Fachverlag Dr. Fraund

What Fachverlag Dr. Fraund does

Fachverlag Dr. Fraund GmbH is a privately held German specialist publishing house headquartered in Mainz (Weberstr. 9, 55130 Mainz) and legally registered as a GmbH at the Local Court of Mainz under HRB 3925. The firm was founded in December 1946 as Mainzer Zeitschriftenverlag Dr. Bilz & Co. GmbH and renamed to its present name in 1979; it has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Landwirtschaftsverlag Hessen GmbH since 2021, following an earlier co-shareholder relationship that began in August 1987. Its portfolio centers on four recurring trade periodicals covering regional German agriculture, wine production, wine trade, and equestrian sports, supplemented by specialist books, dedicated digital platforms for each title, and the Landmedia mail-order book retail subsidiary.

The core publications are LW Hessenbauer / Pfälzer Bauer / Der Landbote (a regional agricultural weekly serving Hessen, Rheinhessen, and the Pfalz), das deutsche weinmagazin (an independent trade journal for viticulture and cellar management with the highest circulation among German wine trade publications), Wein+Markt (a business magazine targeting wine retail, import, distribution, and producer-level marketing), and PFERDESPORT Journal (a monthly equestrian sports and breeding magazine that serves as the official organ of regional horse-breeding and sports associations across Hessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, and Luxembourg). The firm also publishes Fachbücher (specialist books) for winemakers, horse enthusiasts, and farmers, and operates Landmedia, a wholly owned mail-order bookseller under www.landmedia.de focused on the same three verticals.

The revenue model combines recurring subscription revenue from the four periodicals (with digital access delivered through the publication websites), one-time purchases of specialist books, and retail revenue from the Landmedia bookseller. Distribution is predominantly direct via print subscriptions and association channels, with marketing support through publication websites and an official Facebook page. The company employs between 11 and 50 staff and is led by two managing directors, Josef Benner and Björn Schöbel. Operating geographies are concentrated in German-speaking regions (Hessen, Rheinhessen, Rheinland-Pfalz, Pfalz, Saarland) with a cross-border extension into Luxembourg for the equestrian title; no global footprint is asserted.

Name

Fachverlag Dr. Fraund

Legal name

Fachverlag Dr. Fraund GmbH

Website

https://fraund.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Fachverlag Dr. Fraund GmbH is a German specialty publishing house in Mainz producing four trade journals for agriculture, wine production, wine trade, and equestrian sports, supplemented by specialist books, dedicated digital platforms, and its wholly owned Landmedia mail-order book retail subsidiary.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Trade Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Book Publishers (513130), Book Retailers and News Dealers (45921)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

Keywords

• Agricultural trade publishing
• Viticulture trade journals
• Equestrian sports media
• Specialist book publishing
• Regional trade magazines

Headquarters

HQ city

Mainz

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions and Sales: Revenue from specialized trade magazines covering agriculture, wine industry, and horse sports. Publications include LW Hessenbauer/Pfälzer Bauer/Der Landbote (agricultural weekly), das deutsche weinmagazin (wine industry), Wein+Markt (wine trade magazine), and PFERDESPORT Journal (horse sports).
2. Fachbücher (Trade Books): Specialized professional books for winemakers, horse enthusiasts, and farmers. Also distributed through affiliated Landmedia book retailer.
3. Digital Offerings: Digital products including website subscriptions, online content, and e-commerce associated with print publications. Associated digital platforms include www.lw-heute.de, www.dwm-aktuell.de, www.wein-und-markt.de, and www.pferdesport-journal.de.

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Fachverlag Dr. Fraund publishes specialized trade magazines and books for the agriculture, viticulture/winemaking, and equestrian sports sectors in Germany. Its portfolio includes four core journals — LW Hessen Rheinland-Pfalz (agricultural weekly), das deutsche weinmagazin (wine production), Wein+Markt (wine trade), and PFERDESPORT Journal (horse sports) — supplemented by specialist books and associated digital platforms, with distribution also via its affiliated mail-order book retailer Landmedia.

