On January 18, 2022, Hachette UK announced the acquisition of 100% of the share capital Paperblanks, the world's second largest publisher of premium notebooks, journals and diaries.

Hachette UK acquires Paperblanks in cross-border transaction

On January 18, 2022, Hachette UK announced the acquisition of 100% of the share capital Paperblanks, the world's second largest publisher of premium notebooks, journals and diaries.

Established in Vancouver, Canada, in 1991 and now headquartered in Dublin, Ireland, Paperblanks is focused at the premium end of the stationery sector, with image art centred around classic book binding design, literature, science, music, mysticism and creativity. In addition to its own product lines, Paperblanks has global co-branding partnerships with the Getty Museum and New York Public Library, as well as active licensing relationships with several cultural institutions around the world, including the British Library, the V&A, the Van Gogh Museum and more.

Following the acquisition, Paperblanks will become a standalone business as part of Hachette UK and will be divided into two corporate entities: Paperblanks Journals Limited, a Canadian company that will operate the North and Latin American business; and Paperblanks Limited, an Irish company that will become the global headquarters for the organization.

Gowling WLG was Canadian counsel to Hacette UK with respect to this transaction with a team that included Peter Bouzalas, Marcus Hinkley, Jill Dunn, Luis Cousin and Ethan Chang (corporate/M&A); Paul Carenza, Lesley Kim and Michael Bussmann (tax); Ian MacDonald (foreign investment review); Stacey Handley (real estate); John Peters and Kristen Cruise (employment); Kevin Sartorio and Kristen Kilroy (IP); Parna Sabet-Stephenson (technology); and Chris Oates (data protection).