space across every genre ECW Press publishes in, but operates at vastly larger scale and as a broad portfolio incumbent.
• HarperCollins Canada: Major global trade publisher with full Canadian operations. Competes broadly with ECW Press across fiction, nonfiction, and memoir but with much larger author rosters and marketing budgets.
• Simon & Schuster Canada: Major trade publisher with established Canadian presence across multiple genres. Broad incumbent comparable on fiction/nonfiction overlap, though at materially larger scale.

Others

• Audible (Amazon): Dominant audiobook platform and a critical distribution channel for ECW Press's audio titles via Bespeak Audio Editions. Indirect competitor and key ecosystem partner for the publisher's fastest-growing format.
• Ingram Content Group: Largest North American book wholesaler and distributor. Functions as both a distribution partner enabling ECW's English-speaking-world reach and an industry infrastructure provider comparable in ecosystem role rather than direct title competition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ecwpress
• Facebookfacebook.com/ecwpress
• Instagraminstagram.com/ecwpress
• Pinterestpinterest.com/ecwpress

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

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 ECW Press