SPCK Group has appointed Rio Summers as Head of Marketing and Publicity, effective from 1st August 2025.
Rio Summers will spearhead the entire marketing strategy for SPCK Group, overseeing the marketing, publicity, and web teams across all its imprints and divisions. These include SPCK Publishing adult fiction and non-fiction lists, IVP UK and academic imprint Apollos, children’s imprints, and Lion Books formerly known as Lion Hudson.
Summers was previously Marketing Campaign Manager at SPCK Group in a freelance capacity, leading campaigns for a range of titles, including the New York Times bestseller Practicing The Way by John Mark Comer, which is SPCK’s top selling title. She is also a Producer for Premier’s Unbelievable? Podcast and the Ask NT Wright Anything Podcast leading on strategy and content and securing guests such as Ben Shapiro, Alex O’Connor, John Lennox, and John Vervaeke.
SPCK Group is the UK’s third-oldest publishing house and has been active since 1698. Under CEO Sam Richardson, the company merged with Inter-Varsity Press UK (IVP UK) in 2015, and acquired Lion Hudson in 2021, becoming the largest Christian publisher in the country.
Summers will report to Rowan Miller, SPCK Group’s Commercial Director. Miller says: “I am absolutely delighted to have Rio Summers as SPCK Group’s new Head of Marketing and Publicity. Rio has been instrumental in transforming our approach to marketing and driving our vision for commercial success, and her superb blend of expertise, leadership skills, market knowledge, creativity and wisdom will drive us into a new era of international growth”.
Summers says: “I’m excited to lead such a talented team at a pivotal moment for SPCK Group. Building on our passion and remarkable portfolio of authors and Bibles, my goal is to see SPCK lead the way in Christian publishing through bold, creative marketing and impactful PR —championing our authors, expanding our reach, and delivering publishing excellence that resonates beyond the Christian market.”
Sam Richardson, CEO of SPCK Group, says: “We are thrilled to have Rio at the helm as our new Head of Marketing and Publicity. Under her leadership and guidance, SPCK’s Group’s marketing, PR outreach and websites will enter a new dimension of growth and expansion, as we lean into opportunities that are opening up for our books and our authors around the world”.
Summers will work three days per week for SPCK Group, with her time split 70% leading on General division campaigns and 30% as team lead.
Press contact: Emily Beater; ebeater@spck.org.uk
