Manuella Editions

What Manuella Editions does

Manuella Editions, legally registered as Editions Xanadu – Manuella Vaney, SARL, is a Paris-based independent publisher founded in 2007 that specializes in contemporary art and creation. Its catalog spans artist monographs, exhibition catalogues, artist books, essays, and titles on architecture, design, history, philosophy, and ecology, drawing on a portfolio of 180+ authors that includes conversations with figures such as Ai Weiwei, Christian Boltanski, and Hans Ulrich Obrist. The company operates two product lines: a general catalog of standard editions priced €8–€38, and a limited editions (Éditions limitées) line of deluxe print runs under 300 copies and rare books priced up to €3,000, partly sourced through collaborations with partner publishers and Paris galleries.

The business runs a direct-to-consumer model through a WordPress-based e-commerce website (manuella-editions.fr), supplemented by a multi-country distribution network covering France/Belgium (L'EntreLivres/BLDD), Canada (Dimedia), the Netherlands (Idea Books), and Switzerland (Servidis). Marketing combines a monthly newsletter, Facebook and Instagram presence, and physical book launches at cultural venues such as Le Monte-en-l'air, Sciences Po Paris, and Manifesta Lyon. Strategic co-publications with institutions including Mucem, AWARE (Archives of Women Artists Research and Exhibitions), and the Centre national des arts plastiques, plus co-editions with publishers such as Les liens qui libèrent, extend the publisher's reach into the institutional art world.

The firm operates with 6 employees and registered capital of €8,000, with Manuella Vaney serving as owner, legal representative, publication editor, and data protection officer. Revenue figures are not disclosed, no external funding has been raised, and there is no M&A activity on record; the company appears to be a founder-owned lifestyle publishing operation sustained by long-running author relationships and institutional partnerships rather than venture-scale growth capital.

Name

Manuella Editions

Legal name

Editions Xanadu – Manuella Vaney

Website

https://manuella-editions.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Art Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Art, Photography & Illustrated Books Publishing (MPAJAAAF)

akta.pro secondary industry

Hardcover & Premium Editions Publishing (MPAJAAAE)

Keywords

• Contemporary art publishing
• Artist monographs
• Limited edition books
• Exhibition catalogues
• Independent book publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Book sales - standard editions: One-time sales of books and publications including monographs, artist interviews, exhibition catalogues, and essays. Prices range from 8€ to 38€ for standard editions.
2. Limited editions and deluxe editions: Sale of limited print run publications including numbered, signed copies, deluxe editions with special materials, and rare books. Prices range from 20€ to 3,000€ for limited editions.
3. Distribution partnerships: Partnership with distributors in Canada (Dimedia), France/Belgium (L'EntreLivres/BLDD), Netherlands (Idea Books), and Switzerland (Servidis) for broader distribution of publications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Manuella Editions is a French publishing house that produces and sells books on contemporary art and creation, including artist monographs, exhibition catalogues, artist books, essays, and titles on architecture, design, history, philosophy, and ecology. The publisher operates a dual catalogue of standard editions (€8–€38) and a limited/deluxe editions line featuring print runs under 300 numbered copies, signed editions, and rare book selections sourced from partner publishers, with prices ranging up to €3,000.

Product overview

Manuella Éditions is a French publishing house founded in 2007, specializing in books on contemporary art and creation. Its core offerings consist of a general catalog of art books (monographs, exhibition catalogs, artist books, essays) and a limited editions collection (deluxe print runs under 300 copies, tirages de tête, and rare book selections from partner publishers). The publisher operates both French-language and English-language catalogs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered minor, major and core.

• Les liens qui libèrentminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 September 2021Co-edition partnership for 'Le fleuve qui voulait écrire - Les auditions du Parlement de Loire' by Camille de Toledo.
• AWARE: Archives of Women Artists Research and ExhibitionsmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 5 November 2019Coproduction partnership for the Nil Yalter interview book. AWARE is co-founded and directed by Camille Morineau, focusing on women artists research and exhibition.
• Centre national des arts plastiquesminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 November 2019Institutional support for publications on women artists through AWARE partnership.
• MucemmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2018Co-publication with Mucem (Musée des civilisations de l'Europe et de la Méditerranée) for the Ai Weiwei 'Fan-Tan' exhibition catalogue.
• DimediacoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCanadian distribution partner for Manuella Editions books. Located at 539 boulevard Lebeau, Saint-Laurent, QC H4N 1S2. Contact: +1 514-336-3941.
• L'EntreLivres (BLDD)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFrench and Belgian distribution partner. Head office at 25 rue du Général Leclerc, 94270 Le Kremlin Bicêtre. Contact: 01 45 15 19 70.
• Belles Lettres Diffusion Distribution (BLDD)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution warehouse location at 4 route du plan d'eau, 27600 Gaillon. Contact: 02 32 21 86 55.
• Idea BookscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDutch distribution partner. Located at Nieuwe Hemweg 6R, 1013 BG Amsterdam. Contact: +31 20 6226154.
• ServidiscoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSwiss distribution partner. Located at Chemin des Chalets 7, 1279 Chavannes-de-Bogis. Contact: +41 22 960 95 25.
• Galerie Gillespie-Laage-SalomonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with this Paris gallery for rare and limited edition publications. Edited works include Jörg Immendorff's 'Café Deutschland gut' and Hervé Di Rosa's 'Di Rosa magazine 1985'.
• Michel Baverey éditeurminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Michel Baverey éditeur for rare books including Romain Slocombe's Tokyo publications.
• Isthme éditionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Isthme éditions for rare book selections in the limited editions catalogue.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Phaidon Press: Global publisher of high-quality books on visual arts, architecture, design, and contemporary culture. Operates in the same editorial territory at significantly larger scale and global reach.
• Hatje Cantz: Established German publisher specializing in contemporary art, architecture, and design books. Directly comparable editorial focus with a much broader catalogue and institutional museum partnerships.
• Steidl: Göttingen-based independent publisher producing high-end art, photography, and contemporary culture books. Comparable editorial scope with significantly larger print runs and international distribution infrastructure.

Regional players

• Actes Sud: Major French publisher with a significant contemporary art, architecture, and humanities catalogue. Comparable in language market (French) and editorial interests, but operates at substantially larger scale across multiple imprints.

Direct peers

• Edition Patrick Frey: Zurich-based independent publisher of contemporary art books, artists' editions, and limited print-run publications. Highly comparable in scale, niche focus, and limited-edition collector offering.
• Buchhandlung Walther König: Cologne-based publisher and retailer of contemporary art books, exhibition catalogues, and museum publications. Comparable focus area with a much larger catalogue footprint and gallery distribution.
• Mousse Publishing: Milan-based publisher of contemporary art books and magazines with strong international distribution. Comparable in producing critically oriented art monographs and artist-driven publications.
• Roma Publications: Amsterdam-based independent publisher of artist books and contemporary art editions, often in close collaboration with visual artists. Comparable in producing high-production-value, limited-run art publications.
• Spector Books: Leipzig-based independent publisher of contemporary art, photography, and theory titles. Directly comparable in editorial focus, independent structure, and mid-sized European art publisher profile.
• JRP|Ringier: Swiss publisher specializing in contemporary art books, artists' monographs, and critical editions. Closely aligned in editorial scope and institutional positioning within European contemporary art publishing.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/manuella.books
• Instagraminstagram.com/manuella_editions
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/manuella-editions

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 Manuella Editions