North America Trip, June 2024

It’s been just over two weeks since we got back from a rewarding tour of the North Eastern corridor of the US, visiting publishing partners and potential clients in Washington DC, Philadelphia, and New York, before flying onto Canada to visit Toronto, then taking the Amtrak to the American University Press meeting in Montreal.

I travelled together with our Head of Sales, Gill Richardson, and our Digital Content and Marketing Executive, Alicia Ward, and we all agreed that it was a fascinating, productive trip; there is simply no digital replacement that matches the value—or fun—of face-to-face meetings, drinks, and dinners that occur on trips like that.

There were many highlights over the two-week trip, but, after looking back at the photos, we’d like to single out a few:

Visiting Vartan Ajamian and David Hetherington at Books International to check out their impressive print facility, followed by a kind invitation to dinner at Mortons, where we ate the finest steaks we’d ever tasted (outside of Yorkshire, of course).?

Meeting Mary Francis and Clint Kimberling of University of Pennsylvania press for a sophisticated Italian dinner, which contrasted starkly with the Philly cheesesteak and turkey-and-gravy sandwich we enjoyed in Reading Terminal Market the next day! As we had to stay fighting fit during our trip, we worked off the excesses with a jog over to the Philadelphia Museum of Art to spar with Rocky Balboa.

A valuable meeting followed by a fun lunch with Jennifer Feldmann, Sally Kling, and Giraud Lorber, of Teachers College Press, who we are delighted to announce will be joining the Mare Nostrum Group for international sales and marketing on January 1st?2025!

A wonderful stay at the uber trendy Hotel Chelsea in New York, and a rooftop dinner with our friends; Mary Beth Jarrad, from New York University Press; and Fred Nachbaur, from Fordham University Press. Mary Beth’s pork sliders were the culinary highlight of our trip, and the views from her roof terrace in Brooklyn were absolutely spectacular.?

A very productive meeting with the dynamic Lisa Quinn and her team at the McGill Queen University Press offices in Montreal. We are very much looking forward to recommencing our partnership with McGill Queens on 1st?September 2024; not long to go!

A whole series of constructive, worthwhile meetings with our university press partners at the American University Press meeting in Montreal and an opportunity to finally try the internationally-famous Montreal poutine. We even managed to drop-in to the Barbie Expo at Fairmont!

I’m already looking forward to the next AUP in-person meeting in Seattle!