Bell Publishing

What Bell Publishing does

Bell Publishing is a family-owned B2B international media and events company headquartered in Gravesend, Kent, United Kingdom. It operates a portfolio of six niche trade publications, each with its own dedicated website, weekly e-newsletter, and digital edition, serving the food and drink manufacturing, dairy processing, confectionery and snacks, metal packaging (can making), and tea and coffee industries. The portfolio includes long-established titles such as Tea & Coffee Trade Journal (founded 1901), Confectionery Production (founded 1934), and Dairy Industries International (founded 1936), alongside newer digital-first brands such as Sweets & Savoury Snacks World.

The company generates revenue through three principal streams: paid subscriptions for digital editions and archives, advertising sales across publications and digital properties aimed at B2B brands in its served verticals, and event-related income from registration fees, sponsorships, and exhibitor participation at five owned annual industry events (Asia CanTech, CanTech the Grand Tour, World Confectionery Conference, Women in Tea & Coffee, and Dairy Industries Expo). Its go-to-market is event-driven and community-led, with editorial and sales teams deeply embedded in the industries they cover and an active presence at both owned and third-party trade shows across Asia Pacific, Europe, and North America.

The business is privately held by the McRitchie family, with Neil McRitchie as Publishing Director and Sarah McRitchie as Editorial Director, and operates as a bootstrapped, organically grown enterprise with no disclosed external investors or private equity involvement. The technology stack is limited to standard publishing tooling, including Spotler for email marketing and Google Analytics for web analytics, with no proprietary AI, platform, or data products disclosed. Customer concentration is low and diversified across multiple industry verticals, though the company faces structural pressure on traditional print and advertising revenue that appears to be partially offset by expansion of the owned events portfolio.

Name

Bell Publishing

Legal name

Bell Publishing Group Ltd

Website

https://bellpublishing.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Bell Publishing is a family-owned UK-based B2B media and events company publishing six niche international trade magazines and running five industry events for the food, dairy, confectionery, metal packaging, and tea and coffee sectors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

B2B Trade Publishing and Events

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Business, Financial & Trade News Publishers (MPAJADAC)

Keywords

• B2B trade publishing
• Industry magazines
• Trade conferences
• Food industry media
• Dairy packaging events

Headquarters

HQ city

Gravesend

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions: Paid subscribers receive access to full digital editions, archives, and other restricted materials. Each print journal has its own website, weekly e-newsletter and digital issue.
2. Industry Events: Revenue generated from event registrations, sponsorships, and exhibitor participation at owned conferences including Asia CanTech, CanTech the Grand Tour, World Confectionery Conference, Women in Tea & Coffee, and Dairy Industries Expo.
3. Advertising Sales: Advertising sales across publications and digital properties for B2B brands targeting food, dairy, confectionery, tea and coffee, and metal packaging sectors.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Bell Publishing publishes six specialized B2B trade magazines and organizes five industry conferences serving the food manufacturing, dairy, confectionery, metal packaging, and tea and coffee sectors globally. Each title operates its own dedicated website, weekly e-newsletter, and digital edition, and the company sells advertising and sponsorships to suppliers targeting these industries.

Product overview

Bell Publishing is a family-owned B2B media company operating multiple specialized magazine publications and industry events. The portfolio includes six niche trade publications (Confectionery Production, Dairy Industries International, CanTech International, Food and Drink Technology, Tea & Coffee Trade Journal, and Sweets & Savoury Snacks World), each supported by dedicated websites, weekly e-newsletters, and digital editions. The company also organizes five major industry events: Asia CanTech, CanTech The Grand Tour, World Confectionery Conference, Women in Tea & Coffee, and Dairy Industries Expo. Each publication serves its respective industry sector with news, analysis, expert opinion, and technical content, while events provide networking and conference opportunities for industry professionals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Confectionery Production International magazine, website and weekly e-newsletter for the confectionery, chocolate, biscuits and snacks industries, published continuously since 1934.
• Dairy Industries International Magazine, website and weekly e-newsletter providing dairy processing technology and news to the global milk industry, in market since 1936.
• CanTech International Dedicated can making magazine and website providing comprehensive technical coverage of the metal packaging industry for can makers and fillers worldwide.
• Sweets & Savoury Snacks World Website and newsletter focused on confectionery, chocolate and snack buyers, retailers and wholesalers, with sector news and product coverage.
• Tea & Coffee Trade Journal International magazine, website and weekly e-newsletter serving as a trusted resource for the tea and coffee industries globally since 1901.
• Food and Drink Technology Magazine, website and e-newsletter providing food and drink manufacturing industry news, regulatory affairs, technology coverage, analysis, and expert opinion.
• Asia CanTech Owned technical conference, exhibition and meeting point serving can makers, fillers, and their suppliers in the Asia Pacific region.
• Women in Tea & Coffee Owned conference championing women in the international tea and coffee industries.
• CanTech The Grand Tour Owned global technical conference and exhibition for can makers, fillers, and their suppliers.
• World Confectionery Conference Owned one-day global sector conference, awards ceremony, and tabletop exhibition serving the confectionery industry.
• Dairy Industries Expo Owned dedicated exhibition for the milk processing chain, covering processing machinery and services, packaging machines and materials, turnkey suppliers, quality control and assurance, ingredients, and logistics.

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Questex: Global B2B media and events company operating niche trade publications and conferences across multiple verticals including food, hospitality, and packaging. Directly comparable business model to Bell Publishing's combination of niche trade publications and owned industry events.
• William Reed: UK-headquartered B2B media company publishing food, beverage, and hospitality trade titles (e.g., FoodNavigator, BeverageDaily, The Grocer) plus owned events. Closely comparable to Bell in vertical focus on food/drink manufacturing and niche B2B trade publishing plus conferences.
• BNP Media: Family-owned B2B media company publishing trade magazines, newsletters, and events across food manufacturing, packaging, and processing sectors. Highly comparable to Bell in its privately-held, niche B2B trade publishing structure with adjacent food/packaging vertical focus.
• Food Engineering (Putman Media): Long-established B2B trade magazine serving food and beverage manufacturing professionals, covering processing technology, regulatory affairs, and operations. Comparable to Bell's Food and Drink Technology title as a direct competitor for food manufacturer advertising and subscriptions.
• Endeavor Business Media: B2B media company operating hundreds of niche trade publications, events, and digital products across manufacturing, processing, and industrial sectors. Comparable mid-sized B2B media peer with similar vertical-niche portfolio strategy.
• WTWH Media: B2B media company focused on engineering, manufacturing, and food processing verticals with owned trade publications, events, and digital products. Comparable niche-vertical B2B media peer with similar publication-plus-events business model.
• Dairy Foods (BNP Media): Leading US-focused B2B trade magazine serving dairy processors and manufacturers. Directly comparable to Bell's Dairy Industries International as a competing title targeting the same dairy processing advertising and subscriber base.
• Candy Industry (BNP Media): Established B2B trade magazine covering confectionery and chocolate manufacturing globally. Directly comparable to Bell's Confectionery Production title as a competing publication for confectionery industry advertising and subscriptions.
• Packaging Digest: B2B trade publication covering the packaging industry including metal, plastic, and sustainable formats. Comparable to Bell's CanTech International title as a competing publication for packaging industry readers and advertisers.

Broad incumbents

• Informa Markets: Largest global B2B events and trade publishing group, operating thousands of conferences and publications across dozens of industries. Represents the scaled incumbent that Bell Publishing competes against in verticals like packaging and food manufacturing events.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Bell_Publishing
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bell-publishing-ltd

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles15 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Bell Publishing