A Barnes & Noble spokeswoman has confirmed a report in the Good e-Reader newsletter that Jennifer Perry, most recently head of its audiobook operations, has replaced longtime Nook head Susan McCulloch. The spokeswoman, however, called the assertion in the story that the change was made has part of a downsizing that included “dozens of executives, with 100 people in total leaving,” a “complete fabrication.” The spokeswoman added that beyond the change at Nook, “there have only been the usual minor changes in roles, with a small number of additions and a small number of exits from the business.”
The change at the top of Nook is in of itself the latest in a series of changes B&N has made over the past year, beginning with the November sale of its Sterling Publishing division to Hachette Book Group. CEO James Daunt said at the time of the sale that Sterling, now operating as Union Square & Co., had grown well beyond what B&N could manage as it focuses its resources on expanding its bricks-and-mortar footprint. The bookstore chain hopes to open as many as 60 outlets this year after opening about the same number last year.
At the start of the year, B&N saw some changes in its New York office, which included the departure of Jackie De Leo as chief merchandising officer. Last week, De Leo was named publisher and chief merchant at Scholastic’s Children's Book Group. In that new role, she reports to Sasha Quinton, who heads the new group and had previously worked with De Leo at both B&N and Readerlink.
