Bertrams, one of the two national book wholesalers in the U.K., has gone into administration and is laying off most employees and winding down operations, the Bookseller reported. The operations include Education Umbrella, the textbooks and digital education resources supplier, and Dawson Books, the library supplier.
In a statement issued Friday, Bertrams' administrator said in part, "Book wholesalers have suffered from falling demand in recent years due to changes in the distribution model for literature and the rising popularity of e-books. These factors, combined with the Covid-19-related closure of many public libraries and educational facilities, meant these businesses could no longer operate viably."
He added that sales have been agreed to in principle "with two unconnected parties for the tangible assets and unencumbered stock of Bertram Trading Limited and for the intangible assets of Education Umbrella Limited."
Other assets and facilities, including the Norwich warehouse, "extensive inventory of packaging and sorting machinery, power plant, compressors, racking systems, motorised conveyors, material handling equipment, office furniture and IT equipment," will be sold in an online auction July 1-6.
Founded in 1968 and owned since 2017 by private equity fund Aurelius, Bertrams had been struggling for some time. It closed because of the pandemic at the end of March. In April, Elliott Advisors, owner of Barnes & Noble and Waterstones, bought Wordery, Bertrams' online bookshop. In May, the Booksellers Association of the U.K. and Ireland bought Bertline, Bertrams' bookshop stock control, ordering and EPOS system.