Pumbo

Pumbo is a book printer and self-publishing service run by Pumbo.fr S.A.R.L from an address in Nice. It prints softcover, hardcover, wire-o spiral and photo books plus magazines, either on demand from a single copy or by offset for larger runs, and it is built for authors, publishers and other professionals who want to print and publish a book themselves. The homepage sums up the offer as helping "les auteurs, éditeurs et autres professionnels à imprimer et publier leurs livres en ligne" (helping authors, publishers and other professionals print and publish their books online). The site is written entirely in French and its offer is aimed at French-language self-publishing.

What a seller actually gets

Pumbo runs two production routes, and the homepage presents them side by side. Digital printing, which the site also calls POD (it spells out "Printing On Demand"), is the small-run route. Its two headline promises are delivery from one copy ("Livraison à partir d'un exemplaire") and a delivery time starting from two working days ("Délai de livraison à partir de deux jours ouvrés"). The wording matters: two working days is the floor, not a guarantee for every order, and the site keeps a separate delivery-times page under each printing method.

Offset is the large-run route. The homepage offers it to anyone who wants 400 copies or more ("à 400 exemplaires ou plus") and describes it as the technique suited to big print runs. Its arguments are the classic ones: the more books you print, the lower the unit price per copy, printing costs come down, and a big run opens up more finishing options. For a seller this means a single supplier can take a title from a first test copy to a bulk run without a change of printer or files.

The digital printing page makes the case for on-demand printing in plain terms. There is no stock of books and therefore no risk, the price is described as "défiant toute concurrence" (unbeatable), and on additional fees it says flatly "il n'y en a pas" (there are none). The team also says it is there to help if needed. The homepage lists three service points alongside that: personalized assistance, a free check of your files before printing ("Contrôle gratuit de vos fichiers avant impression"), and delivery possible from one copy.

Pricing works through the site's own calculator. The homepage and the digital printing page both carry a "Calculer le prix" (calculate the price) button next to a "Créer un compte" (create an account) button, and the menu has a Tarifs (rates) page. The pages themselves print no per-copy prices, so a seller costs a title by running its specifications through the calculator.

Beyond printing, Pumbo sells the steps around publication. The "Publier un livre" (publish a book) section covers requesting an ISBN, the formalities to settle, a bookshop network ("Réseau librairies", with a "Vendre en librairie" page on selling in bookshops) and the Pumbo shop ("Boutique Pumbo", with a "Vendre sur Pumbo.fr" page on selling through Pumbo's own site). The homepage pitches this as an alternative to a traditional publisher: avoid "l'attente et les mauvaises conditions d'une maison d'édition" (the wait and the poor terms of a publishing house) and manage the publishing yourself, with Pumbo's support. So the seller keeps control of the book and its sales, and Pumbo supplies the printing, the ISBN help and two sales outlets.

The product range

Softcover, the livre broché, is the flexible-cover book with a matte or gloss laminated finish. The digital printing page says it holds well in the hand, costs less than a hardcover, and is the most common choice among Pumbo's customers, adding that the company has printed "un nombre incalculable" (a countless number) of them over the years.

Hardcover, the livre relié, is sold as the more durable, slightly smarter option, with a sturdier cover that stands up better over time. Pumbo says hundreds of hardcover copies leave its printing works every week ("des centaines d'exemplaires en sortent de nos imprimeries chaque semaine").

Wire-o spiral binding holds the pages with a double wire so the book opens flat and is easy to leaf through. The page names cookbooks and end-of-study dissertations as typical uses. As with softcover and hardcover, the customer chooses from a wide range of paper types, and here can also pick the color of the spiral.

Photo books are printed on digital presses the page describes as "à la pointe de la technologie" (at the forefront of technology) and bound by experienced professionals. They are pitched at both people collecting memories and professional photographers assembling a portfolio, and Pumbo says hundreds of photographers, amateur and professional, have already used it.

Magazines cover commercial brochures, current-affairs titles for large target groups and everything between. One detail stands out for publishers of periodicals: if you have a subscriber base, you can hand the distribution of the magazine to Pumbo as well.

The homepage adds stapled binding ("agrafage") to the list and a Types de papier (paper types) page sits in the menu, next to an online printing section with a step-by-step plan.

Key facts from the company

The homepage states the scale plainly: "Nous imprimons des milliers de livres par semaine" (we print thousands of books a week), across offset and on-demand printing. It also claims a position in the market in its own words, saying Pumbo has become over the years "l'un des plus gros imprimeurs POD" (one of the biggest POD printers). A counter on the same page reads "1000+ nouveaux titres publiés par an" (1,000+ new titles published a year), and a Google Reviews badge shows a 4.8 rating from 380 reviews.

Customer comments on the pages are short. Mirjam, an author, writes "Les livres sont vraiement beaux et ils ont été livrés à temps" (the books are really beautiful and were delivered on time). Maud-Salomé, a journalist, writes "Mon avis sur Pumbo : très positif." (my opinion of Pumbo: very positive) on one page and "Excellente communication" on the other. Reinder, a consultant, writes "Réponses rapide" (quick answers), and an online entrepreneur calls the service "Extrêment utile" (extremely useful).

The help section is aimed at authors preparing their own files. Recent articles explain what a critical spine is ("Qu'est-ce qu'un dos critique ?") when designing a cover, how to calibrate a computer screen, a complete ISBN manual, a complete guide to publishing a book, and the tax and social-charge steps of self-publishing in "Auto-édition et statut fiscal". The footer adds help pages on the book block, cover tools and ISBN barcodes, and a free e-book is offered for download. On the environment, one article is titled "Compenser nos émissions de CO₂ avec Trees for All" (offsetting our CO₂ emissions with Trees for All); the pages say only that Pumbo tries to act responsibly, not how much it offsets.

Contact runs through the phone number 04 83 58 00 41, shown at the top of every page, the address info@pumbo.fr and a contact page. The company address is 143, Boulevard René Cassin, Nouvel'R bâtiment B, 06200 Nice.

The site publishes no per-copy prices on these pages; the calculator gives them.

Who it suits and who it does not

Pumbo suits a French-speaking author or small publisher who wants a book in print without committing to a stock of copies: order one copy to check the result, order a few more when they sell, and move to an offset run once a title reliably sells 400 or more. The free file check, the personalized help and the guides on spines and ISBNs help a first-time self-publisher who prepares their own files. Photographers wanting a portfolio book, and anyone producing a cookbook or a thesis that needs to lie flat, will find a format made for them. Magazine publishers with subscribers get printing and distribution from one company.

It suits less a seller who wants print on demand wired into an online store. The pages describe ordering through Pumbo's own site, calculator and account, and name no store integration or API. It also suits less anyone who is not comfortable working in French, since the whole site, its guides and its support are in French. And it is a book and magazine printer: sellers looking for apparel, mugs or wall art need a different supplier.