The direct-to-consumer business model is not typically applied in the publishing industry. However, for one children’s book publishing company, it’s working — and this company’s success is on track to disrupt the entire industry.
Puppy Dogs & Ice Cream (PDIC) was founded in 2017. The San Diego based business was founded by Jason Kutasi, a 44-year-old author and economics alumnus of UC San Diego. The company’s success has been steady since its inception. PDIC launched in November 2017, sold 5,000 copies of a single book in its first month and reached $1.45 million in revenue.
“I don’t think of ourselves as disruptors, but just a publisher who doesn’t conform to the old rules of the industry,” Kutasi said. “We didn’t invent e-commerce, but simply bolted e-commerce onto a vertical, children’s books, that doesn’t have the same margins as most e-commerce businesses. So I guess we just managed to figure some things out to sell kid’s books directly to readers.”
PDIC utilizes a model which bypasses the middleman to sell children’s books directly to customers. PDIC relies heavily on marketing, and all books are sold on the company website or via Amazon.
“We wanted to focus, not just on books that are cute… cute art and a cute story, but on the Why,” stated Kutasi. “What will a child learn from reading one of our books? What will the family learn together? We call it ‘children’s books with a purpose’.”
PDIC currently publishes over 150 books by 80 authors. All of the stories are meaningful and educational — a fact that the company heavily emphasizes in its marketing.
The approach is working out extremely well for PDIC, which sold over 2 million books in the last 12 months. In fact, the company expects to see $30 million in revenue by the end of this year. In 2022, Kutasi plans to take the company to a projected $40 million, thanks in part to the company’s 400,000 five-star reviews. Additionally, industry colleagues and influencers have nothing but praise for PDIC’s business model.
“Where most publishers focus on selling passively through Amazon or bookstores, Jason and his team have focused on reaching consumers directly through their remarkable marketing engine with relevant quality content designed specifically for their consumers,” said Kelly Gallagher, vice president of content acquisition at Ingram Content Group.
Cevin Bryerman, CEO and publisher of a trade publication, Publishers Weekly, agrees in stating, “Puppy Dogs & Ice Cream’s success has been driven by their wildly unique approach to publishing and a focus on the direct-to-consumer model. They can reach new customers and build a one-to-one relationship with their readers — which you just can’t do effectively by selling through retail channels alone.”
PDIC may still be considered a newcomer in the publishing industry, but the company is putting up the numbers of a seasoned veteran, courtesy of Kutasi’s novel approach in directly reaching out to readers who are searching for a solution and with a direct-to-consumer business model in mind. Needless to say, PDIC is on a path to long-term success.
Puppy Dogs & Ice Cream is a small, independent children’s book publisher based in San Diego, CA. They offer a publishing alternative to the traditional publishing model which benefits authors and customers alike. They have a strong belief in supporting American business, and all of their books are printed in the United States.
