U.K. Indie Launches Hybrid App, Garners Industry Acclaim

So far the multi-angle approach is working. The independent publisher has been shortlisted in The Bookseller Industry Awards for Digital Strategy of the Year, standing up against major publishers also up for the nod, including Faber & Faber, Hachette U.K., and HarperCollins.

Perhaps Laws' most bold move remains the decision to sell other publishers' products in the app, from smaller houses to the Big Five. "We want to present a much broader picture than just our name and brand, because it's important to bring people into the app and keep them coming back," says Laws, "you have to engage the reader."

Ultimately, Caffeine Nights aims to gather enough data about the readers and their habits to continue engaging them on a personal basis in the future. "All the analytics will come back to us via the developers and we have specialists who deal with those analytics," Laws explains.

"It's all about trying to make life easier for the reader. Making the decision process that bit easier," says Laws. "We're a small and decent company. I wouldn't put my hand up and say these are all original ideas, but they're ideas we're bringing together, which makes them kind of unique in that sense."