Wild Things Publishing Ltd

What Wild Things Publishing Ltd does

Wild Things Publishing Ltd is a UK-based independent publisher of outdoor adventure and nature guidebooks, operating since approximately 2011 from Freshford near Bath with a staff of about 10. The company publishes a catalog of 60+ titles organized into sub-brand series — Wild Swimming Walks, Wild Guide, Lost Lanes, Paddle Boarding, Heritage, and standalone activity guides — covering wild swimming, hiking, cycling, running, paddleboarding, snorkelling, sauna, fishing, and cultural/heritage sites across the UK, Europe, North Africa, and Australia. Its flagship product, Wild Swimming Britain, is in its third edition and features over 1,000 locations, while recent launches include Wild Swimming Walks Bristol & Bath (April 2025) and Wild Guide Sydney (October 2025).

The business model is direct-to-consumer e-commerce through wildthingspublishing.com supplemented by UK wholesale distribution via Central Books Ltd, international reach through Amazon, and Australian market presence via Booktopia, Angus & Robertson, and a licensing arrangement with Adventure Entertainment Pty Ltd. Physical guidebooks retail at £14.99–£19.99 and PDF digital downloads at £6.99–£7.99; the company does not ship physical products outside the UK. Distribution is asset-light, with no proprietary technology platforms, APIs, or AI capabilities — the product is human-authored, first-hand researched editorial content supplemented by GPX coordinates, maps, and downloadable routes.

Name

Wild Things Publishing Ltd

Legal name

Wild Things Publishing Ltd

Website

https://wildthingspublishing.com

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Wild Things Publishing Ltd is a UK-based independent publisher of 60+ outdoor adventure and nature guidebooks covering wild swimming, hiking, cycling, and heritage sites across the UK, Europe, and Australia, selling directly to consumers via its website and through wholesale distribution.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outdoor Adventure Guidebook Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Book Publishers (51313), Book Retailers and News Dealers (45921)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Lifestyle, Travel & Leisure Books Publishing (MPAJAAAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

E-book Subscription & Bundling Services (MPAJAMAB)

Keywords

• Outdoor adventure guides
• Travel guidebooks
• Wild swimming books
• Independent book publishing
• UK travel publications

Headquarters

HQ city

Freshford

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Physical Book Sales: Sale of physical paperback and hardcover books covering outdoor activities such as wild swimming, hiking, cycling, paddleboarding, and adventure travel. Books are sold at various price points from £14.99 to £19.99 through the company's own e-commerce store and wholesale distribution.
2. Digital/E-book Sales: Sale of PDF ebook downloads at lower price points (£6.99-£7.99), providing instant digital access to guide content. These are available through the company's website for immediate download.
3. Wholesale Distribution: Distribution of physical books through wholesale partner Central Books Ltd to retail bookstores and other retailers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Wild Things Publishing Ltd is an independent UK-based guidebook publisher that creates and sells outdoor adventure and nature guidebooks. The company publishes physical books and PDF eBooks covering wild swimming, hiking, cycling, wild running, paddling, bikepacking, rock climbing, snorkelling, wild sauna, and heritage walks across the UK, Europe, Australia, and Morocco. The catalog spans more than 700 hand-curated locations with practical information including maps, GPS coordinates, downloadable routes, and local recommendations.

