Globe Pequot buys craft publisher C&T, its second deal of the year
What's the deal? Globe Pequot Publishing GroupDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has acquired C&T PublishingDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, one of the leading independent publishers of quilting, sewing, and craft books. Terms were not disclosed. Founded in 1983 and based in Concord, California, C&T publishes books and instructional products and runs online classes on quilting, sewing, embroidery, watercolour, paper crafting, and cosplay.
What's included? The deal covers C&T's backlist of more than 1,800 active titles across its Stash Books, Kansas City Star Quilts, FanPowered Press, and FunStitch Studio imprints. It also includes Creative Spark, the online learning platform C&T launched in 2020, which now offers more than 220 courses and live virtual events. Creative Spark will keep running under the team that built it.
What's the endgame? Chief executive Jed Lyons said C&T supports Globe Pequot's push to build its crafts list, following its Stackpole Books line and the acquisitions of Astragal Press and Linden Publishing. It is Globe Pequot's second acquisition this year, after buying Linden in spring. "C&T gives that [craft] list real depth, and we plan to keep investing in new C&T books for years to come," Lyons said.
What changes? C&T will keep publishing new titles under its own imprints, including Stash Books. About a dozen staff from C&T's editorial, production, and marketing groups have joined Globe Pequot. "Quilters and sewists know and trust the C&T name, and that won't change," said Robert Marsh, president of Globe Pequot.
Why now? C&T had been distributed by Globe Pequot's sister company, National Book Network, since 2009. Both moved to Simon & SchusterDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → when NBN closed last year, tightening the ties that preceded this deal.
The signal: The purchase reflects steady consolidation in niche publishing, as larger houses buy independent presses to deepen category lists and absorb digital platforms like Creative Spark alongside print backlists.
Read more: publishersweekly.com
Image credit: TinyApartmentCrafts
