Honno
Honno is an independent cooperative press founded in 1986 in Aberystwyth, Wales, publishing 9-12 fiction and non-fiction titles per year exclusively by Welsh women writers in English and Welsh, distributed across UK bookshops and online retailers.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1986
- HeadquartersAberystwyth, United Kingdom
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Honno does
Honno Ltd is an independent cooperative press founded in 1986 and headquartered in Aberystwyth, Wales. It is dedicated exclusively to publishing fiction and non-fiction by Welsh women writers in both English and Welsh languages, producing 9-12 titles per year across genres including crime, historical fiction, literary fiction, fantasy, YA, food writing, and Welsh women's history. The press maintains the Welsh Women's Classics Series (over 35 titles reprinting overlooked works by Welsh women writers) and a Welsh-language sub-programme.
The business operates with three paid staff members based in Aberystwyth and a volunteer Honno Committee that sets strategic direction and selects the publishing programme. Books are distributed widely throughout the UK through Waterstones, independent bookshers, Amazon, and Bookshop.org, and are also converted to eBook format. Honno runs an explicit anti-generative-AI policy for itself and its authors.
Revenue comes from two primary streams: book sales (paperback and eBook with a standard 10% royalty to authors and advances paid for fiction and non-fiction) and institutional/non-profit support, principally from the Books Council for Wales (Lyfrau'r Cymoedd) alongside donations and a cooperative shareholder base of hundreds of individuals. Honno has won industry recognition including a CWA Dagger (2022), the Paul Torday Prize (2022), and a Wales Book of the Year shortlisting (2023).
Honno firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Honno
- Legal name
- Honno Ltd
- Website
- https://honno.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1986
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Honno is an independent cooperative press founded in 1986 in Aberystwyth, Wales, publishing 9-12 fiction and non-fiction titles per year exclusively by Welsh women writers in English and Welsh, distributed across UK bookshops and online retailers.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Honno industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Independent Book Publishing
- NAICS
- Book Publishers (513130)
- SIC
- Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)
- akta.pro primary industry
- General Trade Publishing (Adult Fiction & Nonfiction) (MPAJAAAA)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Literary & Classics Publishing (MPAJAAAC)
Keywords
Where Honno is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Aberystwyth
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Honno business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Book Sales (Physical and eBook): Revenue generated from sales of paperback and eBook titles through UK bookshops (Waterstones, independent booksellers), online retailers (Amazon, Bookshop.org), and direct author purchases at 40% discount. Standard royalty for all paperbacks is 10%. Advances are paid for fiction and non-fiction.
- Government and Institutional Funding: Honno receives financial support from the Books Council for Wales (Lyfrau'r Cymoedd) and is a non-for-profit press. Donations are accepted from supporters to help continue the mission.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Standard paperback royalty of 10% for all titles |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Honno product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Honno is an independent cooperative press that publishes 9–12 fiction and non-fiction books per year by Welsh women writers, in both English and Welsh languages, distributed as paperback and eBook through UK bookshops and online retailers. It runs a Welsh Women's Classics reprint series, covers all production costs from editing to printing, accepts unagented submissions, and pays authors a 10% paperback royalty plus advances. The press is a non-for-profit supported by the Books Council for Wales and hundreds of individual cooperative shareholders.
Product overview
Honno is an independent co-operative press that publishes Welsh women writers. The company produces 9-12 books annually across two main product categories: Fiction (including crime/thrillers, historical fiction, horror, humour, literary fiction, romance, and short stories) and Non-Fiction (including women's history, Welsh history, food writing, and nature writing). The portfolio includes the Welsh Women's Classics Series celebrating historic Welsh women writers, and Welsh Language Titles (Teitlau Cymraeg) for Welsh-language publications. Books are distributed as paperbacks, eBooks, and audio books through retailers including Waterstones, Bookshop.org, and Amazon.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Quantifiable outcome
- Honno has been championing Welsh women's writing for nearly 40 years and has launched countless careers
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Honno
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments1 record
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Honno technology and API
TechnologyAPI detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Honno partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- National Library of Wales (Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru)coreHonno partners with the National Library of Wales for book launch events. For the Many Roads launch, a partnership event was held at The Drwm, National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, which was also live-streamed. The National Library also hosts author events such as the WITSH launch conversation.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Honno competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Myriad Editions: Brighton-based independent publisher focused on graphic novels, fiction and non-fiction, with a strong track record publishing women writers and diverse voices. Comparable to Honno for the women-writers focus and small indie press operating model.
