Robert J.R. Follett spent more than 40 years working for his family’s eponymous Chicago-based bookselling company, rising to become chairman and overseeing the 1982 sale of its publishing arm and the continued successes of its remaining college bookstore operations and used textbook and wholesale library businesses.
“He had an enthusiasm and energy for the business and for interacting with people,” said Chris Traut, former CEO of Follett Corp. “And he was a great ambassador for the company, both inside the company and outside the company.”
Follett, 97, died of congestive heart failure on Sept. 3 in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, his daughter Jean said. He had lived in Colorado since 1994, and had lived in Highlands Ranch since 2014.
Born in Oak Park in 1928, Follett was the son of Dwight Follett, the chairman of Follett Corp. Robert Follett grew up in River Forest and graduated from Oak Park and River Forest High School. After earning a bachelor’s degree in 1950 from Brown University, Follett briefly attended graduate school at Columbia University in New York before serving stateside in the Army during the Korean War, working in psychological warfare and rising to the rank of sergeant.
After the war, Follett moved back to the near west suburbs and joined his family’s company. The company had been founded in 1873 by Charles M. Barnes, whose son went on to co-found the Barnes & Noble bookstore chain. The Follett family joined Barnes’ company in 1912, and in 1918 what had been known as the C.M. Barnes-Wilcox Co. was renamed the J.W. Wilcox & Follett Co. with Follett’s grandfather, Charles W. Follett, taking over the company at that time. Follett’s father, Dwight, joined the company in 1925 — specializing in social studies textbooks — and he became chairman and president in 1952.
Robert Follett joined the Follett Publishing unit of the company as a junior editor and soon was promoted to become vice president and then, in 1968, president of that division, ultimately publishing about 1,000 books. During the 1960s, he edited and published the first textbooks with racially integrated illustrations, and he also oversaw Follett Publishing’s 1957 publication of “Nobody Listens to Andrew,” a beginning-to-read book.
In 1977, Follett became chairman of Follett Corp., and five years later divested the Follett Publishing subsidiary to New York-based educational materials, lighting and music publishing firm Esquire Inc. while retaining its wholesale and retail book operations, which included operating about 85 college bookstores.
The sale got Follett Corp. out of the book publishing business, but amid the consolidation in the publishing industry, “we were in the awkward position of either getting bigger or shrinking to a specialized company,” Follett told the Tribune in 1982. “We were rebuffed in an attempt to expand, and we didn’t think it practical to shrink.”
Follett continued to serve as chairman of Follett Corp., which saw its used textbook and wholesale library businesses thrive, and the firm also expanded to become the largest college bookstore operator in North America. He led the company as it developed a successful software business for managing schools and school libraries.
Follett cared deeply for his employees and remained focused on growing the business, colleagues recalled.
“Bob was a thoughtful leader,” said former Follett Corp. Chairman Todd Litzsinger, whose father, Dick, had served as Follett Corp.’s CEO and president in the 1990s. “He honored the family business with his true interest in knowing and supporting employees — family or not — and giving valuable insight to the larger family ownership. His partnership with my father secured years of growth and prosperity for the business. He was curious, open-minded and provoked others to find new ways of doing things.”
The company grew fifteen-fold during Follett’s 17-year tenure as chairman, according to his family. Follett Corp. later sold its software and K-12 businesses, and the final piece of it, its bookstore division, was sold in 2022 to an investment group.
After retiring from Follett Corp. in 1994, he moved to Colorado, where he was the first president of the Keystone Citizens League — a community action group — and he worked as a ski guide at the Keystone and Arapahoe Basin ski areas. On 43 occasions, he climbed mountains that are 14,000 feet or higher.
Follett enjoyed painting and sculpting, which he did well into his 90s, his family said. And he never shed his identity as a book publisher. During retirement, he formed a one-person book publishing business, Alpine Guild, which published 30 books, mostly on management topics. He also taught classes at University of Denver’s Denver Publishing Institute for 18 years.
Follett authored more than 10 books, including a 1963 children’s book while at Follett Publishing, “Your Wonderful Body.” He wrote “The Financial Side of Book Publishing” in 1982 and “Leadership: Growing and Sustaining A Smaller Organization” in 2012.
Follett’s wife of more than 67 years, Nancy, died in 2018. In addition to his daughter, Follett is survived by a son, Brian; two other daughters, Kathryn Bussman and Lisa Gardner; seven grandchildren; seven great-grandchildren; and a sister, Nancy Follett Waichler.
A celebration of life service is planned for Nov. 15 in Highlands Ranch, Colorado.
Goldsborough is a freelance reporter.
