Random House Children’s Books has acquired Cherry Lake Publishing Group, the Ann Arbor–based publisher of children’s trade, library, and educational titles. The purchase involves approximately 6,000 titles, and Cherry Lake will become part of RHCB.
Cherry Lake will continue to be led by president Ben Mondloch, who built the company through a series of acquisitions. Its most recent deal was for Tilbury House in 2022. In 2013, Cherry Lake bought Sleeping Bear Press. Other Cherry Lake imprints include Cherry Lake Press, Cherry Blossom Press, 45th Parallel Press, and Torch Graphic Press.
In a model that Penguin Random House has used elsewhere, most notably with its acquisition of Sourcebooks, Cherry Lake “will continue to operate independently, maintaining its entrepreneurial culture, brand identity, and leadership team,” according to the RHCB announcement. Mondloch will continue to based in Ann Arbor, and no changes are planned to Cherry Lake’s location, per the announcement.
Authors published by Cherry Lake include Kwame Alexander, Tim Bowers, Petra Brown, Sandra Dallas, Kayla Harren, Devin Scillian, and Roland Smith. In addition to distributing its titles through trade outlets, Cherry Lake also sells to classroom, library, and gift accounts.
“We have long admired Cherry Lake’s commitment to creating books that educate, inspire, and endure,” said Mallory Loehr, president and publisher of RHCB, in a statement. “Their work in both trade and educational publishing complements our mission to create lifelong readers.”
For his part, Mondloch said joining RHCB “gives our authors and illustrators the best of both worlds” by combining the company’s creative independence with RHCB’s reach and resources.
The Fisher Company served as an advisor to Cherry Lake throughout the acquisition; terms have not been disclosed.
