John and Martha Storey announced today that they have signed a letter of intent to sell the majority interest in Storey Publishing to Workman Publishing Company of New York. Minority shareholders will be the current Storey management team of Pam Art, Dan Reynolds, and Janet Harris. The transaction is scheduled to be concluded at the end of June. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Storey Publishing will continue to operate from its present location at MASS MoCA campus in North Adams.
John and Martha Storey will retain the direct-to-consumer division of the company, including The Gardeners’ Marketplace.
Commenting on the agreement, founder John Storey said: “Workman Publishing’s values and approach to its business represent a perfect fit for Storey. As we’ve planned for the future, three things have been paramount to Martha and me: continuing the independent spirit of Storey Publishing; keeping our management and employee team intact; and staying in North Adams. This agreement allows all of those goals to be fulfilled. We look forward to a great new era of growth for Storey Publishing under this arrangement.â€
“It is very gratifying for us to be able to team up with Storey management to maintain its values and editorial program,†said Peter Workman, founder and president of Workman Publishing. “John and Martha have built Storey over the past 19 years to the pre-eminent publisher of books for country living. We have had a wonderfully productive and rewarding relationship with Storey, its people, and its books through our distribution agreement over the past year and a half. This acquisition allows us an even greater opportunity to help Storey grow and prosper.â€
Pam Art, president of Storey Communications, commented, “As someone who has been with Storey since the beginning in 1983, I’m proud to be able to work with our very talented staff and our new Workman partnership to build on what we all consider a truly wonderful and award-winning publishing program.â€
Joe Thompson, director of MASS MoCA, said, “We’re so pleased that John and Martha were able to complete this milestone transaction in a manner that ensured the continued presence of their employees on the MASS MoCA campus. We enjoy their business tenancy, and have become friends with the coworkers of Storey; we’re delighted they’ll be with us in the future. Workman is a first-rate publishing house, and we welcome them.â€
Workman Publishing, founded in 1968, is an independent publisher of adult trade and juvenile books, as well as Page-a Day® Calendars. Among its best-known titles are What to Expect When You’re Expecting; The Silver Palate cookbooks; and Brain Quest ®. Since 1999 Workman has been the exclusive distributor of Storey books.
Storey Communications Inc. was founded by John and Martha Storey in 1983 in Pownal, Vt. The company had operations in both Pownal and Williamstown for many years before moving to MASS MoCA in fall of 2000. Storey has published 565 titles covering such topics as gardening, natural health, horsemanship, crafts, and cooking.
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Berkshire Food Project Closed for Power Issues
NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The Berkshire Food Project is closed Monday because of a power outage early in the morning.
"We are unable to get proper electricity and heat to the building," according to Executive Director Matthew Alcombright. "We hope that this can be resolved and be open tomorrow."
The project does have some sandwiches and frozen meals that will be distributed at the entry.
The city has lifted a boil water order — with several exceptions — that was issued late Monday morning following several water line breaks over the weekend. click for more
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