What Westermann Druck does

Westermann Druck is a German commercial printing company operating as part of the Westermann Gruppe, a privately held family-owned group tracing back to 1838. The company runs three facilities in Germany — Braunschweig (headquarters and largest site with ~350 employees), Zwickau (~160 employees), and Landau in der Pfalz (~20 sales and customer service staff following the 2020 production consolidation). It produces books, catalogues, brochures, periodicals, and magazines using web offset, sheet-fed offset, and digital printing technologies, with integrated pre-press, finishing, and lettershop/distribution services. Reported annual capacity is approximately 5 million books, 23.5 million brochures, 37 million periodicals at Braunschweig, and 13+ million products at Zwickau, including approximately 300 active periodical titles.

The business serves four primary verticals — publishers, industrial clients, retail/commerce, and advertising — across Germany and broader Europe. Customers include German and European publishing houses producing magazines, catalogues, art books, children's books, guidebooks, and workbooks; industrial clients producing catalogues from small runs to millions of copies; and retail businesses producing brochures and promotional materials. Revenue is generated transactionally on a quote-based, project-specific model tied to print specifications, format, paper, page count, run size, and finishing requirements, with no publicly disclosed pricing. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales led by a Head of Sales and a dedicated web-offset sales team of approximately 20 at Landau.

Westermann differentiates on the basis of certified quality (PSO since 2006), environmental credentials (Blue Angel at Zwickau, FSC, PEFC, ISO 50001, carbon-neutral printing via First Climate), and an integrated value chain spanning printing through Deutsche Post lettershop services and Westermann Logistik publication distribution. The company is structured as a GmbH & Co. KG (Westermann GmbH & Co. KG) with two wholly-owned operating subsidiaries, managed by Sven Fischer (Chairman) and Timo Blümer, with no external investor or private equity involvement evident.

Name

Westermann Druck

Legal name

Westermann GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://westermann-druck.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1845

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Commercial Printing

NAICS

Books Printing (323117), Printing and Related Support Activities (323), Commercial Printing (except Screen and Books) (323111)

SIC

Book Printing (2732), Commercial Printing (2750), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Print, Mailroom & Document Workflow Services (Inbound/Outbound Processing) (BPAAAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Finishing & Post-Press Services (Cutting, Folding, Collating, Laminating, Foil, Emboss) (MPAJALAF), Mailing, Inserting & Distribution Services (Addressing, Direct Mail, Kitting) (MPAJALAH), POD Fulfillment, Warehousing & Drop-Shipping Services (MPAJANAJ)

Keywords

• Commercial printing services
• Book printing
• Catalogue printing
• Web offset printing
• Digital printing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Braunschweig

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Print Production Services: Core revenue from printing services including books, catalogues, magazines, brochures, and periodicals. Services include web offset, sheet-fed offset, and digital printing with various finishing options. Pricing based on print run size, format, paper type, and finishing requirements.
2. Lettershop and Distribution Services: Address processing, postage optimization, and shipment services through Deutsche Post partnership. Includes address data processing, label printing (Cheshire, cover sheets, inkjet), individual wrapping, and worldwide shipping.
3. Publication Distribution: Fulfilment and logistics services for publishers through Westermann Logistik partnership, handling distribution of printed products.
4. Custom Digital Print Products: Print-on-demand services, digital printing for small runs, and customizable print products including books, booklets, and special offers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Westermann Druck is a full-service commercial printing company that produces books, catalogues and brochures, periodicals and magazines, and customizable digital prints across three production facilities. The company offers complete end-to-end services spanning pre-press, printing (web offset, sheet-fed offset, digital), finishing (binding, thread sewing, hardcover), lettershop mailing services via Deutsche Post, and publication distribution logistics. Customers include publishers, industrial clients, retail businesses, and advertising sectors primarily in Germany and Europe.

