Boolino Acquires UK-based Startup Fiction Express

We got great news for the Spanish Startup Ecosystem. Boolino, the leading online platform for promotion, sale and recommendation of children’s books in Spain acquired UK-based Fiction Express to accelerate their growth in the English Market and expand their international model.

A Growth Strategy

Fiction Express, an award winning company for innovation was owned by Discovery Books Ltd. It was founded back in 2012 with the mission to provide schools and teachers an interactive educational resource that focused on the promotion of reading. The platform had to date 500 primary schools in the UK as partners with overwhelming success according to the teachers. Their innovative book co-creation method, allows students to take part in the book making process by choosing the plot through voting. The students can really enjoy this real opportunity to take part and have a voice in the stories they read. Paul Humphrey, the CEO of Fiction Express notes: “Since the beginning of Fiction Express, thousands of schools have discovered the power of encouraging students to read more and to improve their reading skills and general understanding; and developing at the same time, the pleasure of reading and the habit of reading that will be key to their future.”

On the other hand, Boolino, as part of its growth strategy, recently launched their website in the United Kingdom and launched its publishing services at the last London Book fair in London. According to Cristina Puig, co-founder and director of sales and marketing of Boolino, “the English language and the presence in the UK are two key elements in our globalization strategy. The English publishing industry is very receptive to our business model to join efforts to bring books to families and readers through additional content and high-quality sharing experiences between users.”

Gaining more Local and International users

In order to consolidate the growth of Fiction Express in the UK and reach an International English and other languages users, Paul Humphrey and Boolino have reached an acquisition agreement. The agreement between Boolino and Discovery Books was signed in August with immediate effect. Their plan is to keep the brand Fiction Express and provide schools with Boolino services for free. The two parties have agreed not to comment on the structure of the agreement and the purchase price.

About Boolino

Founded in 2011, Boolino has become the largest platform and resource center for children and youth books that offers both products and value-added services for parents, bloggers, libraries and schools. As a result, Sven Huber, CEO of Boolino mentions that their platform is now the favorite online channel in the industry and partner of more than 90% of publishers in Spain.
The integration of Fiction Express in their product portfolio is a unique opportunity to foster growth in the English-language market. Combining a great editorial work with their experience in marketing and sales, will increase their number of young readers and partners.
In the past, Boolino has received several awards for his contribution to the development of reading skills and was honored as one of the top 100 companies in educational innovation with the prestigious Red Herring award.