James Daunt

James Daunt is a British entrepreneur recognized for his significant impact on the bookselling industry, having led major turnarounds of bookstore chains in both the United Kingdom and the United States. With more than 30 years of experience in bookselling, Daunt began his career by leaving investment banking to open Daunt Books in London. The shops became known for their traditional interiors and for organizing books by country rather than subject. His approach emphasized thoughtful curation and community engagement, aiming to make bookstores interesting and attractive, staffed by knowledgeable booksellers who enjoyed their work and customers.

Daunt gained further prominence when he became managing director of Waterstones, the UK's largest bookstore chain. Appointed after the company was acquired by businessman Alexander Mamut, Daunt restored Waterstones to profitability through a strategy that allowed each branch to operate like an independent shop. Store managers were empowered to select inventory, curate displays, and tailor their stores to local communities, moving away from publisher-driven promotions. This approach led to the chain's return to profit and earned Daunt the nickname "the man who saved Waterstones."

Daunt later became chief executive officer of Barnes & Noble, the largest retail bookseller in the world, as well as of stationery and gift retailer Paper Source and Waterstones. At Barnes & Noble, he implemented a similar decentralizing strategy, empowering individual store teams to choose and present books suited to their customers. He also ended the practice of accepting payments from publishers for prime in-store placements. Daunt oversees more than 600 Barnes & Noble bookstores and 125 Paper Source locations in the United States, along with over 300 bookshops across the United Kingdom, Ireland, The Netherlands, and Belgium.

Under Daunt's leadership, Barnes & Noble has experienced a resurgence, with dozens of new stores opening and a renewed focus on local bookselling. During the pandemic, Daunt used store closures as an opportunity to remodel locations, rethink inventory, and engage with booksellers for feedback. His public engagements include interviewing Paul McCartney about the bestselling book "The Lyrics: 1956 to the Present."

Daunt's contributions to publishing and bookselling have been recognized with honors such as election as an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and appointment as a Commander of the Order of the British Empire for services to the publishing industry. A graduate of Pembroke College, Cambridge, where he studied history, Daunt brings a combination of intellectual depth and retail expertise to the evolving landscape of bookselling, publishing, and literary culture.