By IANS
New Delhi : Mike Bryan will be the new CEO and president of Penguin India from Sep 1, the publishing house announced Wednesday. The current Penguin India chief, Thomas Abraham, is leaving to start the India publishing operations of the Hachette Livre UK.
Bryan has been with Penguin for 27 years, most recently as international sales and marketing director in Britain and the US. His team managed the sales of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows" in a majority of export markets.
Penguin chairman and chief executive John Makinson said Bryan's "international experience and Penguin pedigree will bring a real understanding of the opportunities for Penguin in India".
Bryan said: "Penguin India is the envy of all trade publishers with one of the most dynamic publishing lists in the world. India is going through an exciting and rapid expansion and it is going to be a real privilege to be part of it."
Thomas Abraham, who will join Hachette Livre as managing director in mid-September, said: "These are exciting times in India and Hachette has an energy that will make a difference to the publishing scene in the country."
"I am thrilled at the prospect of this new role which involves setting up and building Hachette India with its wonderful constituent imprints and brands," added Abraham.
Hachette Livre UK is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hachette Livre SA which in turn is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lagardère SCA, one of France's leading public companies.
The group has published leading Indian authors like Vikram Seth and has come out with recent blockbusters like "Shantaram" and "In Spite Of The Gods".
Tim Hely Hutchinson, the CEO of Hachette Livre UK, said: "Our announcement today reflects our extended commitment to the Indian market, where we are intending that, by increasing our service and investment levels, we can increase sales of our authors' books to the mutual advantage of all concerned."
The Indian operation will report to Richard Kitson, group commercial director, Hachette Livre UK. The board of Hachette Book Group India will include Abraham, Tim Hely Hutchinson (CEO of Hachette Livre UK), Pierre de Cacqueray (group finance director, Hachette Livre UK) and Peter Roche (deputy CEO, Hachette Livre UK), said a company release.
Hachette Livre is the largest trade publishing group in the UK and after its recent expansion into the US is the third largest publisher in the world, according to a company statement.