Gruner + Jahr

Gruner + Jahr GmbH & Co. KG is the largest European printing and publishing firm. Its headquarters is in Baumwall, Hamburg, Germany. Originally founded on Aug 1, 1948 as the Henri Nannen publishing house, Gruner + Jahr was created in 1965 from a merger by acquisition, by publishers John Jahr Sr. and Gerd Bucerius joining the printing firm of Richard Gruner. In 1969, Richard Gruner retired, and thanks to the entrepreneurship of Reinhard Mohn, Bert... more

Gruner + Jahr GmbH & Co. KG is the largest European printing and publishing firm. Its headquarters is in Baumwall, Hamburg, Germany. Originally founded on Aug 1, 1948 as the Henri Nannen publishing house, Gruner + Jahr was created in 1965 from a merger by acquisition, by publishers John Jahr Sr. and Gerd Bucerius joining the printing firm of Richard Gruner. In 1969, Richard Gruner retired, and thanks to the entrepreneurship of Reinhard Mohn, Bertelsmann acquired 25% of the ownership. Over the next fifteen years, the firm grew by expansion, acquisition (publishers Kindler & Schiermeier) and merger (Spiegel Verlag and Motor-Presse Verlag). By 1976, Bertelsmann owned a 74.9% stake, and the Hamburg publishing family Jahr owned 25.1 per cent, which balance has been maintained through 2007. In 1978, Gruner + Jahr became the first German publishing house to expand into other European and International markets. Over the next twenty years publishing houses in France, the USA, and Spain were... less