What H2O Publishing does

H2O Publishing is a privately held UK B2B media company headquartered in Rochester that operates a vertical-specialist portfolio focused on the foodservice and hospitality sector. The company publishes thirteen trade titles — including Bakery Business, Care Home Catering, Contract Catering Magazine, Dine Out, HEFMA Pulse, Hospital Food + Service, Hospital Caterer, Institute of Hospitality, NACC Voice, Pub & Bar, Quick Serve Magazine, TUCO, and Garden Centre Catering — with a combined circulation exceeding 400,000 readers. Several titles are produced in association with major UK industry bodies (TUCO, NACC, HCA, Institute of Hospitality, HEFMA), which confers official-journal status and member-mandated distribution.

The business is structured around three revenue streams: magazine advertising and sponsorship across print and digital, event sponsorship and delegate fees from a calendar of seventeen-plus awards ceremonies, cookery competitions, and conferences (including the National Burger Awards, National Pub & Bar Awards, HEFMA Leadership Forum, and TUCO Conference), and direct marketing services. The direct marketing arm operates an in-house mail centre handling approximately 80,000 items per month, an in-house call centre for telemarketing, an email broadcast platform, and the Buyers' Box three-month lead-generation campaign targeted at major group buyers in foodservice.

The go-to-market is event-driven and relationship-led. H2O monetises its readership and association partnerships primarily through quote-based, multi-year B2B contracts with suppliers, manufacturers, and brand owners seeking reach into fragmented foodservice verticals. Underlying technology is a conventional publishing platform with proprietary direct-marketing broadcast and mail-handling capabilities; no AI/ML components are disclosed. The company employs 11–50 staff, has no disclosed external funding, and appears to be an independent, founder-/management-operated private business.

Name

H2O Publishing

Legal name

H2O Publishing

Website

https://h2opublishing.co.uk

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

H2O Publishing is a UK B2B media company that publishes 13 trade magazines and runs 17+ events for the foodservice and hospitality sector, while offering in-house direct marketing services to suppliers targeting these verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Media Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Direct Mail Advertising (54186)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Direct Mail Advertising Services (7331)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

Keywords

• B2B trade publishing
• Foodservice media
• Hospitality events
• Direct marketing services
• Industry awards

Headquarters

HQ city

Rochester

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Magazine Advertising and Sponsorship: Revenue from selling print and digital advertising space across 13 industry-specific magazine titles targeting the UK foodservice and hospitality sector. Each magazine offers media packs with pricing for advertorials, display ads, and sponsorship opportunities.
2. Event Sponsorships and Exhibitions: Full calendar of events including awards ceremonies, conferences, forums and competitions. Revenue generated from supplier sponsorships, exhibition table-top stands, and delegate attendance fees.
3. Direct Marketing Services: Multi-platform direct marketing solutions including mailing (~80,000 items per month capacity), email marketing, telemarketing, and Buyers' Box lead generation campaigns. Services are individually costed with expected ROI and offered to B2B clients seeking to reach foodservice professionals.
4. Magazine Subscriptions and Circulation: Combined circulation of over 400,000 across all 13 magazine titles. Revenue includes paid subscriptions, digital access, and distribution to targeted industry professionals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

H2O Publishing is a B2B media company that publishes 13 sector-specific trade magazines covering the UK hospitality and foodservice industry, alongside a portfolio of 20+ industry events (awards ceremonies, cookery competitions, conferences, and forums). It complements publishing with direct marketing services including direct mail (mail centre processing ~80,000 items/month), email broadcast marketing, telemarketing, and the Buyers' Box lead generation campaign for suppliers targeting foodservice buyers.

