Crossing Press

Crossing Press is a specialist book imprint whose list has focused on metaphysics, alternative lifestyles, healing, and related subjects. The imprint became part of Ten Speed Press in 2002, bringing it into a broader independent publishing operation that also included Ten Speed Press, Celestial Arts, and Tricycle Press. Ten Speed Press was founded in Berkeley, California, in 1971 by Phil Wood and developed a catalog known for practical nonfiction, food and cooking, lifestyle, design, and other visually distinctive books. Crossing Press occupied a more specialized position within that portfolio, serving readers interested in spiritual, personal-development, alternative-health, and non-mainstream lifestyle topics. The imprint’s corporate history is therefore closely linked to Ten Speed Press rather than to a separately documented standalone publishing company in the available reference material. Ten Speed Press acquired Crossing Press in 2002. By 2009, the combined business was issuing more than 100 new hardcovers and trade paperbacks each year across its imprints and maintained a backlist of more than 1,000 active titles. Random House acquired Ten Speed Press in February 2009, after which the business became part of Random House’s Crown Publishing Group division. Subsequent corporate changes in the Random House business placed the imprint within the broader Penguin Random House structure. The available sources do not establish a separate founder, founding date, headquarters, executive team, or definitive current publishing schedule for Crossing Press. They also do not identify individual Crossing Press titles with sufficient certainty to list them as flagship offerings. The imprint’s current presence is indicated by its listing on the Penguin Random House Canada website, but that listing alone does not document its full present-day activity, geographic scope, or ownership mechanics. Accordingly, Crossing Press is best described as a specialist publishing imprint with a history of association with Ten Speed Press and a subject focus on metaphysical, alternative-lifestyle, and healing literature.

Crossing Press is documented as a specialist publisher of books concerning metaphysics, alternative lifestyles, and healing. The available material does not provide a separate founding date or founder for the imprint. Its identifiable corporate history begins with its acquisition by Ten Speed Press in 2002. Ten Speed Press had been established in Berkeley, California, in 1971 by Phil Wood. Wood had earlier worked in the bookselling and publishing businesses, including positions connected with Barnes & Noble and Penguin Books. Ten Speed’s first book was Tom Cuthbertson’s Anybody’s Bike Book, a practical title that remained in print and helped inspire the company’s name. Over time, Ten Speed developed a broad nonfiction program covering practical subjects, food, cooking, lifestyle, and other illustrated categories. The company also built a portfolio of related imprints, including Celestial Arts and Tricycle Press. Crossing Press joined this group in 2002 and supplied a more focused list centered on metaphysical and alternative-lifestyle subjects. By 2009, Ten Speed Press and its imprints were publishing more than 100 new hardcover and trade-paperback titles annually and maintaining a backlist of more than 1,000 active titles. This scale provided Crossing Press with the infrastructure of a larger independent publishing operation while allowing it to retain a specialized editorial identity. The available sources do not specify how many titles were issued under the Crossing Press name, nor do they identify particular books as the imprint’s best sellers. Random House acquired Ten Speed Press in February 2009. The company subsequently became part of Random House’s Crown Publishing Group division. Later changes in the ownership structure of Random House placed the broader business within Penguin Random House. A current Penguin Random House Canada imprint page identifies Crossing Press, indicating that the name remains represented within the Penguin Random House publishing ecosystem. However, the available reference material does not establish whether the imprint currently publishes on a regular schedule, whether its editorial focus has changed, or which offices manage it. Crossing Press should therefore be understood as a specialist publishing brand whose principal documented distinction is its subject-matter focus and its integration into the Ten Speed Press portfolio. Its history illustrates the movement of a niche publishing list from an independent imprint into a larger publishing group, while preserving a recognizable editorial association with metaphysics, alternative lifestyles, and healing.

• 2009

  Integration into Random House

  [1]Ten Speed Pressen.wikipedia.org

  Random House acquired Ten Speed Press, after which the business became part of the Crown Publishing Group division.

• 2002

  Acquisition by Ten Speed Press

  [1]Ten Speed Pressen.wikipedia.org

  Ten Speed Press acquired Crossing Press and added the specialist imprint to its group of publishing brands.

A specialist nonfiction imprint focused on metaphysics, alternative lifestyles, healing, and adjacent personal-development subjects.

• Specialist nonfiction

  Crossing Press books

  Crossing Press has been associated with nonfiction covering metaphysics, alternative lifestyles, healing, and related personal-development or spiritual subjects. The available sources describe the imprint’s editorial territory but do not identify a sufficiently documented set of individual titles or product series to enumerate separately.

• 2009

  Random House acquires Ten Speed PressM&A

  Background

  Ten Speed Press operated several imprints, including Crossing Press, and had developed a substantial active backlist.

  Action taken

  Random House purchased Ten Speed Press in February 2009 and placed it within the Crown Publishing Group division.

  Aftermath

  Crossing Press became associated with a major international publishing group through Ten Speed Press’s integration into Random House and, subsequently, Penguin Random House.

  Source

• 2002

  Ten Speed Press adds Crossing Press to its imprint portfolioM&A

  Background

  Crossing Press operated as a specialist publisher focused on metaphysics, alternative lifestyles, and healing before being acquired by Ten Speed Press.

  Action taken

  Ten Speed Press acquired Crossing Press and incorporated it into its group of publishing imprints.

  Aftermath

  The imprint became part of the wider Ten Speed Press operation, which was later acquired by Random House and integrated into Crown Publishing Group.

  Source

1. 1Ten Speed Pressen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Crossing Press imprint pagepenguinrandomhouse.ca