Publishing chief Nigel Newton has been dividing his time between wine and books these last few months. He spent three weeks in August supervising work at his California vineyard which he inherited from his father. A few weeks later, he was winging his way to India to turn over a new page for publishing giant Bloomsbury as it launched in this country.

Throughout the last decade, Newton, Bloomsbury’s founder and chief executive, has had to answer one question about the publishing company: what would it do for an encore after the stupendous, runaway success of the Harry Potter books? And what would it do with the huge war chest of cash that the boy wizard had magically conjured up.

Coming to India is part of the elaborate strategy for keeping the cash rolling in — which was drawn up by Newton and his colleagues almost from the time Harry and friends began bringing in super-sized profits. Says Newton: “The first Harry Potter came out in July 1997. By 2000 we were ready to diversify.”

Newton is the first to admit that the scale of Bloomsbury’s success has been far beyond what he and his co-founders had ever envisaged when they launched the company back in 1986. Newton had taken two weeks leave after his daughter was born to write a business plan. Says Newton: “We were always very simple in our vision. We only ever wanted to be a pure book publisher.”

Newton is tall and rumpled and he and his team are looking ebulliently cheerful after the Bloomsbury launch party the night before. Ever since his father died five years ago, he has also taken over the running of the family’s Newton Vineyard in California, though he spends almost all his time in London. Says Newton: “I farm by email. I email our vineyard foreman and we make important decisions I am not very well qualified to take.” But he’s looking forward to a bountiful harvest this year after a near disaster last year because of awful weather conditions. “Last year there was a perfect storm. There were three serious weather events, including fog in August when the grapes should have been receiving sun.”

Back around the turn of the century, when the money from the Harry Potter books began piling up — at a peak the company had a cash pile of £70 million — Newton and his colleagues decided it would be smart to make a carefully planned move from children’s books and trade publishing (that includes mass market fiction and non-fiction) into the world of academic and professional publishing where profits are steadier. Says Newton: “You have higher margins and an identifiable market. You can, for instance, buy mailing lists of all the academics in the world and hit them directly.”

For Bloomsbury, opening its own operations in India has become essential for more than one reason. For a start, as the company has grown in leaps and bounds, it now makes sense to have its own offices here. “We have a much bigger list of books than in the past. And economies of scale finally apply to us having our own independent operation,” says Newton. (Bloomsbury has, for years, been represented by Penguin India in this country.)

Equally importantly, the expansion into academic and professional books meant India became a crucial link in Bloomsbury’s global chain. Says Newton: “India is a robust academic market so it makes good sense for that relatively new side to have a dedicated team.”

Over the last decade Bloomsbury began snapping up carefully picked academic publishers distinguished for their excellence. So, for instance, it bought the Arden Shakespeare, which brings out highly acclaimed scholarly editions of the Bard’s works.

Perhaps, more importantly for the Indian market, Bloomsbury also took over Wisden, the Bible of cricket fans globally. And it’s quickly aiming to win over Indian cricket fans by bringing out the first Wisden India Almanack which is likely to hit the shelves in a few weeks.

In addition, Bloomsbury has become a leading publisher of drama and even owns the rights to the works of playwrights like Bertolt Brecht. At an entirely different level, it’s a major law and tax publisher.

Today, Newton looks back on these moves with satisfaction. Bloomsbury still has a cash pile of £10 million and it’s growing. Says Newton: “Our cash has a habit of coming back so we must have bought some good things.”

And don’t think for a moment the money stream from the Harry Potter series has dried up. Far from it. Even though The Deathly Hallows, the last of the series, came out in 2008, sales are still strong. Says Newton: “Just because the last book is out doesn’t mean sales are down. In fact, if you’re buying it for your kids or grandchildren, you have to buy all seven.” At last count, Harry Potter still accounted for 5 per cent of Bloomsbury’s revenues. “There was a time when Harry Potter was a heck of a percentage. We never disclosed it precisely,” says Newton.

You could say that Bloomsbury and Newton have led a charmed existence almost from the time the company launched. After growing up in the US, Newton moved to the UK to study at Cambridge. Soon after graduating, he joined first Macmillan and then Sedgwick & Jackson, where he stayed for nine years and climbed steadily through the ranks.

The 1980s were a time of consolidation in Britain’s publishing industry. Many of the larger publishers were being snapped up by larger conglomerates. By contrast, Bloomsbury was a small and an ambitious newcomer. Says Newton: “The mid-80s were a time of sex and shopping novels. We decided to stand for quality and our moment came almost immediately.”

The company’s planning to launch with a bang in India. In the coming months, it will have the global launch of William Dalrymple’s next book Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan 1839-42. The book will be released first in India and after that in the UK and US. Similarly, author Manil Suri’s next book, The City of Devi, will be launched globally in India before it hits the US or UK. “India is part of a global publishing strategy. It will publish all of the thousand books that we publish whether they originate in London, Delhi or Sydney,” says Alexandra Pringle, Bloombury’s editor-in-chief.

All the indications are that Bloomsbury is still on a roll. Pringle, for instance, has had some notable successes in recent months. Three out of six books on the shortlist of the Orange Prize for women authors were from Pringle’s list — and the winner was one of her authors.

But publishing is as tricky a game as the movie-making industry. There is the constant hunt for the next big hit. Says Newton: “The best editors are the ones who have strong instincts and the ability to communicate that to others. But sometimes it’s in the laps of the gods.”

In the offing

The first Wisden India Almanack in a few weeks.

The global launch of William Dalrymple’s next book Return of a King: The Battle for Afghanistan 1839-42. The book will be released first in India.

Manil Suri’s next book, The City of Devi, will be launched globally in India before it hits the US or UK.