Thomas Abraham retires as Hachette India MD

Hachette India announced that its founding managing director, Thomas Abraham, who has been instrumental in shaping the company and strengthening its philosophy, market presence and profitable growth for eighteen years, has chosen to retire at the company’s retirement age.

Headhunted from his role as CEO and president of Penguin India, Abraham joined Hachette India as MD in 2007, steering the company from an INR 8-crore start-up to an INR 100-crore thriving publishing house, doing so for the second time, having earlier taken Penguin from an INR 30-crore level trebling turnover to an INR 100-crore bracket.

Alongside growth, over the past few years Abraham delivered a steady bottom-line of over 15% unequalled by any other trade publishing company on both value and percentage terms. 

During his tenure, the company set several records for hardback sales on release, including Harry Potter and the Cursed Child and Sachin Tendulkar’s Playing It My Way. 

While the company’s dominant revenue stream is from its imports, the local divisions publish an eclectic list that includes 100,000 plus sellers Indra Nooyi, Roopa Pai, as well as marquee authors Anuradha Roy, Manjula Padmanabhan, Cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar, Chess World Champion Viswanathan Anand, Super Chefs Manish Mehrotra and Ritu Dalmia, and Business author Subroto Bagchi among others. 

Abraham personally curated and reissued a legacy imprint, Yellowbacks (comprising classics of adventure, crime and pulp fiction) in India which will be released in the UK and US at the end of 2025.

“It’s been a tremendous journey, and I’ve loved every moment of it, but after 25 years of running operating companies, it’s time to step back and read something for pleasure beyond P&Ls and balance sheets. I’m delighted that I’m able to leave at an all-time high for us, and with the talented team we have, I have no doubt it will continue to go higher. This journey would not have been possible without the unstinting support from Richard Kitson, David Shelley, and Charlie King, the wonderful teams at Hachette India and Hachette UK,” said Abraham.

Richard Kitson, deputy CEO of Hachette UK and Hachette Book Group and Chair of HUK International said: “Thomas has been the most amazing MD and colleague since he helped found Hachette India 18 years ago. Since then, the company has grown every year and is now the third largest narrative trade publisher in the country with a brilliant team working there and so many individual successes that he has been responsible for. Thomas is one of the most strategic leaders I’ve had the pleasure to work with as well as being one of the warmest and most generous with his time and knowledge. He also knows more than anyone about such a diverse range of subjects, particularly the Hodder Yellowbacks, Sherlock Holmes and out of copyright authors in general, as well as jazz or classic rock music from the 60s and 70s. He will be hugely missed by us all at Hachette – in India and the wider group – and we wish him a long and happy retirement.”

Following Abraham’s retirement, Riti Jagoorie will step up from her current role as VP of product and marketing in January 2026 to lead the business, which has delivered growth of over 12% over the past ten years. Reporting to Charlie King, CEO of Hachette UK International, she will lead the Board at Hachette India.

Jagoorie joined Hachette India in 2008 as one of its first employees and the product manager for Little, Brown & Headline. Her exceptional performance saw her promoted to head of product and deliver strong results with UK divisions, including Little, Brown, which grew from an INR 50-million list in 2008 to INR 350-million in 2024; Hodder from INR 20-million to INR 110-million, and Profile (represented in India by Hachette) from INR 23-million in 2013 to INR 175-million in 2024. 

She led the marketing and publicity campaign for Indra Nooyi’s My Life in Full, which has sold 140,000 copies since its release in 2021, and she picked and promoted bestsellers like The Devotion of Suspect X, The Silent Patient and The Empire of the Moghul series, to name a few. One of her key strengths has been her ability to work closely with booksellers across the country and curate the immense range of titles published by the Hachette group.

“I feel so fortunate to be a part of Hachette India and to bring the brilliant books we publish to readers all over the world. It has been such a privilege to work with and learn from someone as incredibly knowledgeable, experienced and inspiring as Thomas. I am grateful to him for hiring me, for always encouraging and guiding me and for trusting me to take this company forward,” said Jagoorie. “I am also very thankful to the top leadership at Hachette: David, Richard and Charlie, for this amazing opportunity. Thomas has built a solid business with a great team and a fantastic track record and I am excited to step up and ensure that we honour that legacy and continue to deliver the best results - for our books and our authors,” she added.

Thomas Abraham said: “Riti has been with the company since it began operations from day one. She’s grown with the company, been absolutely integral to our success, and her contribution has been invaluable. I’m so pleased and proud that she will lead the business. Her instinct for books and her flair for business are exceptional, and I’m in no doubt that she will take the company to new heights.”

Group CEO Charlie King said: “I am delighted that Riti is stepping up to become MD of Hachette India. She has contributed so much to the business over her 17 years with Hachette as an integral member of Thomas Abrahams' senior team. Riti has razor-sharp commercial instincts, strong editorial judgement, excellent people-skills and - most importantly - an exciting vision for the future of Hachette's business in India. I am greatly looking forward to working with Riti and the team to continue building on an extraordinary time of growth under Thomas's leadership.”