Product overview

Westermann Druck | pva operates as a unified printing services provider combining three production facilities (Braunschweig, Zwickau, Landau) under one brand. The portfolio comprises six core service categories: Books (including art books, children's books, school books), Catalogues and Brochures (web offset and print-on-demand), Periodicals and Magazines (approximately 300 publications), Customisable Digital Printing (including print-on-demand and web-to-print), Lettershop (mailing services via Deutsche Post partnership), and Publication Distribution (logistics via Westermann Logistik). The company offers complete in-house production from pre-press through finishing, with facilities specialising in sheet-fed offset, web offset, and digital printing technologies.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Books High-quality book printing including children's books, school books, art books, illustrated books, calendars, atlases, pop-up books, and various binding options (hardcover, softcover, thread-sewn). The Braunschweig facility produces approximately 5 million books annually.
• Catalogues and Brochures Industry catalogues up to 1,000 pages and special interest softcover catalogues, produced via web offset or print-on-demand. Includes processing options such as thread-sewn, adhesive binding, and various finishing styles. Production spans small quantities to print runs in the millions.
• Periodicals and Magazines Weekly, monthly, and quarterly publications in traditional magazine formats (DIN A5 and A4) on 39 to 130 g/m² paper, plus custom formats. The company currently produces approximately 300 publications. The Braunschweig facility alone produces approximately 37 million periodicals annually.
• Customisable Digital Printing Digital printing services including print-on-demand (from single copy to thousands), customisable content from first edition, and web-to-print solutions for Print 4.0 applications. Includes special offers and personalised print products.
• Lettershop Mailing and shipping services including address data processing, postage cost optimisation, Deutsche Post Premiumadress integration, Cheshire labels, cover sheets, inkjet printing, individual wrapping, and bundled worldwide shipping. Operates as a certified media post provider and performance partner of Deutsche Post AG.
• Publication Distribution Logistics and fulfilment services for publication distribution, including tailored logistics services and order fulfilment provided in partnership with Westermann Logistik (VSB). Handles storage and delivery for publishers.

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Westermann Logistik (VSB)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIntegrated logistics partner handling fulfilment and logistics services for publication distribution. VSB is part of Westermann Gruppe and provides tailored fulfilment and logistics services for publishers and customers.
• Deutsche Post AGcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPerformance partner for lettershop services. Certified provider of media post with Premiumadress. Handles full shipment processing including address labels, postage optimization, and delivery services.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Optimal Media: German book and media manufacturer (formerly Optimal Druck) with full-service printing and finishing. Closely comparable customer base (publishers) and book production capabilities.
• GGP Media: Major German magazine and catalogue printer (formerly Gruner + Jahr printing operations). Directly comparable in web offset magazine/catalogue production and publisher customer base.
• Mohn Media (Bertelsmann): Bertelsmann-owned German book and magazine printer based in Gütersloh with large web offset capacity and integrated services. Directly comparable in scale, German market focus, and book/magazine printing capabilities.
• Holzer Druck und Medien: German printing company offering book, catalogue, and commercial print services with finishing and distribution. Comparable in multi-segment commercial printing and DACH market focus.
• Druckhaus Kaufmann: German book printer specializing in hardcover and paperback book production. Directly comparable niche in high-quality book manufacturing for publishers.
• Koehler Druck und Medien: German printing group with strong book and commercial printing capabilities and integrated paper production. Comparable in multi-technology printing services and German/European publisher customer base.
• CPI Books (Corélio Print Innovation): European book printing specialist with manufacturing operations serving major publishers. Comparable in book printing focus, scale, and publisher customer base.

Emerging players

• Pixartprinting: European online digital print platform (Cappuccino Group) focused on short-run commercial print and web-to-print. Overlaps with Westermann's digital print / POD segment but competes primarily on digital-first SMB customers.

Others

• Westermann Logistik (VSB): Westermann Gruppe subsidiary providing fulfilment and logistics for publishers. Adjacent ecosystem partner that channels publication distribution volume through Westermann Druck's printing output.

Broad incumbents

• Elanders: Swedish-headquartered global printing and packaging services group with significant German operations. Broader scale and listed status; comparable in commercial print + integrated services for B2B customers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/westermann-druck-zwickau-gmbh

Compliance8 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Subsidiaries2 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 Westermann Druck