David Whitaker (publisher)
David Haddon Whitaker OBE (died 4 August 2021) was a British book publisher who helped create the ISBN system. He joined his family company, J. Whitaker & Sons, in 1956. The firm published The Bookseller and Whitaker’s Almanack and kept records of all UK books, which gave Whitaker a big role in standardizing book identification.
In the 1960s he helped develop the Standard Book Numbers (SBN), the forerunner of the ISBN. The idea began after WHSmith built a computerized warehouse; Professor Gordon Foster designed the SBN. Whitaker suggested embedding the number in their book lists. J. Whitaker & Sons became the first SBN agency in 1967, and the system spread internationally in 1968. He chaired the first ISO working group on the ISBN and helped draft ISO standard 2108. The International ISBN Agency credits him as crucial to the system’s success.
Whitaker was editor of The Bookseller from 1977 to 1979, where he promoted stories about women in the book trade. He later became managing director and then chairman of J. Whitaker & Sons. He improved sales data reporting and developed TeleOrdering, a pre‑Internet ordering service used by booksellers.
He was awarded an OBE in 1991. He campaigned against VAT on books and supported the Public Lending Right. He helped create trade bodies such as Editeur and Book Industry Communication and supported other industry groups.
Whitaker retired as chairman in 1997. The firm was sold to a Dutch company in 1999. He was married to Maggie van Reenen. He died in his sleep on 4 August 2021, and his funeral was held on 17 September at St Paul’s, Covent Garden.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 14:35 (CET).