To support independent booksellers, who are working under "extraordinary circumstances," Penguin Random House has expanded its annual two-day transit program yet again, so that now, in its ninth year, it will run for eight months, from July 1 until March 1, 2021. The program was originally designed to cover the fall holiday season, but has been expanded regularly, and last year began in September.
Under the program, weather and transport conditions permitting, the company's Westminster, Md., and Crawfordsville, Ind., operations centers will ship indie orders received by 3 p.m. Eastern, Monday-Friday, on the next business day, to arrive in two days.
And, for the first time, the two-day transit program will launch from PRH's new facility in Reno, Nev., when the transition to Penguin Random House operating systems is completed in mid-August. After assuming management of the former Baker & Taylor warehouse earlier this year, PRH has been designing and installing state-of-the-art systems that will bring the warehouse into alignment with its Westminster and Crawfordsville facilities. The Reno facility will expand services to West Coast retailers and provide capacity for new services and projects. All three facilities have been operating under strict Covid-19 guidelines, with employee safety the top priority.
The two-day transit offer includes every frontlist and backlist title from the imprints of Knopf Doubleday, Penguin Publishing Groups, Random House, Random House Children's Books, Penguin Young Readers, Penguin Random House Audio divisions, and DK Publishing, plus the many clients of Penguin Random House Publisher Services. Those clients include America's Test Kitchen, Beacon Press, Candlewick Press, Charlesbridge, Dark Horse Comics, DC, Hay House, Highlights, Holiday House, Kensington, Kodansha Comics, Library of America, Melville House, National Geographic, New York Review Books, North Atlantic Books, Other Press, Quirk Books, Rizzoli, Sasquatch Books, Seven Stories, Shambhala, Soho, Steerforth Press, Verso and Wizards of the Coast.
Jaci Updike, president, U.S. sales, Penguin Random House, said, "We know that rapid replenishment is a major driver of profit for retailers, so we decided to relaunch Penguin Random House Two-Day Transit much earlier this year. So much is unpredictable right now; we want to support booksellers by making our supply chain as predictable--and speedy--as possible. We have many important books that are at the heart of the national conversation, and we want booksellers to be able to spend more time selling books, and less time online and on the phone worrying when their reorders will arrive. We kicked off this program almost 10 years ago to support indies at the holidays, and we remain committed to that goal. It's just that this year, the holiday we're starting with happens to be in July--Happy Independents Day!"