Publishing professional
Business Head - Publishing Division, Pratilipi, India
CEO, Westland Publications Pvt. Ltd. (an Amazon Company), Chennai, India
CEO, Westland Ltd., Chennai, India
Reporting to board/Responsible for all growth strategies and profitability of the business.
Responsible for shaping the publishing strategy of Westland, the selection of authors and titles.
Actively involved in acquisition of key authors as well as managing their expectations to ensure author happiness.
Maintain and nurture relationships with all key customers both offline and online.
Managed the transition of Westland from a family concern to a corporate entity.
Transitioned the core business activity from imports and 3rd party distribution to make Westland one of the top 5 trade publishers in the country.
Significantly grew the 3rd party distribution business nationally. At the point we chose to exit 3rd party distribution we were the 2nd largest trade distributor in the country.
Director, Westland Books Pvt. Ltd., Chennai, India
Was one of the promoters of this joint venture with Landmark, one of India's leading retail chains in India.
The company was chiefly instrumental in opening up the market for import and distribution of U.S . published books in India.
Worked closely with all major U.S publishers - Random House, Harper Collins, Simon & Schuster, Penguin U.S and others to develop the market in India for their titles.
Responsible for acquiring the license for India to publish the bestselling Chicken Soup Series. Under this arrangement, developed a series of India specific titles which is a unique achievement in the Chicken Soup universe.
Director, East West Books (Madras) Pvt Ltd, Chennai, India
Managed the relationship with Rupa & Co as their exclusive distributors for the 4 southern states of India.
As part of the Rupa arrangement, worked closely with British publishers to market their books in India. This responsibility included negotiating special prices for the bestselling titles on behalf of Rupa and East West.
Grew East West to become the no 1 trade distributor in South India along with sister company Westland.
Actively involved in the publishing of the literary journal - The Indian Review of books.
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