Product overview

H2O Publishing is a portfolio of 14 specialized B2B media products organized across three divisions: Publishing (magazines), Events (awards and conferences), and Direct Marketing Services. The Publishing division includes 13 sector-specific trade magazines covering the UK hospitality and foodservice industry: Bakery Business (bakery sector), Care Home Catering (elderly nutrition), Contract Catering Magazine (contract catering industry), Dine Out (restaurant sector), Garden Centre Catering (garden centre hospitality), HEFMA Pulse (NHS facilities management), Hospital Food + Service and Hospital Caterer (healthcare catering), Institute of Hospitality (hospitality profession), NACC Voice (care catering association), Pub & Bar (pub and bar sector), Quick Serve Magazine (food-to-go), TUCO (university catering), and Winning Recipes (annual recipe publication). The Events division comprises 17 awards ceremonies, cookery competitions, conferences, and forums spanning the hospitality sector. The Direct Marketing division provides multi-platform marketing solutions including email marketing, direct mail, telemarketing, and the Buyers' Box campaign service. The company also offers production services for advertising across print and digital formats.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bakery Business Monthly print and digital B2B magazine for the UK bakery industry, covering traditional, artisan and plant bakers with topical features, operator interviews, case studies, product innovations and technology trends.
• Care Home Catering Quarterly B2B magazine dedicated to food and nutrition for elderly and vulnerable populations in UK residential care homes, published in partnership with the National Association of Care Catering (NACC).
• Contract Catering Magazine Monthly B2B magazine focused on the UK contract catering industry, covering healthcare, education, business & industry, government & defence, and sports & leisure sectors; hosts the Contract Catering Awards and StrEATfood Awards.
• Dine Out Monthly B2B magazine exclusively for the UK restaurant industry, covering casual dining to Michelin-starred fine dining; formerly Casual Dining Magazine and the only monthly printed magazine dedicated solely to the UK licensed restaurant sector.
• Garden Centre Catering Quarterly B2B magazine dedicated to the café culture within UK garden centres and farm shops, featuring articles, industry reports, business advice and menu planning.
• HEFMA Pulse Bi-monthly official B2B magazine for the Health Estates and Facilities Management Association (HEFMA), the only magazine dedicated to estates and facilities management solely in the NHS.
• Hospital Food + Service B2B magazine for patient and visitor feeding across UK hospitals and hospices, published in conjunction with Hospital Caterer magazine with a combined circulation of over 27,000.
• Hospital Caterer B2B journal of the Hospital Caterers Association (HCA), published six times yearly; primary source of essential information for hospital caterers, foodservice dietitians and facilities leads.
• Institute of Hospitality (Hospitality Quarterly) Official quarterly B2B publication of the Institute of Hospitality, providing authoritative editorial on news and developments in the global hospitality industry.
• NACC Voice Official B2B journal of the National Association of Care Catering (NACC), launched in 2024 and published quarterly alongside Care Home Catering magazine.
• Pub & Bar Monthly B2B on-trade publication covering the UK pub and bar market (~£22 billion), providing owners and operators with content to drive ideas, insight and growth.
• Quick Serve Magazine B2B magazine dedicated to food-to-go, eating-in and delivery; formerly Out of Home (OOH) Magazine, serving food-to-go innovators from cafés and dessert parlours to quick service restaurants and street food operators.
• TUCO Magazine Official B2B publication of The University Caterers Organisation (TUCO), targeting senior catering decision-makers at UK member universities and colleges.
• Winning Recipes Annual premium B2B recipe booklet featuring award-winning recipes from national cooking competitions and fresh supplier recipes, promoted across six H2O titles.
• Contract Catering Awards Annual B2B awards hosted by Contract Catering Magazine, recognising outstanding individuals who have made a huge contribution to the contract catering industry.
• Care Home Catering Awards B2B awards recognising and rewarding best practice in delivering person-centred nutritional care in the UK residential care sector.
• Garden Centre Catering Awards B2B awards celebrating UK garden centres and nurseries with a food and drink offering, hosted by Garden Centre Catering magazine.
• National Bakery Awards B2B awards hosted by Bakery Business magazine, recognising regional and national bakery winners from county-level competition rounds.
• National Breakfast & Brunch Awards B2B cook-off competition hosted by Quick Serve magazine, inviting chefs and operators from the out-of-home sector including cafés, coffee shops, QSR, food-to-go, pubs, restaurants and hotels.
• National Burger Awards B2B trade competition hosted in central London by Dine Out and Pub & Bar magazines, featuring signature and technical burger challenges for chefs across restaurant, food-to-go and pub/bar sectors.
• National Pizza Awards B2B competition hosted by Dine Out magazine to find Britain's finest pizza, open to chefs from restaurant, quick-service, pubs, bars and hotels industries.
• National Pub & Bar Awards Annual B2B event hosted by Pub & Bar magazine, crowning 94 of the best pubs and bars from each UK county plus regional and national winners.
• Fried Chicken Championships One-day B2B cook-off competition for restaurant chefs, chicken shops and quick service restaurants, hosted by Dine Out and Quick Serve magazines.
• Great Shake Challenge B2B shake-off competition introduced at the National Burger Awards in 2024, hosted by Dine Out and Pub & Bar magazines.
• Bloody Mary Challenge B2B competition held alongside the National Breakfast & Brunch Awards, inviting bartenders and mixologists from pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels to compete.
• Classic Cocktail Competition One-day B2B cocktail competition hosted by Pub & Bar and Dine Out magazines, with elite bartenders required to make six classic cocktails.
• Street Food Championships One-day B2B competition hosted by Quick Serve and Dine Out magazines, searching for the UK's most talented and creative street food chefs across the out-of-home market.
• StrEATfood Awards B2B competition searching for the UK's most creative street food chef from the workplace and event catering sectors, hosted by Contract Catering Magazine.
• Champion of Champions Special one-off B2B cook-off competition celebrating 10 years of the National Burger Awards, bringing back 30 previous winners for a live cook-off.
• Supplier Innovation Live B2B awards scheme limited to 16 entrants where suppliers cook and present their products to a judging panel of twelve industry chefs and heads of food development.
• HEFMA Leadership Forum Annual B2B conference for HEFMA members providing networking, key speakers, practical workshops and the HEFMA Awards gala dinner.
• TUCO Conference Three-day B2B conference for TUCO member institutions, including a large exhibition, high-profile speaker programme and dining experiences.
• TUCO Competitions Two-day B2B competition event for TUCO member institutions with challenges in bar skills, barista skills and speed cooking.
• TUCO Flavours B2B chefs' event for the higher and further education sector featuring global cuisines, live demonstrations, breakout sessions and a supplier showcase.
• Direct Marketing Services Multi-platform B2B direct marketing solutions including research and appointment setting, email marketing via broadcast platform, direct mail (mail centre handling ~80,000 items per month), and the Buyers' Box 3-month lead generation campaign targeting major group buyers.
• Production Services B2B production services for print and digital advertising, e-newsletters and website wallpapers with full technical specifications for advertisers.