Product overview

Wild Things Publishing Ltd is a UK-based independent guidebook publisher specializing in outdoor activity guides. The company operates as a single-brand publisher with multiple sub-brand series covering distinct activity categories. The core portfolio includes the Wild Swimming Walks series (regional walking/swimming guides), Wild Guide series (comprehensive regional outdoor guides spanning the UK, Europe, and international destinations), and Lost Lanes cycling series. Additional products include standalone titles on wild swimming, wild sauna, snorkelling, fishing, running, rock scrambling, paddleboarding, and heritage/cultural sites. The company offers both physical books and PDF digital downloads through its e-commerce platform. The publishing company does not develop software applications or digital platforms beyond its ebook offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Wild Swimming Walks Series A series of guidebook titles combining wild swimming locations with linked walking routes, available in physical and digital PDF editions across multiple UK regions and overseas locations.
• Wild Guide Series A series of regional travel guidebooks covering lesser-known places to stay, eat, walk, swim, and explore across the UK, Europe, and selected international destinations such as Morocco.
• Lost Lanes Series A series of cycling guidebook titles featuring quiet country lanes, cycle routes, and recommended stops for cyclists across the UK.
• Wild Swimming Britain (3rd Edition) Flagship wild swimming guidebook covering more than 700 locations across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland with practical information for wild swimmers.
• Wild Sauna Britain A guidebook dedicated to wild sauna locations and combined swim-and-spa experiences across Britain.
• Snorkelling Britain A guidebook focused on inland and coastal snorkelling locations across Britain.
• Wild Fishing Britain A guidebook covering wild fishing locations and information across Britain.
• Wild Running (2nd Edition) A guidebook covering wild running trails and off-road running routes across Britain, released in a 2nd edition.
• Paddle Boarding Guides A series of stand-up paddleboarding (SUP) guidebooks covering inland and coastal paddling locations.
• Bikepacking UK A guidebook dedicated to multi-day bikepacking routes and overnight cycle-camping adventures across the UK.
• Wild Rock A guidebook focused on wild rock climbing locations and routes across Britain.
• Islandeering A guidebook covering wild swimming, walking, and exploring around islands and coastlines.
• Heritage Series A series of guidebooks exploring the UK's heritage, landscapes, and historical locations.
• Wild Swimming Walks Book PDF eBook Digital PDF edition of the Wild Swimming Walks main guidebook, available as an instant download.
• Wild Swimming Walks Dorset & East Devon PDF eBook Digital PDF edition of the regional Wild Swimming Walks title covering Dorset and East Devon.
• Wild Swimming Walks South Wales PDF eBook Digital PDF edition of the regional Wild Swimming Walks title covering South Wales.
• Wild Swimming Sydney Australia Digital Book Digital edition of the Wild Swimming title covering Sydney and Australia.

Quantifiable outcome

• Wild Swimming Britain (3rd Ed) features over 1000 locations
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Central Books LtdcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCentral Books Ltd serves as the wholesale distribution partner for Wild Things Publishing, handling distribution of physical books to retail bookstores across the UK. Located at 99 Wallis Road, London E9 5LN, they can be contacted at [email protected].
• Adventure Entertainment Pty LtdminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing PartnerThe 'Wild' name and trademark is used in Australia under licence from Adventure Entertainment Pty Ltd (AE), allowing Wild Things Publishing to publish titles under the Wild brand in that territory.
• BooktopiaminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAustralian online bookstore distributing Wild Things Publishing titles including Wild Guide Sydney in the Australian market.
• Angus and RobertsonminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAustralian bookstore chain distributing Wild Things Publishing titles in Australia.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Vertebrate Publishing: UK-based independent publisher of outdoor adventure, climbing, walking, and nature books. Comparable catalog scope and independent-press positioning to Wild Things Publishing.
• Pesda Press: Independent UK publisher specializing in outdoor activity guidebooks for Wales and surrounding regions including walking, climbing, paddling, and mountain biking. Highly comparable in scale, niche focus, and regional guide approach.
• Rucksack Readers: Independent UK publisher of long-distance walking and hiking guidebooks, including spiral-bound route guides. Comparable niche outdoor/walking publisher with similar print format and UK-centric audience.
• Footprint Handbooks: UK-origin travel guidebook publisher with a tradition of detailed, adventure-leaning destination guides. Closely comparable in independent-publisher heritage and travel guidebook product.
• Cicerone Press: UK-based publisher specializing in walking, trekking, and outdoor activity guidebooks covering the UK, Europe, and worldwide. Direct comparable on activity coverage (hiking, cycling, climbing) and distribution through outdoor and travel retail.
• Bradt Travel Guides: UK-based independent publisher specializing in travel guidebooks to unusual, niche, and off-the-beaten-path destinations globally. Highly comparable to Wild Things Publishing in market positioning, catalog scope, and independent-publisher business model.

Broad incumbents

• Rough Guides: Established travel guidebook publisher with global destination coverage. Comparable product format (printed travel guides) but broader mainstream focus compared with Wild Things Publishing's hidden-gem editorial angle.
• Lonely Planet: Global travel guide publishing incumbent with extensive worldwide destination coverage. Overlaps with Wild Things Publishing's travel guide category but at much larger scale and broader (mainstream) destination focus.
• DK Eyewitness Travel: Major illustrated travel guidebook publisher with global coverage and visually-led format. Adjacent competitor in printed travel guides though broader and more mainstream than Wild Things Publishing's niche.

Others

• Ordnance Survey (OS): UK national mapping agency that also publishes outdoor activity guides and walking books. Comparable on UK outdoor activity information content but with a maps-first business model rather than guidebooks.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/wild-things-publishing-ltd

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 Wild Things Publishing Ltd