Companhia das Letras

Companhia das Letras is a Brazilian publisher based in São Paulo, founded in 1986 by Luiz Schwarcz, who had experience working at the publisher Brasiliense, and his wife Lilia Moritz Schwarcz.[1]

According to Nielsen BookScan, Companhia das Letras was the second-largest book publisher in Brazil in 2015, with an 8.08% market share.[2] In 2017, BookScan named it the largest publisher, with over 5,000 titles and 34 Nobel Prize winners.[3]

One of its first four books was To the Finland Station by Edmund Wilson, a sales success that propelled the publisher. In the first twelve months of existence, it released 48 titles. Three years later, economist and writer Fernando Moreira Salles joined the project.

In December 2011, Penguin Books acquired a 45 percent stake in Companhia das Letras. [4] In October 2018, Penguin Random House increased its stake to 70 percent. Moreira Salles exited the partnership, while the Schwarcz family will continue to own 30% of the publisher.[5]

The publisher has several divisions, including Objetiva and Alfaguara (which were acquired from Grupo Santillana), Companhia das Letrinhas (children's books), Quadrinhos na Cia (graphic novels), and Penguin Companhia (classic literature).