The Gritstone Publishing co-operative model, seven years on

Abstract

This short paper provides an update on Gritstone Publishing Cooperative, which is Britain’s first publishing company that is an author-run co-operative. It specialises in both fiction and non-fiction relating to the landscape and countryside. The paper begins with an overview of the benefits of the co-operative business model to self-employed workers, particularly as a solution to precarious work and lack of workers’ rights. It then outlines the marketing co-operative model adopted by Gritstone, as well as providing an update on governance structures and recent successes, including launching the Gritstone Social History imprint and the mutual support authors give each other.