A UK-based printing and publishing company which created a unique model for online creators to publish books is celebrating three years of success, quite possibly outlasting some of the influencers it seeks to service.
Found, which is based at Sunderland BIC, was set up to take the content posted online by influencers with large followings and monetise it by turning it into high quality books.
It has signed up creators across the UK and USA, many of whom have hundreds of thousands of followers across their channels, with videos that have – in many cases – been viewed millions of times.
The bulk of Found’s authors publish cookbooks but they also include lifestyle, fitness, wellbeing and nostalgia titles.
Since launch Found has sold more than 270,000 books with 345 different titles, earning some of the creators life changing amounts of money.
In late 2024 Found started to offer books from a handful of selected creators via other outlets, resulting in 15,777 being bought via Amazon and more than 2,000 through TikTok.
The company also now has some titles available as digital downloads, with 24,372 of this version sold so far.
Among the most successful are US-based Luke Brown, aka cookinginthemidwest, who has 1.7m followers on Instagram and who has sold more than 31,000 copies of his first book.
In the UK Found creators have included the late Norma Burton and her granddaughter Jess Asquith, who together as Jess and Norma gained a massive following.
The pair created Treasure This, a book which not only told their story but also could be used by other families to create a personalised memoir.
The Found model works on the basis of print-on-demand, with creators’ only commitment to promote their book via their channels.
Initially only available in hardback, many of the Found books are now available with a softcover and as a digital download.
Louise Stephenson, managing director of Found, is proud of the fact the company has disrupted the normal publishing industry.
“Found has given people who would normally not get a publishing deal the opportunity to turn their content into books,” she said.
“The normal route of getting a book to print – find an agent, try and get a publisher – is no longer necessary.
“We not only have created a really exciting and accessible way through this process but we are also able to speed it up. Concept to creation can take as little as 60 days, as opposed to months if not years by the more traditional route.
She added: “We are very excited about what we’ve achieved in the last three years and look forward to what the future holds.”
