Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels

What Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels does

Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels AG is a Vienna-headquartered academic bookseller and publisher founded in 1984 and jointly owned (50/50) by the student unions of the University of Vienna (ÖH Uni Wien) and the Vienna University of Economics and Business (ÖH WU). It operates four physical bookstore locations on Vienna university campuses and serves students, academics, practitioners, and libraries across Austria, with cross-border shipping extending to Germany, the broader EU, Liechtenstein, and Switzerland.

The company runs an online shop offering a catalog of more than 6 million titles sourced from third-party publishers alongside its own publishing output of approximately 110 new titles per year. Its technology stack centers on a standard e-commerce platform, a mobile application, and digital content delivery via EPUB/PDF with Adobe DRM, complemented by integration with PocketBook Cloud for e-book lending. Core services span physical and e-book retail, journal and subscription sales, library supply, campus licensing, on-site printing/binding/copying, and gift cards. The maudrich sub-brand provides specialized healthcare and medical publishing, and multi-edition academic titles (e.g., Psychotherapie 3rd edition and Writing Scientific English 4th edition in 2024; Erfolgsfaktor Positive Leadership in 2025) anchor recurring curriculum-locked demand.

The business model combines retail margin on third-party books, publishing margin on owned titles, and service fees from printing, binding, library supply, and institutional licensing. Distribution and payments are handled via DPD shipping and PayPal, eps-Überweisung, and credit card. Leadership is held by Vorstand Robert Langenberger. No AI/ML capabilities, funding events, or material strategic shifts beyond routine product refresh and digital integration were disclosed in the available data.

Name

Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels

Legal name

Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels AG

Website

https://facultas.at

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels AG is a Vienna-based academic bookseller and publisher, founded in 1984 and jointly owned by the University of Vienna and WU student unions, operating four campus bookstores, a multi-million-title online shop, and a publishing program of roughly 110 new titles per year serving students, academics, practitioners, and libraries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Book Publishing and Specialist Retail

NAICS

Book Publishers (51313), Book Publishers (513130), Periodical Publishers (51312), Book Retailers and News Dealers (45921), Book Retailers and News Dealers (459210), Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Book Printing (2732), Retail-Catalog & Mail-Order Houses (5961), Blankbooks, Looseleaf Binders & Bookbindg & Relatd Work (2780)

akta.pro primary industry

Textbooks & Academic Books Retail (CRALAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Social Sciences (Psychology, Sociology, Political Science) (EDAGABAD), E-book Retail & Reading Platforms (Stores, Apps, Devices) (MPAJAMAA), Educational & Academic Publishing Distribution (Textbooks) (CRAOALAC), Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing (MPAJABAK)

Keywords

• Academic book publishing
• Specialist bookstore retail
• E-book distribution
• University textbook supply
• Library procurement services

Headquarters

HQ city

Osterreicher

HQ country

Austria

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Physical Book Sales: Sale of printed academic textbooks and specialist books through online shop and 4 physical bookstores in Vienna
2. E-Book Sales and Downloads: Digital publication sales in EPUB and PDF formats with DRM protection, available for immediate download after purchase
3. Journal and Magazine Subscriptions: Recurring subscriptions for specialized academic journals including BMD PV Profi, Fachsprache, Ganzheitsmedizin, Imagination, migraLex, ÖZW, PERSON, and ZfG
4. Printing and Binding Services: In-house printing services (facultas druckt) and binding services (facultas Bindeservice) for academic papers and theses
5. Copy Services: Copy service with ÖH Copycard integration at multiple Viennese university locations
6. Gift Cards: Sale of facultas gift cards (Geschenkkarten) for use across all sales channels
7. Library Supply Service: Supply of academic literature to libraries and institutional customers
8. Campus Licenses: Institutional licensing of e-books for university campuses (see facultas-verlag.at)

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Facultas operates Austria's largest specialist academic bookstore and publishing house, combining an online shop and four Vienna campus bookstores with an in-house publishing arm that releases roughly 110 new titles annually. The catalog spans more than 6 million books across law, economics, psychology, healthcare, languages, and cultural studies, supplemented by e-books in EPUB/PDF, journal subscriptions, printing, binding, and copying services.

Product overview

Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels AG operates as Austria's largest academic specialty bookstore and publisher, offering a multi-channel platform combining physical bookstores, an online shop, and publishing services. The core offering centers on the facultas Onlineshop and three facultas Buchhandlungen (bookstores) at Vienna university locations, alongside the facultas Verlag publishing division that produces approximately 110 new publications annually. The portfolio includes E-Books in EPUB and PDF formats with DRM support, Skripten (lecture scripts), FlexLex legal reference works, and specialized Fachbücher (academic books) across disciplines including law, economics, psychology, medicine, nursing, languages, and cultural studies. Supplementary services include the facultas.club loyalty program with its mobile app, facultas Druckerei (printing), facultas Bindeservice (binding), Kopierservice (copying), Click & Collect, Bibliotheksservice (library supply), and Geschenkkarten (gift cards). The publishing arm also produces Zeitschriften (academic journals) and operates the maudrich healthcare imprint. The company serves university students, academics, and practitioners across Austria with integrated online and offline shopping experiences.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• maudrich: Publishing brand under facultas focused on healthcare and medical literature.

