Jahns and Friends

What Jahns and Friends does

Jahns and Friends AG is a Düsseldorf-based dialog marketing agency founded in 1985 by Rudolf Jahns, originally as Heye Direct Response. Operating under the legal form of a German Aktiengesellschaft but functioning as a privately held, owner-operated firm, the agency provides full-service B2B and B2C communication services including strategic consulting, creative design, CRM analytics, email marketing, social media, web development, and ad performance marketing. The firm is positioned as a crossmedia specialist with a particular strength in trade fair and exhibition marketing, most notably for Messe Düsseldorf across events such as interpack, beauty, EuroShop, and K. Its client roster spans financial services (Deka), retail (bebe, hagebau, Galeria Karstadt Kaufhof), healthcare (Essity/TENA, OMRON), food and beverage (Hooidammer, Schumacher Altbier-Manufaktur, PHOENIX Group), logistics (Rheincargo), and public transport (Rheinbahn), supported by a compact team of 18 employees operating from a single headquarters with remote delivery capabilities.

The agency's business model is professional services-based, generating revenue through project fees and ongoing retainer engagements with enterprise and mid-market clients in Germany. There is no proprietary technology platform; the firm relies on industry-standard tools including Agnitas and Salesforce Marketing Cloud for email marketing, Google Analytics for website analytics, and Jotform's AI chatbot for inbound communication. The agency's 40+ year heritage, branded as 'DAS ORIGINAL: DIALOGLIEBE,' and its documented campaign performance metrics (such as 21-47% response rates on targeted trade fair acquisition campaigns) function as primary trust signals rather than any productized or licensed technology assets. Leadership has remained within the founder family and long-tenured management partners; Kirsten and Christian Gabriel currently lead the Vorstand following a 2012 succession, with founder Rudolf Jahns still involved. The firm relocated to a new Düsseldorf facility in July 2025, signaling continued operational commitment but not expansion.

Name

Jahns and Friends

Legal name

Jahns and Friends AG

Website

https://jahnsandfriends.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1985

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Jahns and Friends AG is a 40-year-old, owner-operated Düsseldorf dialog marketing agency of 18 specialists serving enterprise and mid-market B2B clients across financial services, retail, healthcare, trade fairs, and consumer goods with crossmedia strategy, CRM, creative, and digital marketing services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Advertising & Marketing Services

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (541810), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAAAAAI

B2B/ABM Creative Agencies

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Advertising, Marketing & PR Services/Advertising Agencies (Full-Service/Creative)

SECONDARYBPAFAKAG

Account-Based Marketing (ABM) Services

Business & Public Services/Marketing, Advertising & PR Services/Direct Marketing & Lead Generation (Email, Telemarketing, Demand Gen)

Keywords

• Dialog marketing agency
• Crossmedia communication services
• Customer relationship marketing
• Email marketing services
• Performance marketing campaigns

Headquarters

HQ city

Düsseldorf

HQ country

Germany

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. Dialogmarketing and Advertising Services: Full-service agency providing strategic consulting, creation, CRM, online marketing, web development, and social media services to B2B and B2C clients. Revenue is generated through project-based fees and ongoing retainer engagements for long-term client relationships.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Jahns and Friends is a full-service dialog marketing agency providing strategic consulting, creative design, CRM, online marketing, web development, and social media services. The agency delivers cross-media, data-driven customer communication solutions to enterprise and mid-market B2B clients across diverse industries including financial services, retail, healthcare, trade fairs, logistics, and public transport. Revenue is generated through project-based fees and ongoing retainer engagements for long-term client relationships.

Product overview

Jahns and Friends is a dialog marketing agency offering a comprehensive suite of services organized around customer communication excellence. The portfolio spans Strategy & Consulting (strategic communication planning and customer experience optimization), Kreation (creative design services for online and offline channels), CRM (data-driven customer relationship management and analytics), Web Development (websites, microsites, and CMS solutions), and Online Marketing (email marketing, social media marketing, and ad performance marketing). These services are delivered as integrated, cross-media communication solutions rather than as discrete software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Strategie & Beratung (Strategy & Consulting) Strategic consulting services including customer-centric communication strategies, lifecycle communication, cross-media strategies, and customer experience optimization based on audience, competitor, and data pool analysis. Targeted at enterprise and mid-market clients seeking integrated dialog marketing planning.
• Kreation (Creation)
• CRM (Customer Relationship Management)
• Web Development
• E-Mail-Marketing
• Social-Media-Marketing
• Ad-Performance-Marketing

Quantifiable outcome

• 26.7% response rate: beauty Düsseldorf 2025 exhibitor registration among contacted existing visitors
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers17 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• thjnk: Hamburg-based independent full-service agency focused on strategy, creative, and digital transformation. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a similarly sized-to-mid-sized German owner-operated full-service B2B creative and digital agency targeting enterprise clients, with comparable cross-media service portfolio.
• denkwerk: Cologne-based independent digital agency offering strategy, creative, web, and CRM services. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a similarly-sized German independent full-service digital and dialog agency with cross-media offerings for enterprise clients across industries.
• CM1 (formerly mpm): Munich-based German dialog/direct marketing agency with CRM, data, and campaign execution focus. Closely comparable to Jahns and Friends in offering set and target market — both specialize in data-driven dialog marketing, CRM, and direct campaigns for enterprise clients in Germany.

Broad incumbents

• Jung von Matt: Top German independent creative agency with strong digital and brand capabilities. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a German full-service creative and digital marketing partner serving enterprise clients across industries, though significantly larger and more internationally focused.
• Grabarz & Partner: Hamburg-based independent creative agency known for integrated, creative-led campaigns. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a German full-service B2B creative and CRM agency serving enterprise clients, with similar independent ownership structure but larger headcount.
• Serviceplan Group: Europe's largest independent owner-managed agency group, offering strategy, creative, digital, and CRM. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a German full-service B2B marketing partner, but operates on a much larger multinational scale with multiple specialty houses.
• Kolle Rebbe: Hamburg-based independent full-service agency with strong creative, digital, and CRM offerings. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as an owner-managed German full-service B2B marketing partner with cross-media capabilities, but serving a broader client base.
• Scholz & Friends: Major German independent agency network with full-service creative, digital, and CRM capabilities. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a German full-service B2B/enterprise creative partner, though significantly larger in scale and headquartered in Berlin/Hamburg rather than Düsseldorf.
• Ströer (Digital Marketing arm): Major German digital media and marketing company with performance, content, and dialog marketing offerings. Comparable to Jahns and Friends as a German dialog and digital marketing services provider, though operating at significantly larger scale with owned media assets.

Others

• Heye & Partner: Munich-based German agency that was the original parent of Jahns and Friends (as Heye Direct Response) until 1993. Comparable given the historical affiliation and continued operation in the broader German advertising/CRM market, making it a structurally related peer rather than a direct competitor today.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@jahnsandfriends9069
• Facebookfacebook.com/jahnsandfriends
• LinkedInde.linkedin.com/company/jahns-and-friends
• Instagraminstagram.com/jahnsandfriends
• Xx.com/jahnsandfriends

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 Jahns and Friends