What North Atlantic Books does

North Atlantic Books is an independent nonprofit book publisher founded in 1974 in Vermont and relocated to Berkeley, California in 1977, where it operates a single headquarters managing acquisitions, editorial, production, publicity, and marketing for its full catalog. The publisher curates roughly 1,000+ active titles organized across 16 specialty categories including bodywork and somatics, health and healing, spirituality and religion, psychedelics and plant medicine, martial arts, Indigenous perspectives, psychology and personal growth, race and racial justice, and children's books, plus the Blue Snake Books imprint focused on internal and historical martial arts. Its technology footprint is conventional publishing infrastructure—an editorial and submissions workflow built on Submittable, an in-house audiobook program producing approximately 30 titles per year, and a WordPress-based e-commerce website—without proprietary platform, API, or AI capability.

Revenue flows through two primary streams: one-time book sales of physical, audio, and digital titles distributed globally via Penguin Random House under a distribution agreement in place since 2007, supplemented by direct-to-consumer sales on northatlanticbooks.com, and recurring tax-deductible donations accepted at tiers ranging from $20 to $1,000+ monthly under the Support NAB program. Pricing for individual titles varies by book and is not disclosed in tiers; commercial customers are predominantly long-tail individual readers via trade bookstores and DTC channels rather than enterprise accounts. With approximately 22 staff, NAB runs a lean, mission-driven operating model that depends on its PRH partnership for scale reach and on its nonprofit status and donor base to underwrite editorial scope in niches commercial publishers underinvest in—somatics, trauma healing, holistic health, Indigenous and queer voices, and martial arts.

Name

North Atlantic Books

Legal name

North Atlantic Books

Website

https://northatlanticbooks.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

North Atlantic Books is an independent nonprofit publisher founded in 1974 and based in Berkeley, California, releasing roughly 1,000 backlist and frontlist titles across somatics, holistic health, spirituality, social justice, and martial arts for individual readers and professional practitioners.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Health, Wellness & Fitness Trade Publishing (MPAJAAAL)

Keywords

• Independent book publishing
• Holistic health books
• Martial arts publishing
• Somatics literature
• Nonprofit press

Headquarters

HQ city

Berkeley

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Book Sales: Revenue generated from selling physical books, audiobooks, and digital titles across multiple categories including bodywork, somatics, spirituality, ecology, social justice, and self-help. Books are sold directly through the website and through distribution partner Penguin Random House.
2. Donations: As a nonprofit publisher, North Atlantic Books accepts tax-deductible donations through its Support NAB program with options for one-time and monthly contributions at various levels ($20, $50, $100, $250, $500, $1000).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

North Atlantic Books is an independent nonprofit publisher that publishes and sells print books, audiobooks, and digital editions across categories such as bodywork and somatics, health and healing, ecology, spirituality, social justice, psychology, Indigenous perspectives, and martial arts. Distribution, sales, and fulfillment are handled by Penguin Random House; the company also sells directly to consumers through its own website and accepts tax-deductible donations to support its publishing mission.

Product overview

North Atlantic Books is an independent nonprofit publisher offering a portfolio of books under its main North Atlantic Books brand and the Blue Snake Books martial arts imprint. The publisher organizes its offerings across 16 specialized product categories spanning bodywork and somatics, children's books, environment and climate justice, fitness and sports, grief and dying, health and healing, Indigenous perspectives, literature and the arts, magic and divination, martial arts, psychedelics and plant medicine, psychology and personal growth, race and racial justice, society and politics, and spirituality and religion. Products are further organized into sub-categories including New Releases, Coming Soon, and Bestsellers. The company also produces approximately 30 audiobooks annually through its in-house audio program. Distribution and sales are handled by Penguin Random House.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Blue Snake Books: An imprint of North Atlantic Books focused on internal and historical martial arts books, described as one of the largest publishers of martial arts books in the world.