Quantifiable outcome

• ~80,000 mail items processed per month for H2O and clients

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• TUCO (The University Caterers Organisation)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTUCO is the official publication for The University Caterers Organisation. TUCO is the leading professional membership body for in-house caterers, supporting procurement and learning excellence. H2O Publishing produces TUCO magazine which targets senior catering decision makers at member institutions. Additionally, H2O organises TUCO Competitions, TUCO Flavours, and TUCO Conference events.
• NACC (National Association of Care Catering)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerH2O Publishing produces Care Home Catering magazine in association with the National Association of Care Catering. NACC Voice is the official journal of NACC. All NACC members receive a free copy of Care Home Catering magazine. The partnership helps raise the profile and standards of the whole care catering sector.
• HCA (Hospital Caterers Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Hospital Caterer is the official journal of the Hospital Caterers Association, established in 1948. HCA is the recognised voice of hospital catering, with membership responsible for providing catering services to NHS Trusts and Health Boards across the four nations. The magazine is published six times each year in conjunction with Hospital Food+Service magazine.
• Institute of HospitalitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIOH Magazine (Hospitality Quarterly) is the official publication of the Institute of Hospitality, the professional body for managers working in hospitality, leisure and wider tourism industry with members in over 100 countries. The magazine is published quarterly and provides authoritative editorial on industry news and developments.
• HEFMA (Health Estates and Facilities Management Association)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHEFMA Pulse is the official publication for the Health Estates and Facilities Management Association. HEFMA members work within 381 NHS Trusts responsible for £36 billion worth of buildings and equipment. H2O also organises the annual HEFMA Leadership Forum.
• City HarvestminorOthersH2O Publishing works with City Harvest to donate any surplus event food and drink safely to the hungry. The food redistributed helps organisations serve thousands of healthy meals each week and diverts food from landfill where it would release greenhouse gases.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Emerging players

• Hotel Designs: Hotel Designs is a UK B2B media brand serving hotel interior, design, and architecture professionals with content, awards, and events. It overlaps with H2O's hospitality vertical in audience and supplier base, but with a narrower design-led focus.

Direct peers

• Morning Advertiser: Morning Advertiser is the leading UK B2B title for the on-trade pub and bar sector, providing news, analysis, and events targeted at licensees and pub operators. It competes head-on with H2O's Pub & Bar magazine for subscribers, advertisers, and event sponsorship in the ~£22bn UK pub and bar market.
• William Reed: William Reed is the largest UK B2B media group focused on food, drink, and hospitality, publishing titles such as The Grocer, Restaurant Magazine, and Food Manufacture. It is the most directly comparable operator to H2O Publishing, with overlapping vertical coverage, an events business, and proprietary data products serving the same UK foodservice supplier audience.
• The Caterer: The Caterer is a long-standing UK B2B news and media brand serving the hospitality industry, covering restaurants, hotels, and catering, with a jobs board and recruitment focus. It directly addresses the same professional readership as H2O's Pub & Bar, Dine Out, and Contract Catering titles.
• Bar Magazine: Bar Magazine is a UK B2B publication for the bar, drinks, and cocktail industry, covering mixology, bar design, and drinks trends for operators and suppliers. It overlaps with H2O's Pub & Bar and Dine Out titles in serving bar operators and beverage suppliers.
• Restaurant Magazine: Restaurant Magazine (formerly part of the William Reed family) is a UK B2B title covering the restaurant trade, including chef profiles, reviews, and industry trends. It directly competes with H2O's Dine Out magazine for both readers and supplier advertising spend.
• Big Hospitality: Big Hospitality is a UK B2B digital media brand covering the restaurant, pub, bar, and hotel sectors with news, analysis, and events such as the Asian Curry Awards and Late Night Awards. It competes with H2O's Dine Out and Pub & Bar titles for digital readers and events sponsorship.
• Foodservice Media: Foodservice Media is a UK B2B publisher focused on the out-of-home eating and drinking sector, producing trade titles and supplier-facing content. It directly mirrors H2O's niche specialization in foodservice B2B media and competes for the same supplier advertising wallet.

Regional players

• Insider Media: Insider Media is a UK-based B2B publisher producing regional business news, property intelligence, and industry reports across multiple sectors. While not directly in foodservice, it shares the regional B2B trade publishing model and operates a similar app/database-plus-events content strategy.
• Aceville Publications: Aceville Publications is a UK-based magazine publisher operating a portfolio of consumer and trade titles across food, hospitality, and lifestyle. It is comparable to H2O in operating a multi-vertical UK magazine portfolio with sector-specific niche titles and advertising-driven revenue.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/H2Opublishing
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/h2o-publishing
• Instagraminstagram.com/h2o_publishing

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 H2O Publishing