falkemedia

What falkemedia does

falkemedia is a German cross-media publishing house (Medienhaus) founded in 1994 and headquartered at the Green Campus in Schönkirchen, with additional offices in Kiel and Euskirchen. The company operates a portfolio of more than 15 branded magazine titles spanning Food (ZauberTopf, Monsieur Cuisine, LandGenuss, So is(s)t Italien, AirFryer), Health (NaturApotheke, Healthy Life), Tech (MacLife, Beat, PAM, STEREO), Culture (BÜCHER), and Regional Schleswig-Holstein titles (Lebensart SH, Förde-/Sylt-/Kieler-/Rendsburger Leben). ZauberTopf is positioned as the world's largest independent media brand for the Thermomix ecosystem, combining magazine, app, and online community channels. In January 2025, falkemedia acquired the HiFi magazine STEREO from FUNKE, adding a third office and the audio-journalism vertical.

The underlying production platform integrates editorial, social-creator, video, food-photography (Foodio), recipe development, and web/app development capabilities, supported by five cooking studios, 160 m² of food-photography studios, and multilingual AI systems used for the internationalization of food apps. Approximately 150 employees serve both B2C audiences (via subscriptions, kiosk apps, Readly distribution, e-commerce at falkemedia-shop.de) and B2B clients (agency services for enterprise brands such as Bosch, Block House, Lidl's Sally, Simply Yummy, and Simply Cookit).

The business model combines recurring subscription and digital advertising revenue from the magazine portfolio, project-based B2B agency and food-photography revenue, e-commerce sales, and event revenue (e.g., the €499 Hit Songwriting Masterclass). Federal and state government grants (GRW, MWVATT, Land Schleswig-Holstein) have partially funded infrastructure and AI internationalization initiatives. In 2024, three falkemedia titles — ZauberTopf, BÜCHER, and STEREO — ranked #1 in their respective Readly categories in the DACH region.

Name

falkemedia

Legal name

falkemedia GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://falkemedia.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

falkemedia is a German cross-media publishing house founded in 1994, operating 15+ branded magazine titles across Food, Health, Tech, and Regional categories, plus a B2B agency and food-photography studio (Foodio), serving DACH consumers and enterprise brands like Bosch and Lidl from a 150-person team across three locations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cross-Media Publishing & Content Production

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Book Publishers (51313), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

Food, Cooking & Beverage Magazines (MPAJAEAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

E-book Subscription & Bundling Services (MPAJAMAB), Cookbooks, Food & Drink Publishing (MPAJAAAG), General Trade Publishing (Adult Fiction & Nonfiction) (MPAJAAAA)

Keywords

• Cross-media publishing
• Magazine publishing services
• Food content production
• Media agency services
• Food photography studios

Headquarters

HQ city

Kiel

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Publishing and Magazine Sales: Print and digital magazine publishing across multiple special interest categories including Food (meinZaubertopf, LandGenuss, So is(s)t Italien), Tech (MacLife, Beat, STEREO), Health (NaturApotheke, HealthyLife, LowCarb), and Regional titles. Revenue from magazine sales, subscriptions, and digital versions.
2. B2B Agency Services: Full-service agency offering web development, photography, video production, social media content creation, and campaign development for external B2B clients. Services range from CMS web development to progressive web apps, food photography, video production, and data-driven content campaigns.
3. Food Production Services: B2B food photography and videography services through Foodio studios, including food styling, recipe development, and step-by-step imagery production for brands, agencies, and startups.
4. Event Revenue (Masterclass): Hit Songwriting Masterclass events priced at 499,00€ with limited participant numbers for intensive workshops delivered by industry professionals.
5. E-commerce (Shop): Online shop (falkemedia-shop.de) selling physical products and publications.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

falkemedia is a German cross-media publishing house that produces, publishes, and markets a portfolio of consumer magazines across Food, Health, Tech, and Regional categories through print, digital kiosks, mobile apps, and e-commerce. In parallel, it sells B2B content production services — including food photography/videography (Foodio studio), web and app development, social media content, and cross-media campaign production — to brands, agencies, and startups, plus paid industry events such as the Hit Songwriting Masterclass.

Product overview

falkemedia is a German cross-media publishing house (Medienhaus) founded in 1994, operating as a platform of interconnected media brands, production services, and digital products across B2C and B2B segments. The portfolio is organized into six brand clusters: (1) Food media (ZauberTopf, Monsieur Cuisine, So is(s)t Italien, LandGenuss, AirFryer), all supported by the in-house Foodio photo/film studio; (2) Health media (NaturApotheke, Healthy Life); (3) Tech media (MacLife, Beat, PAM, STEREO); (4) Culture (BÜCHER); (5) Regional & Local (Lebensart SH, Föördefraeulein, Syltfraeulein, Kieler Leben, Rendsburger Leben); and (6) an Agency arm providing social media, web development, recipe development, film production, and data-driven content services. The group also operates the falkemedia Green Campus headquarters and the falkemedia Shop e-commerce platform, plus mobile Kiosk apps for iOS and Android. In early 2025, falkemedia acquired the HiFi magazine STEREO from FUNKE, expanding its tech portfolio.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• mein ZauberTopf: Magazine brand for Thermomix users, offering recipes and content for the cooking device
• Foodio
• LandGenuss
• MacLife
• NaturApotheke
• STEREO