Products and services

• North Atlantic Books Adult and Children's Book Catalog Main publishing brand of North Atlantic Books, publishing adult and children's print, digital, and audio titles across categories including bodywork and somatics, spirituality, ecology, social justice, self-help, health and healing, martial arts, Indigenous perspectives, psychology, and personal growth. Products are sold through Penguin Random House distribution and the NAB direct website.
• Blue Snake Books (Martial Arts Imprint) Internal imprint of North Atlantic Books that publishes books on internal and historical martial arts disciplines, including karate, tai chi, qi gong, and internal martial arts. Described as one of the largest sources of internal and historical martial-arts books globally.
• NAB Audiobooks Program In-house audiobook production program producing approximately 30 audiobooks per year, narrated by various voice actors (e.g., titles narrated by Janina Edwards and Alejandro Antonio Ruiz), sold alongside print editions.

Quantifiable outcome

• Healing with Whole Foods sold over 600,000 copies
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 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.

• Penguin Random HousecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 January 2007In 2007 Penguin Random House began distributing NAB books, giving authors access to PRH's powerful worldwide fulfillment and sales services. North Atlantic remains an independent nonprofit entity with its own acquisitions, editorial, production, publicity, and marketing staff.
• Bay Area Book FestivalminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCommunity partner for book festival events and author appearances
• Bioneers ConferenceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAnnual conference partner focused on innovative solutions for environmental and social challenges
• MAPS (Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization focused on psychedelic research and education, aligned with NAB's psychedelics and plant medicine publishing category
• Trauma Center at Justice Resource InstituteminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization focused on trauma treatment and education, aligned with NAB's somatics and trauma healing publishing
• Blue Snake BookscoreOthersBlue Snake Books is an imprint of North Atlantic Books, one of the largest sources of internal and historical martial-arts books in the world. Operates as an internal imprint rather than an external partnership.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Parallax Press: Direct peer small nonprofit publisher of mindfulness, social justice, and engaged Buddhism titles (founded by Thich Nhat Hanh). Highly comparable on nonprofit structure, social-justice focus, and Bay Area/small-press operating model.
• Sounds True: Direct peer multimedia publisher of spirituality, mindfulness, and holistic-wellness content with a major in-house audio program. Closely comparable to NAB on audio-book production, mission-driven positioning, and direct-to-consumer catalog.
• Shambhala Publications: Direct peer independent publisher of contemplative, Buddhist, holistic health, and lifestyle nonfiction. Overlaps with NAB's Spirituality & Religion, Psychology & Personal Growth, and Martial Arts categories (Shambhala owns Weatherhill, a martial arts imprint).
• Hay House: Direct peer publisher of self-help, wellness, spirituality, and mind-body-spirit titles. Highly comparable target audience (individual holistic-wellness consumers), with overlapping author rosters (e.g., Louise Hay lineage) and similar audio/digital programs.
• Inner Traditions / Bear & Company: Direct peer independent publisher of alternative health, spirituality, herbalism, indigenous wisdom, and New Age titles. Most comparable to NAB on mission, subject matter, author base, and small-indie operating model.
• Chelsea Green Publishing: Direct peer independent publisher of sustainability, ecology, environmental justice, and values-driven nonfiction. Overlaps NAB's Environment & Climate Justice category and shares its mission-driven indie identity.
• Wisdom Publications: Direct peer nonprofit publisher of Buddhist, contemplative, and comparative religious titles. Closely comparable to NAB's Spirituality & Religion and Indigenous Perspectives categories and shares nonprofit governance.

Emerging players

• New Harbinger Publications: Independent publisher of self-help, psychology, and psychotherapy professional titles. Comparable on Psychology & Personal Growth category overlap with NAB, though New Harbinger leans more clinical/psychology than holistic health.

Broad incumbents

• Storey Publishing: Broad incumbent lifestyle/nonfiction publisher (now part of Hachette) covering herbalism, gardening, fitness, and natural-living topics. Overlaps NAB's Health & Healing and Fitness & Sports categories at scale with deeper distribution budgets.
• Rodale Books / Harmony Books: Broad incumbent mainstream wellness, health, and self-help imprints within Penguin Random House (NAB's actual distributor). Comparable on category overlap (healing, nutrition, self-help) but with vastly larger catalogs and marketing spend.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/NAtlanticBooks
• YouTubeyoutube.com/NorthAtlanticBooks
• Facebookfacebook.com/NorthAtlanticBooks
• Instagraminstagram.com/natlanticbooks

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 North Atlantic Books