The Folio Society Brings Beautiful Books to the Amazon Generation as it Launches its New...

LONDON -- The Folio Society may be recognised globally for its commitment to beautiful, illustrated works of fine literature but on 1st September 2005, the sixty year old business will open its doors to the Amazon generation with the launch of its first ever ecommerce site, www.foliobooks.net.

Foliobooks will be the only place on the internet where the public can buy its exclusive editions. Until now, Folio Society books have only been available to its members, many of whom are well-known names from the world of literature and the Arts.

On-line book consumers, which the company has termed "the Amazon generation", are possibly the most established group of purchasers on the Net, preceding the boom in travel, insurance and home shopping. Until now, on-line book sellers have mainly focused on selling low priced, mass market titles. With many consumers now seeking quality and exclusivity, however, foliobooks expects to tap into a new generation of book lovers looking for a level of production standards and design not matched elsewhere.

The Folio Society is a quiet statesman of the publishing market. Founded in 1947, the company today boasts a membership of around 150,000 and annual sales in excess of GBP 22million.

The Folio Society has offices in London, the USA, Canada and Australia and has expanded its management, marketing and customer service team to support this new e-commerce venture.

"The Folio Society has an extremely loyal, international membership and is a well-known and respected brand," says Nick Rice, Managing Director of foliobooks. "However we believe that the Amazon generation prefers a more flexible arrangement, and by launching foliobooks, we hope to appeal the existing and new book lovers who would like to discover beautiful, illustrated exclusive books."