Castle Harlan, the private equity firm that bought Baker & Taylor in 2006, has bought Bookmasters, the Ashland, Ohio, printer, distributor and wholesaler, from the Wurster family. B&T and Bookmasters are entering a "strategic partnership," under which B&T will now offer many services Bookmasters offers, including:
- Print-on-demand and short run digital printing
- Offset printing, as well as a full range of binding formats
- Content and editorial services
- E-book conversion and distribution
- Publisher distribution services and third-party fulfillment
- Book sales and marketing services
Noting that the book industry "is going through periods of unprecedented change with the migration to digital," David Cully, B&T's president of retail markets and executive v-p of merchandising, said, "We see remarkable opportunities for the entire publishing supply chain to reduce costs while improving service levels to customers."
Bookmasters CEO David Wurster told the Times-Gazette that the company is staying put and he will continue in his position. Likewise his brother, Matt, continues as COO. Their parents, Ann and Thomas Wurster, founded the company 41 years ago.
Although the decision to sell was difficult because of the family's "pride of ownership," Wurster said, "our industry is evolving. As we thought about how to adapt our company, this was a real reality check. Over the next three to five years, it really made sense to have a partner to take us to the next level."
He noted that B&T has been a Bookmasters client, using its local printing capabilities, and the "rapport between the two companies" led to the sale.
In a separate deal, the Wurster family sold its 50,000-square-foot facility to a local investor for $4.3 million and has leased it back for 15 years, the Times-Gazette said.