ThriftBooks is owned by KCB Management (operating through KCB Private Equity), a Pasadena-based private equity firm, alongside co-investor Midwest Mezzanine Funds. In January 2026, ThriftBooks launched the 500 Billion Page Challenge, a national reading initiative aimed at reigniting everyday reading habits across America.
- ThriftBooks generated an estimated $276 million in online revenue through thriftbooks.com in 2024.
- The company has sold over 300 million books since its founding in 2003.
- ThriftBooks employs approximately 1,150 people across its U.S. operations.
- KCB Private Equity and Midwest Mezzanine Funds jointly acquired ThriftBooks on March 11, 2011.
- The company operates from its headquarters in Tukwila, Washington, with multiple processing centers nationwide.
ThriftBooks Mission and Core Purpose
ThriftBooks states its mission plainly: “We believe reading can change the world. Reading empowers people, offering them empathy, education, and occasional escape.” That sentence, drawn from the company’s public materials, anchors everything from how it prices books to how it manages library partnerships.
The company’s founding purpose in 2003 was to save books from landfills and make it easier for used books to reach new readers. Over two decades, ThriftBooks reports it has diverted close to one billion books from disposal. Books that cannot be sold are sent to specialized recycling facilities rather than discarded.
ThriftBooks also runs a community giving program called ThriftBooks Cares, which donates books to schools, nonprofits, and disaster recovery efforts. The tagline “Read more. Spend less.” appears across all its consumer-facing materials and sums up the operational philosophy: high volume, low prices, accessibility first.
ThriftBooks Products and Services
Used and New Books
- Over 19 million titles listed across fiction, nonfiction, rare, and collectible categories
- Every book hand-graded for condition before listing
- Prices typically start below $4 per book
ThriftBooks BuyBack
- Customers scan ISBNs via the BuyBack app for instant cash offers
- Free shipping labels provided for accepted books
- Bulk seller features added in April 2025
ReadingRewards Loyalty Program
- Free membership with points earned on every purchase
- 500 points redeemable for a free book
- Tiered levels: Reader, Bookworm, and Litrati
Library Advantage Program
- Purchasing program launched in late 2025 for libraries
- Exclusive discounts and flexible invoicing for institutional buyers
- Profit-sharing with library systems selling surplus inventory through ThriftBooks
Multi-Platform Sales
- ThriftBooks.com is the primary storefront
- Also listed on Amazon, eBay, Walmart, Etsy, and AbeBooks
- Proprietary pricing algorithms adjust listings across all channels
ThriftBooks 4 Teachers
- Educators, librarians, and homeschoolers eligible after verification
- Every 5th book free under the program
- Elevated ReadingRewards tier for all verified members
Who Owns ThriftBooks
ThriftBooks is a privately held company owned by KCB Management, operating through its investment arm KCB Private Equity. The firm acquired ThriftBooks on March 11, 2011, alongside Midwest Mezzanine Funds, a Chicago-based junior capital provider.
KCB Private Equity’s Role
KCB Private Equity is based in Pasadena, California. The firm targets consumer and retail businesses with revenues between $20 million and $100 million, focusing on companies with differentiated operating models. Robert Blair, managing director of KCB Private Equity, has spoken publicly about ThriftBooks’ strategic direction and endorsed the 2022 leadership transition to Ken Goldstein as CEO.
Midwest Mezzanine Funds
Midwest Mezzanine Funds brought subordinated debt financing to the acquisition, typically investing between $4 million and $15 million per deal. The firm specializes in lower middle-market businesses. No exact ownership percentages have been publicly disclosed by either investor, and ThriftBooks does not file publicly available financial statements.
ThriftBooks Founders, Origins, and Early Years
Daryl Butcher and Jason Meyer co-founded ThriftBooks in the summer of 2003 in the Seattle area. Butcher, a software architect and Auburn, Washington native, wrote the original proprietary software that automated book listing and dynamic pricing across online platforms. Meyer handled the sourcing and operational side of the early business after the two met at a church function.
From a Storage Unit to National Scale
The first book ThriftBooks sold was Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White. The company started from a storage unit in 2004, moved to a downtown Seattle warehouse in 2005, and relocated to a larger facility in Auburn, Washington in 2006. That Auburn warehouse could hold more than a million books. Library partnerships began in 2004, starting with three Washington state systems: King County, Pierce County, and North Central.
Hector Rivas joined the team shortly after founding and eventually led book procurement. By 2009, ThriftBooks had warehouses in Detroit, Portland, and Atlanta in addition to its Auburn headquarters.
How Did ThriftBooks Get Its Name?
