Our Story

Since the 1970s, Optimum Publishing International has been publishing award- winning, cutting edge books throughout the world. With an impressive backlist of bestsellers from celebrated authors such as Margaret Trudeau, Margo Oliver, Fred Breummer, Greg Clark, Brigadier General Clay Beattie and more, Optimum has a legacy of over fifty years of publishing excellence. The founder of Optimum was Michael Baxendale. When he passed away in January of 2017, his son Dean Baxendale took over. In 2018, Optimum was rebooted to major media attention and acclaim.

Dean Baxendale

Dean Baxendale, whose career has spanned decades in publishing, printing, marketing, graphic design and advertising, started to look for new, innovative, and provocative publishing opportunities in the early Summer of 2017. Through his networking skills and tenacity, he has found several compelling projects and successfully rebooted the Optimum publishing program in the Fall of 2018 with a big bang. Optimum has been making headlines and turning heads with two new explosive books: Takedown: The Attempted Political Assassination of Patrick Brown by Patrick Brown and the forthcoming Bad Blood: The Tragedy of the Canadian Tainted Blood Scandal by Vic Parsons

Dean has bought and sold several companies and is now in the process of investing significant time and effort to relaunching Optimum into continuing his father’s legacy. Working with freelance professionals, Baxendale is able to deploy the groundbreaking model of “Collaborative Publishing” that he designed in the 80's while working with Southam Communications. Under his leadership, Optimum will continue to publish important and timely books that focus on three key areas: Canadian and International Politics, Organized and Corporate Crime, and Social and Political Justice. Optimum is committed to the relentless pursuit of truth, fearless editorial choices, and timeless great writing. The legacy and the future of Optimum is best described by three simple words: Books That Matter.