RR Donnelley
RR Donnelley is a Chicago-founded provider of integrated communications, marketing, commercial printing, and business-services solutions.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
RR Donnelley, historically styled R.R. Donnelley & Sons Company and commonly abbreviated RRD, is an American integrated communications and commercial-printing business headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. Founded in 1864 by Richard Robert Donnelley, the company developed from a local printing and publishing operation into one of the largest providers of print, marketing, content, and business-communications services in North America. The company’s early identity was closely associated with Lakeside Press, a Chicago publishing and printing imprint. After rebuilding following the Great Chicago Fire of 1871, Donnelley expanded its production capabilities and became known for technically demanding, carefully designed books, magazines, catalogs, directories, encyclopedias, and promotional materials. Its clients and projects included Encyclopædia Britannica, Time, Life, Sears catalogs, and materials for Chicago’s 1933–1934 Century of Progress world’s fair. The company also cultivated a reputation for typographic and design quality through collaborations with artists and designers including William A. Dwiggins, Rudolph Ruzicka, Edward A. Wilson, and Rockwell Kent. Lakeside Press’s best-known long-running program was Lakeside Classics, an annual series of finely produced books begun in 1903. Originally distributed primarily as Christmas gifts to employees and business associates rather than sold through ordinary retail channels, the books became collectible examples of industrial bookmaking. In the 1920s, the company also launched the Four American Books initiative, which culminated in notable illustrated editions of works such as Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick, Henry David Thoreau’s Walden, Richard Henry Dana’s Two Years Before the Mast, and Edgar Allan Poe’s tales. These projects helped demonstrate that large-scale commercial production could be combined with high standards of design and printing. During the late twentieth century, RRD broadened beyond traditional print. Its cartographic operation developed digital mapping and routing capabilities and later contributed to the creation of Geosystems, which became MapQuest. The company also expanded through acquisitions into financial communications, outsourcing, digital content, publishing services, catalogs, magazines, books, and marketing. Major transactions included the 2004 combination with Moore Wallace, the acquisition of Banta Corporation in 2007, and purchases involving OfficeTiger, Bowne, Consolidated Graphics, EDGAR Online, LibreDigital, and other specialized businesses. In 2015, RRD announced a structural separation into three companies. The original company retained the RR Donnelley name, while LSC Communications assumed much of the book and magazine-printing activity and Donnelley Financial Solutions became a separate financial-communications company. The separation was completed in 2016. RRD subsequently exited Brazil in 2019 and continued consolidating and adjusting its manufacturing network. In 2021, the company agreed to be acquired by Chatham Asset Management after a bidding process, and the transaction closed in February 2022. Since then, RR Donnelley has continued operating as a privately held communications-services provider, including through acquisitions of selected digital-print, marketing, and business-services operations from Vericast and Williams Lea in 2024.
History
Richard Robert Donnelley founded the company in Chicago in 1864. The original operation developed through reorganizations and was at times known as Lakeside Printing and Publishing Company and Donnelley, Loyd & Company. The Great Chicago Fire destroyed the business in 1871, but operations were rebuilt. During the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the company expanded its printing capacity and established the Lakeside Press identity. RRD became notable for combining industrial production with strong design and typography. It printed books, magazines, catalogs, directories, encyclopedias, advertising materials, and other large-scale communications. The company’s Lakeside Press facility produced work for publications and organizations including Encyclopædia Britannica, Time, Life, and Sears. It also printed official materials for Chicago’s 1933–1934 Century of Progress exposition. From 1922 to 1945, William A. Kittredge directed design and typography and worked with prominent illustrators and designers. The company’s cultural influence was especially visible in its book programs. Lakeside Classics began in 1903 as an annual series of well-made reprints and historical texts distributed to employees and associates. The Four American Books project, initiated in 1926 and completed with publications in 1930, sought to show that modern commercial printing could produce illustrated American books comparable with prestigious European editions. Its best-known result was Rockwell Kent’s illustrated