"Pocket Books, along with everyone else, had to struggle against rising wartime costs, but for paperback reprinters it was an even more serious matter. Out of each quarter paid for books, 7 cents went to the retailer (9.5 cents if the buyer bought in quantities), another penny went to the author and the original publisher, while 10.5 cents went for production. That left 4 to 6 1/4 cents for selling, shipping and overhead. Because it cost 15 percent more to manufacture a Pocket Book at the end of 1941 than it had at the beginning ... shrewed manoeuvring was required to stay in business on the original twenty-five cent basis."
The period discussed by Tebbel is exactly when Bantam was publishing - 1940 and '41. Notice the range for costs is 22.5 to 27.25 cents. Even assuming that an entire print run sold profit was likely in the 1/2 cent to 1 cent range.
Pocket Books published in the 100,000s and its manufacturing costs were 10.5 cents. Bantam's print runs had to be less, yet the unit cost had to somehow be much less than 10.5 cents to be profitable. Also 7 to 9.5 cents to a retailer wouldn't have been supported by a 10 cent price and the other costs had to be much less than 5 to 7 1/4 cents.
However it was done one has to assume that Bantam expected to make a profit but it is hard to imagine any more than a penny per book. Given the scarcity of the books today print runs were likely in the 20,000 range. So, assuming once again the entire print run sold, profit per book would have been at best $200. At 29 books this works out to some $6,000 total profit. Even in 1940 this would not have justified starting the business.
I'll end with a Pocket and a Bantam book.
Pocket 97 - 1941
Pocket 97 back
LA Bantam 26
LA Bantam 26 back
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