The name “ThriftBooks” directly communicates the company’s business model: selling used books at low prices. Co-founder Daryl Butcher had connections to the thrift store world in the Seattle area, and one of the original founders worked at a large thrift store, according to former CEO Mike Ward. The early inventory came from bulk purchases at thrift stores and library surplus sales. Combining “thrift” with “books” described exactly what the company did from day one. The legal name is Thrift Books Global, LLC, registered in Washington state. The company has since expanded beyond books into DVDs, CDs, VHS tapes, video games, and audio cassettes, but the name stuck because books remain the core business by a wide margin.
Largest ThriftBooks Shareholders and Investors
KCB Private Equity
- Lead investor and controlling shareholder since March 2011
- Based in Pasadena, California
- Managed by Robert Blair (Managing Director)
- Targets consumer-facing companies with EBITDA of $2–$10 million at acquisition
Midwest Mezzanine Funds
- Co-investor providing junior capital in the 2011 acquisition
- Based in Chicago, Illinois
- Typically invests $4–$15 million per deal
- Specializes in subordinated debt for lower middle-market businesses
ThriftBooks has no ownership connection to Amazon. The company operates as an independent third-party seller on Amazon’s marketplace, the same way it lists inventory on Etsy or Walmart’s online marketplace.
ThriftBooks Board of Directors and Executive Leadership
ThriftBooks does not publicly disclose its full board composition given its private status. The confirmed board members and executives are listed below.
Executive Leadership
Ken Goldstein
Joined the ThriftBooks board in September 2013. Served as executive chairman from 2021 before taking the CEO role. Previously was Chairman and CEO of SHOP.COM and executive VP at Disney Online. Holds a BA from Yale University.
Mike Ward
One of ThriftBooks’ earliest leaders. Served as CEO and President from 2013 to 2022. Now oversees technology direction and retains a board seat. Previously led the development team at Wasatch Advisors.
Ross Mignoli
Manages ThriftBooks’ financial operations. The company has stated it has never reported an annual loss since founding.
Technology and Data Leadership
Trevor Higbee
Leads the proprietary software stack, built entirely in-house on Microsoft’s technology platform. The system handles automated pricing, inventory management, and multi-platform listing.
Kevin Klonoff
Directs the data models behind ThriftBooks’ pricing algorithms and demand prediction systems.
Operations and Growth
Barbara Hagen
Oversees brand partnerships, the ReadingRewards program, and the Library Advantage purchasing program launched in late 2025.
Michael Teague
Manages day-to-day operations across ThriftBooks’ processing and fulfillment centers.
Charles Sells
Responsible for workforce management across roughly 1,150 employees.
ThriftBooks Investor Representative
Robert Blair
Primary public representative of the ThriftBooks ownership group. Holds a board-level position and has spoken publicly about the company’s consumer brand strategy.
ThriftBooks Revenue and Estimated Valuation
As a private company, ThriftBooks does not publicly disclose exact revenue or valuation figures. Estimates from third-party data providers vary:
ECDB, a transaction-based e-commerce data platform, estimated ThriftBooks generated $276 million in revenue through thriftbooks.com in 2024, with projections of 5–10% growth in 2025. Other data providers report lower figures — RocketReach lists $48.1 million for 2026, while Growjo estimates $89.5 million. The discrepancy is common with private companies where methodologies differ. In a 2021 interview, then-CEO Mike Ward stated annual revenue was approximately $150 million and that the company sold about 25 million individual titles per year.
Financial databases such as PitchBook and Tracxn track ThriftBooks as a “lower middle-market” entity. Its estimated value is driven by its proprietary technology platform (“Keep Book”), its network of processing centers across the U.S., and its shift toward direct-to-consumer sales through ThriftBooks.com rather than relying on third-party marketplaces.
FAQs
Who owns ThriftBooks?
ThriftBooks is owned by KCB Management through KCB Private Equity, a Pasadena-based firm, alongside co-investor Midwest Mezzanine Funds. They acquired the company in March 2011. Ken Goldstein is Chairman and CEO.
Is ThriftBooks an American company?
Yes. ThriftBooks was founded in Seattle, Washington in 2003 and is headquartered in Tukwila, Washington. All of its processing and fulfillment centers are located in the United States.
What is the net worth of ThriftBooks?
ThriftBooks is privately held and does not disclose its valuation. Revenue estimates from third-party sources range from $48 million to $276 million annually, depending on methodology and data source.
When did ThriftBooks launch?
Daryl Butcher and Jason Meyer founded ThriftBooks in the summer of 2003. The company began listing books on Amazon from a storage unit in 2004 and sold its first book, Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White.
Is ThriftBooks still operational?
Yes. ThriftBooks is active as of April 2026, employing approximately 1,150 people. In January 2026, the company launched the 500 Billion Page Challenge, and it continues to sell across its own site and third-party platforms.