three-volume edition of Moby-Dick, alongside editions of Walden, Two Years Before the Mast, and selected tales by Edgar Allan Poe. RRD also developed specialized capabilities. Its mapmaking business became one of the largest custom cartographic operations in the United States. In the early 1990s it combined routing technology with digital map databases and created Geosystems, which later became MapQuest. The company’s Calumet Plant closed in 1993 after the cancellation of the Sears catalog. The closure led to litigation alleging racial discrimination against Black employees; the dispute was ultimately settled in 2003. From the 1990s through the 2010s, RRD pursued an acquisition-led expansion. It merged with Moore Wallace in 2004 and acquired businesses including Asia Printers Group, financial-printing operations from Canadian Bank Note Company, OfficeTiger, Von Hoffmann, Perry Judd’s, Pro Line Printing, Bowne, Nimblefish Technologies, Helium.com, LibreDigital, EDGAR Online, and Consolidated Graphics. The acquisitions broadened the company from conventional print into outsourcing, digital content, financial communications, publishing technology, and marketing services. RRD announced in 2015 that it would separate into three independent businesses. The transaction created LSC Communications and Donnelley Financial Solutions while leaving a reorganized RR Donnelley as the third company. The separation was completed in October 2016. RRD later left Brazil in 2019 and continued adapting its plant network and service portfolio as demand shifted from traditional print toward integrated and digital communications. In 2021, RRD announced an agreement to be acquired by Chatham Asset Management. A competing bid from Atlas Holdings contributed to a higher final offer from Chatham. The transaction closed in February 2022, making RRD privately held. In 2024, the company finalized the acquisition of selected digital-print and marketing businesses from Vericast and also acquired Williams Lea. These moves reinforced its position as a broad communications and business-services provider rather than solely a traditional commercial printer.
- 2024
Expansion through Vericast and Williams Lea acquisitions
[1]RRD added digital-print, marketing, and business-services capabilities.
- 2022
Taken private by Chatham Asset Management
[1]Chatham completed its acquisition of RR Donnelley.
- 2016
Three-company separation completed
[1]RR Donnelley, LSC Communications, and Donnelley Financial Solutions became separate companies.
- 2013
Consolidated Graphics acquired
[1]RRD expanded its commercial-printing network and customer capabilities.
- 2012
EDGAR Online acquired
[1]The transaction strengthened RRD’s digital financial-information and filing-related capabilities.
- 2007
Banta Corporation acquired
[1]The acquisition significantly expanded RRD’s printing and communications footprint.
- 2004
Moore Wallace merger
[1]RRD merged with Moore Wallace and continued under the RR Donnelley name.
- 1993
Calumet Plant closes
[1]The Chicago plant closed following the cancellation of the Sears catalog.
- 1930
Four American Books publications completed
[1]The program culminated in illustrated editions including Rockwell Kent’s Moby-Dick.
- 1926
Four American Books campaign launched
[1]RRD began a program intended to demonstrate the quality of American commercial book production.
Products and positioning
A large-scale, integrated communications partner combining physical production, digital print, marketing execution, content services, and business communications. Its heritage emphasizes industrial scale, operational reach, and high-quality book and commercial printing.
Commercial printing
Commercial printing
RRD’s core industrial capability includes high-volume production for books, magazines, catalogs, directories, promotional materials, and other commercial communications. The company historically operated a broad plant network and served publishers, retailers, marketers, and other organizations requiring coordinated print manufacturing.
Fine printing and publishing
Lakeside Press
Lakeside Press was the company’s historic publishing and printing imprint. It became associated with carefully designed books, collectible editions, catalogs, encyclopedias, telephone directories, and advertising work, helping establish RR Donnelley’s reputation for combining industrial scale with typographic quality.
Book series · 1903
Lakeside Classics
Lakeside Classics is an annual series of cloth-bound, gold-embossed books begun in 1903. The volumes generally present historical writings, autobiographies, speeches, travel narratives, and other works connected with American history. They were distributed primarily to employees, clients, and associates and became collectible because they were not ordinarily sold to the public.
Marketing services
Marketing communications
RRD provides integrated marketing and business-communications services that connect creative and content work with production, personalization, distribution, and print or digital delivery. This extends the brand beyond manufacturing into campaign execution and customer communications.