Products and services

• facultas Onlineshop

Quantifiable outcome

• 4 physical bookstore locations in Vienna at major university campuses
• +1 more outcomes

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• ÖH WU (Österreichische HochschülerInnenschaft an der Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Austrian Students' Union at WU Vienna. As 50% co-owner of facultas (along with ÖH Uni Wien), ÖH WU has a structural relationship with the company for student benefit.
• ÖH Uni Wien (Österreichische HochschülerInnenschaft an der Universität Wien)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the Austrian Students' Union at University of Vienna. As 50% co-owner of facultas (along with ÖH WU), ÖH Uni Wien has a structural ownership relationship with the company.
• Universität WiencoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClose cooperation with University of Vienna, operating bookstores at campus locations and creating customized literature lists for courses.
• Wirtschaftsuniversität Wien (WU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClose cooperation with WU Vienna, operating specialized bookstore at campus and maintaining literature lists for business/economics programs.
• Sprachenzentrum der Universität WienminorGTM or Marketing PartnerMarketing partnership for language learning materials and literature lists at University of Vienna Language Center.
• WU ZBP Career CenterminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCooperation with WU Career Center for career-related book recommendations and student services.
• AlumniMed (Alumni Club Medizinische Universität Wien)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Medical University of Vienna Alumni Club for medical literature and alumni services.
• jusAlumniminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAlumni network partnership for law graduates with literature and continuing education focus.
• Goodnight.atminorGTM or Marketing PartnerGeneral partnership with Goodnight.at for student-related content and services.
• Future-lawminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership for legal industry content and future of law publications.
• dbv Fachverlag für Steuer- und WirtschaftsrechtminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorDistribution partner for tax and business law publications.
• Raiffeisen BankminorGTM or Marketing PartnerBanking partnership for financial services and promotional offers.
• career Institut und VerlagminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCareer development and publishing partnership for professional literature.
• GaMedminorGTM or Marketing PartnerHealthcare and medical education partnership.
• aufnahmeprüfung.atminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership for university admission exam preparation materials.
• Kunsthalle WienminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCultural partnership for arts and humanities literature promotion.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• Buchhandlung Plaut: Plaut is an Austrian academic-focused bookstore and library supplier with overlapping specialty assortment in social sciences, economics, and law. It serves as a regional competitor for library supply contracts and university textbook sales in Austria.
• Osiander: Osiander is a large German academic and general bookstore chain with strong university partnerships in southern Germany. It is a comparable regional specialist retail competitor for German-language academic titles sold into the broader DACH market.

Broad incumbents

• Amazon (Books / Kindle): Amazon is the dominant cross-border online bookseller and e-book platform in the DACH region. While not specialist academic, it competes with facultas on price, availability, and digital reading via Kindle, pressuring both retail and e-book economics.
• Hugendubel: Hugendubel is one of Germany's largest bookstore chains with a strong academic and specialist assortment. As a broad incumbent, it overlaps with facultas on German-language academic titles and online sales into Austria.
• Springer Nature: Springer Nature is a global academic and STM publisher with a strong DACH footprint. It competes with facultas's academic publishing arm in science, social science, and textbook categories and offers institutional licensing alternatives to facultas's campus licenses.

Direct peers

• MANZ Verlag: MANZ is Austria's leading legal and tax publisher and bookseller, with a long-standing academic and practitioner focus overlapping directly with facultas's law and tax publishing (e.g., the EStG commentary category) and Versandbuchhandlung service.
• LexisNexis Verlag Österreich: LexisNexis Verlag Österreich publishes Austrian legal and tax content and runs the FlexLex-style loose-leaf and online platforms, directly competing with facultas's FlexLex and law/tax subscription and loose-leaf offerings.
• Thalia: Thalia is the largest bookstore chain in Austria and the DACH region, operating both physical stores and a major online shop. It directly competes with facultas in academic and general book retail and is the closest direct Austrian bookstore competitor.
• Hogrefe Verlag: Hogrefe is a leading DACH publisher specializing in psychology, psychotherapy, and educational psychology titles, competing directly with facultas's psychology/psychotherapy publishing program (e.g., Grundlagen der Psychotherapie) and the maudrich healthcare line.

Emerging players

• Beltz Verlag: Beltz is a German academic and educational publisher with focus on pedagogy, psychology, and social sciences, competing with facultas's kultur- und sozialwissenschaften and psychology lists, especially in education research titles.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Facultas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/facultas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles25 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 Facultas Verlags- und Buchhandels