Bloomsbury Publishing plc is an independent, London-based publishing house known for literary novels. The company's growth over the past decade is primarily attributable to the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. Bloomsbury was named Publisher of the Year in 1999 and 2000 by the British Book Industry.
The company was founded in 1986 by Nigel Newton, who had previously been employed by other publishing companies. It was floated as a public registered company in 1995, raising £5.5million, which was used to fund expansion of the company into paperback and children's books. A rights issue of shares in 1998 raised a further £6.1m, which was used to expand the company, in particular to found a U.S. branch. Bloomsbury USA was established in 1998, Bloomsbury USA Books for Young Readers in 2002, and in 2005, Bloomsbury acquired Walker & Co, a small company dedicated to publishing nonfiction. In 2000 Bloomsbury acquired A&C Black Plc, and in 2002 acquired Whitaker's Almanack. In 2007, Bloomsbury published Bloomsbury 21, a reprint series of 21 of its most popular books to celebrate its 21st anniversary.
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