Brolly Publishing and Distribution Services
Brolly Publishing Services
Brolly provides publishing services in any or all of the following areas and would be pleased to provide an obligation-free quotation on request:
- writing (non-fiction texts for children's or general market, from 250 to 100,000 words)
- substantive editing
- copy editing
- proof reading
- publication design
- illustration
- project management (e-books and print books)
- project development (working with in-house and freelance Australian creators: nearly 100% of the content in Brolly projects is created in Australia).
- print services (working with a mix of Australian and off-shore printers)*
*Brolly understands that sometimes it is not possible to manufacture
bespoke projects, especially small printruns featuring novel features, materials, bindings and assembly, in Australia and that some customers may elect to manufacture off-shore.
Brolly Distribution Services
Brolly provides a specialised distribution service for a limited number of titles, selling to the general trade in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and soon the United Kingdom, along with sales through Amazon if required.
Brolly recommends that any Author/Publisher seeking book distribution be fully aware of the supply-chain process and associated costs.
Important details are:
- Brolly is only able to take on titles for distribution that align with its own publications and for which it has access to a market space.
- Books are sold into bookshops at a wholesale price, not the full recommended retail price as is sometimes thought.
- Brolly's wholesale price (including delivery cost) to bookshops is typically around 40-45% of the retail price, excluding delivery charges. From that, Brolly needs to cover all costs associated with selling, warehousing, and order fulfilment. Typical payments to an Author/Publisher on the sale of a book in Australia through Brolly are therefore necessarily around 30-35% only, or Brolly would make a loss.
- Books sold into overseas markets pass through wholesalers in those locations, hence returns to Brolly and the Author/Publisher are lower again. This can often make it difficult for overseas sales to be viable, especially on small quantities.
- Payment to the Author/Publisher is only made on successful sale, and credits are also claimable against returns.
- Despite all efforts on the part of Brolly, sales through the book trade can be very slow and disappointing. Brolly has no control over buying decisions made by retail customers nor market conditions, hence urges all Author/Publishers seeking distribution to be aware of the associated risks. Rest assured, however, Brolly would only take on a book for distribution if it believed it had reasonable chances of sale through the marketplace.
- Often the best salesperson for book is the Author/Publisher. Sales through a distributor to the book trade are often just one component of a more diversified selling strategy that an Author/Publisher needs to implement. This is especially so for a new Author/Publisher who is not yet established.
- Many Author/Publishers complement their retail sales with on-line sales, and the immediate benefit of on-line sales is that they are typically business-to-consumer and hence the Author/Publisher is able to receive the full (or close to) retail price back once a sale is made. This makes those sales much more viable than those sales that go through a business-to-business supply chain.
- Always hope for the best but be prepared for the worst. Great things can happen in publishing and books can suddenly fly, but the reverse is also true. Most books find their place somewhere in the middle, and it can be a slow climb.
To discuss your distribution needs further, simply contact us here.
Publicity and Promotion costs
Brolly does not generally provide publicity or promotion services nor cover their cost. Brolly's distribution role is to promote and sell the book to retail customers at Brolly's cost, which it does through a range of mechanisms including personal sales visits. For Brolly, the best promotion for a book is for a bookshop to have it on display to its customers. Publicity or promotional efforts directed at the end consumer are however beyond the scope of Brolly's services.