Get Started on How to Set Up a Publishing Business in India
Confused on how to set up your publishing business in India? Look no further. The publishing industry is profitable and rewarding if you play your cards right. India is the perfect place for you to begin your venture as a publishing entrepreneur or your career by releasing your debut. Let us walk you through the basics of setting up your very own publishing company.
Over several decades, India has witnessed and welcomed plenty of changes in their publishing business. With the incoming technological advancements, one would assume that digital publishing would have overtaken traditional printing by now. However, that is not the case for India. The nation’s publishing industry is one of the few markets in the world where digital and traditional publishing are expanding in parallel.
India’s Publishing Industry
Past research in 2014 indicates that publishing business in India is exponentially growing; what’s more interesting is most of the publishing come from small to medium owned and family unit publishers. The compound annual growth rate in the nation is of 30%, making India the seventh biggest publishing country. According to the Federation of Indian Publishers, the nation has more than 19,000 publishing houses across the country, with 50% of the published materials in Hindi and English; the remaining 50% is in other official languages of the country.
Procedures in Creating Your Publishing Company
To set up a publishing business in India is relatively simple. First, you will have to register your business depending on the type of publishing materials. For example, if you are planning to begin a newspaper or magazine company, register your business at the Registrar of Newspapers in India. On a side note, you also have to obtain the proper licenses and permits before starting your business legally, to avoid being slammed a hefty penalty. Then, proceed to file the correct documents required by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs annually; you can read more about the guidelines here.
Investors such as yourself will have to create a legal entity and register the company for tax purposes. That said, the publishing industry in India is exempted from certain taxes, like the payment of the value-added tax.
If you are a foreigner looking forward to setting up your publishing company in India, fret not. The local government has allowed foreign direct investments (FDI) in the industry since the 2000s. Since then, many international publishing houses have begun their operations in the industry.
The Bottom Line
Given the increasing literacy rate among Indians, the publishing industry is expecting to expand in the following years. One more good news about the country is that it is known for not having a single national language but has 22 official languages. That said, you can strive and create materials for a wide range of audience, multiple languages. Creating your own business is nothing short of an exciting adventure. However, do bear in mind to do proper research and weigh the pros and cons of establishing your business. In this way, you can mitigate risks and optimise profit.
