Draft:Little Rapids Corporation

Founding and early growth (1947–1960s)

In 1947, Charles Egan purchased Little Rapids Corporation, then a groundwood pulp operation located just south of Green Bay in the community of Little Rapids, Wisconsin.^[2] From this base, Egan expanded the company into niche paper markets. During the 1950s and 1960s, LRC acquired the Shawano Paper Mill, a two-machine mill originally founded in 1894 as the Wolf River Paper & Fiber Company. The company subsequently divested its pulp operations and reinvested in a paper converting business focused on medical disposables, launching a division under the name Baycare Disposables. LRC further expanded this line through the acquisition of Johnson & Johnson's Graham Medical Supply business, based in Holyoke, Massachusetts, and added a tissue paper machine from Johnson & Johnson located in Milltown, New Jersey.

Expansion (1970s–1980s)

In the 1970s and 1980s, LRC broadened its geographic footprint by acquiring Pacific Papers in Tacoma, Washington, providing national distribution for its medical disposables business. The medical division was subsequently renamed Graham Professional. The company also acquired a second paper mill in Potsdam, New York, expanding its specialty papers capacity, and relocated a tissue machine from East Brunswick, New Jersey, to the Shawano mill, tripling that facility's output.

Consolidation and brand acquisitions (1990s)

During the 1990s, LRC consolidated its manufacturing operations into an expanded Green Bay facility. The company acquired Kimberly-Clark Corporation's barber and beauty business, adding the Sanek and CelluCotton brands to its portfolio. It also acquired Marcal's professional towel product line and divested the Potsdam mill to refocus on its core Shawano operations. During this period, LRC introduced the Ultra Bond® product for premium napkin applications under its Shawano Specialty Papers line.

Strategic acquisitions and rebranding (2000s–present)

In 2008, LRC acquired Famis Manufacturing, a supplier of single-use products for the salon and barber industry, integrating it into the Graham Beauty division. In 2010, the company acquired Larsen Converting Industries, a Green Bay-based flexographic printing company founded in 1992 by Donald Larsen III, adding printing and packaging capabilities.^[3] In 2012, several subsidiaries — Shawano Specialty Papers, Graham Specialty, and Larsen Converting — were rebranded under the Little Rapids name.

In 2017, LRC announced a $40 million investment in a new crescent forming tissue machine at the Shawano mill, replacing the existing machine and increasing tissue output by approximately 40 percent.^[4] The new machine, supplied by Voith, was completed in 2017.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, LRC pivoted part of its Green Bay manufacturing capacity to produce face masks, responding to shortages affecting hospitals and public agencies across the United States.^[5]

In 2021, LRC rebranded its Larsen Converting business as Nexxa, reflecting expanded focus on flexible packaging and converting. In March 2026, Nexxa and Shawano Specialty Papers were unified under a single brand, Rapids Paper + Packaging, a division of Little Rapids Corporation focused on sustainable packaging solutions including the Ecova™ paper-based packaging platform.^[6]