Profile Books Ltd

General information

Profile was founded in 1996 by Andrew Franklin and Stephen Brough to publish stimulating non-fiction in a wide range of fields, including history, business and economics, science and biography, with a sprinkling of humour.

Bestsellers over the years have included the New Scientist Last Word series selling over 2.5 million and Eats, Shoots & Leaves by Lynne Truss (more than 3 million copies sold worldwide). Bestselling authors include Mary Beard, Alan Bennett, Simon Garfield, Francis Fukuyama, Simon Jenkins, Atul Guwande, and Sandi Toksvig.

Profile is very proud to publish Susan Hill, one of the world’s greatest ghost story writers, short story collections in conjunction with Oxfam and a new series with the Wellcome Trust.

In 2002 the company acquired the HarperCollins UK business list, including classics like In Search of Excellence. Profile’s bestselling business list includes The 48 Laws of Power, The Decision Book and Yes!. Profile publishes business books in partnership with the CMI and with The Economist.

Profile’s Frankenstein app was one of the Guardian‘s apps of the year in 2013. An innovative maths app, with content by Professor Ian Stewart launched 2014 in partnership with Touchpress, and won a 2015 Digital Book World award. Bestselling narrative adventure game 80 Days, created with Inkle, won a Futurebook Award in 2014.

In 2007 Profile acquired Serpent’s Tail, a company founded by Pete Ayrton that publishes highly distinctive award-winning international fiction such as We Need to Talk About Kevin by Lionel Shriver, Karen Joy Fowler, Adrian McKinty, Nicolson Baker, Jami Attenberg and J. Robert Lennon.

In 2011 Profile Books launched the Clerkenwell Press headed by Geoff Mulligan, which focuses on literary fiction and nonfiction and fiction in translation. In 2012 Profile bought the award winning Tindal Street titles.