Louis Hachette was the grandson of Louis Christophe François Hachette, founder of the Hachette bookshop. He was the son of Georges Hachette, who alongside his brother, Alfred, Louis Bréton and Emile Templier, inherited Hachette after its founder’s passing. Louis joined the company in 1893 and became an associate in 1898, and mainly dealt with illustrated books for children. He became President of the Cercle de la Librairie in 1914 and seems to have remained active during the war years, alongside René Fouret, to keep Hachette active. In 1917 he played a key role in the National Book Congress organized by the Cercle de la Librairie. He presided over the first International Publishers Congress after World War I in 1931 and continued contributing to the Congress until his last Congress in 1938.
More information:
Institut Memoires de l’édition contemporaine.