Digital communications
Digital print and content services
Digital-print and content capabilities support variable data, shorter runs, targeted communications, publishing workflows, and digitally enabled marketing programs. These services reflect the company’s shift toward combining physical production with digital processes and outsourced content operations.
Controversies
2021
Chatham sues R.R. Donnelley board and Atlas
Chatham filed a lawsuit against the R.R. Donnelley board and Atlas, asking the court to declare the Atlas termination fee and certain other provisions of the merger agreement unenforceable.
1993
Calumet Plant employment-discrimination litigation
The closure of the Calumet Plant after the Sears catalog cancellation led to litigation alleging discrimination against Black employees. The dispute continued through the courts and was settled by the company in 2003.
Marketing campaigns
- 1926Four American Books
United States
RRD launched a bookmaking initiative to prove that modern American commercial machinery could produce illustrated editions with the quality associated with European fine presses. The program culminated in 1930 with editions of works by Edgar Allan Poe, Richard Henry Dana, Henry David Thoreau, and Herman Melville.
Outcome. The project strengthened Lakeside Press’s reputation for design-led, high-quality book production, with the Rockwell Kent edition of Moby-Dick becoming its most celebrated result.
Brand decisions
2024
Expand digital and business-services portfolioM&ABackground
RRD pursued growth in digital print, marketing, and outsourced business communications alongside its traditional commercial-printing activities.
Action taken
The company finalized the acquisition of selected Vericast digital-print and marketing businesses and acquired Williams Lea.
Aftermath
The transactions broadened RRD’s service mix and reinforced its integrated communications positioning.
2021
Accept acquisition by Chatham Asset ManagementM&ABackground
RRD entered an ownership process that included competing interest from Atlas Holdings.
Action taken
RRD agreed to be acquired by Chatham Asset Management, which increased its offer during the bidding process.
Aftermath
The acquisition closed in February 2022, and RR Donnelley became privately held.
Per-share cash consideration in the final offer. $10.85 per share (2021 agreement; transaction completed February 2022)
2015
Separate the company into three businessesStrategyBackground
RRD operated across commercial printing, book and magazine production, and financial communications, with businesses facing different customers and market dynamics.
Action taken
The company announced a separation into RR Donnelley, LSC Communications, and Donnelley Financial Solutions.
Aftermath
The separation was completed in October 2016 and left each company with a more focused operating profile.
Recent events
- 2024
RR Donnelley acquires selected Vericast businesses[1]
M&A
RRD finalized the acquisition of digital-print and marketing businesses from Vericast Corp.
- 2024
RR Donnelley acquires Williams Lea[1]
M&A
RRD acquired Williams Lea, expanding its business-services and communications capabilities.
- 2022
RR Donnelley acquisition by Chatham closes[1]
M&A
The acquisition was completed in February, taking RR Donnelley private.
- 2021
Chatham Asset Management agrees to acquire RR Donnelley[1]
M&A
RRD announced a definitive agreement to be acquired by Chatham Asset Management. Following competing interest from Atlas Holdings, Chatham increased its offer.
- 2019
RR Donnelley exits Brazil[1]
Other
RRD withdrew from the Brazilian market as part of the company’s portfolio and geographic adjustments.
- 2016
Corporate separation is completed[1]
Other
The planned separation of the three businesses was completed, leaving RR Donnelley focused on its remaining communications and commercial-printing activities.
- 2015
RR Donnelley announces three-way separation[1]
M&A
The company announced plans to separate its operations into RR Donnelley, LSC Communications, and Donnelley Financial Solutions.
- 2009
RR Donnelley makes an unsolicited bid for Quebecor World[1]
M&A
RRD submitted an unsolicited offer for Quebecor World during a period of consolidation and financial pressure in the commercial-printing industry.
- 2007
RR Donnelley acquires Banta Corporation[1]
M&A
The acquisition expanded RRD’s scale in commercial printing, publishing, packaging, and related communications services.
- 2004
RR Donnelley merges with Moore Wallace[1]
M&A
RR Donnelley combined with Moore Wallace and retained the RR Donnelley name, creating a larger international printing and communications company.
Sources2 sources
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