Product overview

Fachverlag Dr. Fraund is a specialized publishing house offering a portfolio of print and digital specialist journals in the fields of agriculture, viticulture/winemaking, and equestrian sports. The core products consist of four trade publications: LW Hessen - Rheinland-Pfalz (agricultural weekly), das deutsche weinmagazin (wine industry journal), Wein+Markt (wine business magazine), and PFERDESPORT Journal (equestrian sports magazine). These are supplemented by specialist books for the same target audiences and corresponding digital online offerings. The company also operates Landmedia, a separate mail-order book retail business.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Landmedia: Mail-order bookseller (Versand-Buchhändler) specializing in wine, agriculture, and horses, operated by the publishing group.

Products and services

• LW Hessen Rheinland-Pfalz (LW Hessenbauer / Pfälzer Bauer / Der Landbote) Agricultural weekly newspaper serving farmers and agricultural businesses across Hessen, Rheinhessen, and the Pfalz region, covering regional farming news, market information, and policy updates. Reaches nearly 100% of agricultural operations in the target regions.
• das deutsche weinmagazin Independent trade journal for viticulture and cellar management serving winemakers, cooperatives, wine and sparkling wine cellars, and wine trading companies in Germany; holds the highest circulation among national wine production trade publications.
• Wein+Markt

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Landwirtschaftsverlag Hessen GmbHcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 1987Landwirtschaftsverlag Hessen GmbH became a co-shareholder in August 1987 as agricultural and wine industry consolidation increased. The partnership combined regional agricultural publishing operations. Since 2021, Landwirtschaftsverlag Hessen is the sole shareholder.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• agrarheute: Digital-first agricultural media brand operated by dlv. Represents the digital-native model that competes with Fachverlag Dr. Fraund's print-centric agricultural publications for reader attention and advertising spend.

Direct peers

• top agrar: Leading German agricultural trade magazine published by dlv, with national reach across farming topics. Direct competitor in agricultural trade publishing, though at significantly larger national scale than LW Hessenbauer.
• St. Georg (Pferdesport Verlag): Long-established German equestrian sports magazine covering horse sports, breeding, and riding culture. Direct competitor in horse sports journalism, comparable in editorial scope to PFERDESPORT Journal.
• Reiter Revue International: German equestrian magazine covering dressage, show jumping, and breeding. Competes in the same horse sports vertical as PFERDESPORT Journal, with broader national distribution.
• Weinwirtschaft (dfv): Wine trade magazine published by dfv targeting the German wine industry. Direct competitor to das deutsche weinmagazin and Wein+Markt in wine trade journalism.
• Landwirtschaftsverlag Hessen GmbH: Parent company and direct peer operating in the same agricultural and wine trade publishing space across Hessen and beyond. Most directly comparable as the controlling shareholder and fellow specialist agricultural publisher.
• Ulmer Verlag: German publisher specializing in agriculture, horticulture, and rural lifestyle books and magazines. Comparable book-publishing portfolio for agricultural and rural audiences that overlaps with Fachverlag Dr. Fraund's Fachbücher business.

Broad incumbents

• Deutscher Landwirtschaftsverlag (dlv): Major German agricultural media house publishing leading titles such as top agrar, agrarheute, and Lebensmittel Praxis. Directly competes in agricultural trade journalism and represents the dominant scaled competitor in the same vertical.
• Deutscher Fachverlag (dfv): Large German trade publishing group covering multiple industries including wine (Weinwirtschaft), agriculture, and food. Direct overlap on the wine trade magazine side and broader portfolio of B2B periodicals.
• Haymarket Media: Global trade and consumer publisher with German operations in automotive and business media. Comparable as a diversified trade publishing group operating across multiple verticals, though not directly overlapping on agricultural or wine topics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Fachverlag-Fraund-581385578589826

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Fachverlag Dr. Fraund