- Seren Books: Welsh independent publisher based in Bridgend, publishing poetry, fiction and non-fiction with a strong Welsh identity. Highly comparable as a small-to-mid-sized Welsh indie press operating in overlapping genres (literary fiction, poetry, Welsh-interest non-fiction).
- Parthian Books: Cardiff-based independent Welsh publisher of fiction and non-fiction. Directly comparable as another small Welsh indie press publishing in English and Welsh, with a similarly broad list including Welsh-interest titles and a similar cooperative/independent ethos.
Emerging players
- Galley Beggar Press: Small Norwich-based independent literary press publishing award-winning fiction and non-fiction. Comparable as a similarly sized UK indie press focused on literary fiction with a similar prize-winning trajectory (e.g., Eimear McBride's A Girl Is a Half-formed Thing).
- Comma Press: Manchester-based independent publisher of short fiction, anthologies, and translated literature. Comparable as a small UK indie literary press with similar scale, an identity-driven list, and prize recognition (multiple northern writer awards).
- Bluemoose Books: Hebden Bridge-based small independent publisher of literary fiction and non-fiction. Comparable as a similarly small UK indie press with a regional base, a literary list, and a comparable operating model.
Regional players
- Y Lolfa: One of Wales' largest Welsh-language publishers, based in Tal-y-bont. Comparable as a Welsh-language and bilingual publisher, though larger in scale and broader in scope (children's books, magazines, religion, politics) than Honno's women-focused list.
- Firefly Press: Welsh children's and YA publisher based in Cardiff. Comparable as a small independent Welsh press, though focused on children's/YA rather than adult fiction and non-fiction by Welsh women writers.
- Sandstone Press: Scottish independent literary publisher based in the Highlands, publishing fiction and non-fiction with a regional/identity-driven focus. Comparable as a small UK indie press with a regional identity mandate and similar operating scale.
- Gomer Press (Gwasg Gomer): One of the oldest Welsh publishers, publishing Welsh-language and bilingual books, especially educational and religious titles. Comparable as a Welsh-language publisher, though much broader in scope and historically more religious/educational than Honno.
Market position
Strengths2 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Honno social profiles
Digital presenceHonno financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Honno leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Honno funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Honno 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 Honno
What does Honno do?
Honno is an independent cooperative press that publishes 9–12 fiction and non-fiction books per year by Welsh women writers, in both English and Welsh languages, distributed as paperback and eBook through UK bookshops and online retailers. It runs a Welsh Women's Classics reprint series, covers all production costs from editing to printing, accepts unagented submissions, and pays authors a 10% paperback royalty plus advances. The press is a non-for-profit supported by the Books Council for Wales and hundreds of individual cooperative shareholders.
Is Honno a public or private company?
Honno is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Honno founded?
Honno was founded in 1986. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Honno based?
Honno is headquartered in Aberystwyth, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Honno make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Book Sales (Physical and eBook) is the primary driver. The others are government and Institutional Funding.
Who are Honno's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Myriad Editions, Seren Books and Parthian Books. Emerging players are Galley Beggar Press, Comma Press and Bluemoose Books. Regional players are Y Lolfa, Firefly Press, Sandstone Press and Gomer Press (Gwasg Gomer).
Does Honno have an API?
No public API is recorded for Honno.
What industry is Honno in?
Honno's product category is Independent Book Publishing. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAJAAAA, General Trade Publishing (Adult Fiction & Nonfiction), with a secondary code of MPAJAAAC, Literary & Classics Publishing. Its NAICS code is 513130 and its SIC code is 2731.