Products and services

• mein ZauberTopf Subscription magazine, mobile app, and online community for Thermomix owners; provides recipes, step-by-step cooking guides, and product content. Ranked #1 in the Food & Drink category on Readly in DACH for 2024.
• Monsieur Cuisine Food media brand targeting owners of Monsieur Cuisine kitchen appliances, offering recipes and product-related content.
• LandGenuss Print and digital magazine offering regional German recipes and rural lifestyle content.
• So is(s)t Italien Print and digital magazine focused on Italian and Mediterranean cuisine, recipes, and lifestyle content.
• AirFryer Magazine and companion app brand dedicated to air fryer recipes and cooking content.
• NaturApotheke Health magazine covering natural remedies, wellness, and healthy living content.
• MacLife Technology magazine covering Apple products, Mac software, the Apple ecosystem, and related consumer tech.
• Beat Music technology magazine covering DJ equipment, music production hardware and software, and electronic music production.
• STEREO HiFi magazine covering audio equipment and music playback systems. Acquired by falkemedia from FUNKE in January 2025, with the editorial team retained in Euskirchen. Ranked #1 in the Music category on Readly for 2024.
• Healthy Life Health and lifestyle magazine covering wellness topics, part of the health portfolio.
• BÜCHER Book magazine covering books and reading; ranked #1 in the Hobbies & Collecting category on Readly for 2024.
• Foodio (Food Photography & Video Studio) B2B food photography and videography service based in a 160 m² studio at the Green Campus, offering food styling, hero images, step photos, mood/product photography, and image editing for brands, agencies, and startups.
• falkemedia Agency Services Full-service cross-media agency offering web/app development, photo and video production, social media content creation, recipe development, campaign production, and data-driven content strategy for external B2B clients.
• Hit Songwriting Masterclass Two-day paid songwriting workshop delivered by hit producer Mark Smith at the Green Campus, covering songwriting methods, creativity training, feedback on songs, and music industry insights. Priced at €499.00 per participant.
• falkemedia Kiosk App (iOS) Native iOS kiosk application that delivers falkemedia's magazine titles digitally to iPhone and iPad users, distributed via the Apple App Store.
• falkemedia Kiosk App (Android) Native Android kiosk application that delivers falkemedia's magazine titles digitally to Android smartphone and tablet users, distributed via Google Play.
• falkemedia Shop Own-brand online shop selling falkemedia publications and physical products directly to consumers at falkemedia-shop.de.

Quantifiable outcome

• 177,360 active readers on Readly for ZauberTopf brand in 2024
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration36 records

AI capability6 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Mark Smith (Hit Producer)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 July 2026Mark Smith, with over 30 years in the music industry and multiple #1 hits plus gold/platinum awards, partners with falkemedia to deliver the Hit Songwriting Masterclass. He brings expertise in songwriting, production, and music business knowledge.
• Siemens (Siemtatic)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Construction and building partner for the Green Campus sustainable headquarters development, providing technical building systems.
• Stadtwerke KielminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Energy partner providing sustainable energy solutions for the Green Campus including renewable energy infrastructure.
• Wagner GroupminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Building partner contributing to the sustainable construction of the Green Campus headquarters.
• BehrendminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Construction partner for the Green Campus development project.
• RehderminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Building and construction partner for the sustainable media campus.
• FUNKE MediengruppecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023FUNKE transferred the HiFi magazine STEREO to falkemedia in January 2025. The experienced STEREO team remains at the Euskirchen location continuing to develop the brand.
• NABU (Nature Conservation Union)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023falkemedia holds a forest sponsorship with NABU as part of their environmental commitment. Additionally, falkemedia has adopted a bee colony of nearly 20,000 bees through Kieler Bienen.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Hubert Burda Media: One of Germany's largest media houses with a broad portfolio of consumer magazines, digital media, and tech investments. Comparable in cross-media publishing scope but operates at a much larger scale than falkemedia.
• Bauer Media Group: Large Hamburg-based media company publishing a wide range of magazines, audio, and digital products across Germany and internationally. Comparable in magazine-led, cross-media publishing model.
• Webedia Group: International digital media group operating niche content brands, influencer networks, and production studios. Comparable in the cross-media integration of editorial, social, video, and brand content services.
• Gruner + Jahr (RTL Group): German magazine publisher (Stern, Brigitte, Geo, etc.) now part of RTL Group. Direct overlap in special-interest and lifestyle magazine publishing, with a stronger news and general-interest tilt.

Direct peers

• Motor Presse Stuttgart: Stuttgart-based special-interest magazine publisher with a focus on mobility, lifestyle, and hobby verticals. Comparable strategy of operating multiple niche-king magazine brands (analogous to MacLife, STEREO, Beat at falkemedia).
• Zeitverlag (Die Zeit): Publisher of Die Zeit newspaper and related special-interest titles. Comparable in combining flagship media brand authority with multiple sub-brands and digital extensions in the German-speaking market.
• Delius Klasing: Bielefeld-based special-interest publisher covering marine, cycling, and lifestyle topics. Comparable in producing high-quality, niche-audience print and digital magazines with strong brand communities.
• LandIDEE (LandEdition Group): German food and lifestyle magazine brand focused on regional/traditional cuisine. Highly comparable to falkemedia's LandGenuss and So is(s)t Italien titles in audience, content style, and revenue model.
• Funke Mediengruppe: Major German regional and magazine publisher that sold the STEREO HiFi title to falkemedia in January 2025. Operates a comparable portfolio of regional magazines, special-interest titles, and digital properties across Germany, making it the most direct structural peer in terms of business model.

Others

• Readly: Digital magazine subscription and reading platform where falkemedia titles (ZauberTopf, BÜCHER, STEREO) achieved #1 category positions in 2024. Ecosystem partner and distribution channel, not a direct competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/falkemedia
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/falkemedia-e-k
• Instagraminstagram.com/falkemedia/?hl=de

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries4 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 falkemedia