Lulu.com
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Self-publishing, Print-on-demand, Distribution |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Founder | Bob Young |
| Headquarters | Morrisville , United States |
Key people | Kathy Hensgen (CEO) |
| Products | Print books, ebooks, photo books, calendars, Open Access printing service, children's publishing (Lulu Jr.) |
| Website | www |
Lulu Press, Inc., known simply as Lulu, is a privately owned platform specializing in online print-on-demand, self-publishing, and distribution services. By the year 2014, Lulu had facilitated the publication of approximately two million titles.
Established in 2002 by Bob Young, co-founder of Red Hat and seasoned entrepreneur who held the CEO position for an extended period, Lulu celebrated its 20th year in business in 2022 under the leadership of CEO Kathy Hensgen. The company’s main office is located in Morrisville, North Carolina.
Products
Starting in 2009, Lulu broadened its offerings to include ebooks, photo books, and calendars. In 2017, the company introduced an Open Access print-on-demand service aimed specifically at academic publishers.
Process
Authors benefit from attractive royalty rates: 80% on print book sales and 90% on ebooks distributed via Lulu’s platform.
Replay Photos
In January 2014, Lulu enhanced its product range by acquiring Replay Photos, a sports photography firm based in Durham, North Carolina. Replay Photos focuses on licensed images of collegiate and professional sports franchises and provides photographic prints, custom framing options, canvas prints, and original wall art. This acquisition strengthened Lulu’s presence in the sports media market.
Digital Rights Management (DRM)
On July 2, 2013, Lulu finalized its DRM Retirement initiative. Prior to January 15, 2013, authors had the option to apply DRM protection to their PDF or EPUB files. This change represented a strategic pivot in Lulu’s approach to managing digital content.
Lulu Jr.
Introduced in 2014, Lulu Jr. is designed to serve the children’s publishing sector by empowering young writers to create and publish their own books. Initiatives such as My Comic Book and IlluStory highlight Lulu’s expansion into educational and youth-focused publishing services.
Lulu Blooker Prize
The Lulu Blooker Prize was a literary accolade sponsored by Lulu during 2006 and 2007 that celebrated "blooks," or books derived from blogs. The award featured three categories—non-fiction, fiction, and comics—and attracted international submissions, reinforcing Lulu’s role in pioneering new publishing formats.
2006
The first edition of the competition attracted 89 submissions from over a dozen countries. The judging panel consisted of Cory Doctorow (Chair), Paul Jones, and Robin "Roblimo" Miller.
Winners
- Julie and Julia: 365 Days, 524 Recipes, 1 Tiny Apartment Kitchen by Julie Powell (overall winner, non-fiction)
- Four and Twenty Blackbirds by Cherie Priest (fiction category)
- Totally Boned: A Joe and Monkey Collection by Zach Miller (comics; self-published via Lulu)
Runners-up
- Biodiesel Power by Lyle Estill (non-fiction runner-up)
- Hackoff.com: An Historic Murder Mystery Set in the Internet Bubble and Rubble by Tom Evslin (fiction runner-up)
- Dinosaur Comics: Huge Eyes, Beaks, Intelligence, and Ambition by Ryan North (comics runner-up)
2007
In 2007, the competition received 110 entries representing 15 countries. The judging panel expanded to five members: Paul Jones (chair), Arianna Huffington, Julie Powell (the previous year’s overall winner), Rohit Gupta, and Nick Cohen.
Award Recipients
- My War: Killing Time in Iraq authored by Colby Buzzell (Champion in Overall and Non-Fiction Categories)
- The Doorbells of Florence written by Andrew Losowsky (Fiction Category Winner)
- Mom's Cancer created by Brian Fies (Winner in Comics Category)
Honorable Mentions
- My Secret: A PostSecret Book by Frank Warren (Non-Fiction Category)
- Island: A Zombie Novel by David Wellington (Fiction Category)