Royal Entomological Society

What Royal Entomological Society does

The Royal Entomological Society (legally the Royal Entomological Society of London) is a UK-registered charity founded in 1833, headquartered at The Mansion House, Chiswell Green Lane, St Albans. It is one of the world's oldest learned societies dedicated to insect science, operating as a non-profit membership organisation with a small staff (11–50 employees) governed by a Board of Trustees and led by CEO Simon Ward. Its mission is to advance entomological research, publication, education, and public engagement with insects.

The Society's core products are an eight-journal peer-reviewed publication portfolio — including Ecological Entomology, Insect Conservation and Diversity, Systematic Entomology, Medical and Veterinary Entomology, Agricultural and Forest Entomology, Physiological Entomology, Insect Molecular Biology, and the newly launched fully open access Approaches in Entomology (2026) — distributed globally through a publishing partnership with Wiley. It also publishes the quarterly Antenna membership magazine, operates a specialist library holding ~1,500 rare entomology books, runs the annual Ento scientific conference, organises the biennial Insect Week public celebration across five UK city hubs, manages the RES Insect Garden at Stratford Cross, and delivers conservation programmes including Large Blue Butterfly monitoring in the UK and Denmark.

Revenue is generated through journal subscription and licensing income via Wiley, membership and fellowship subscriptions across individual and organisational tiers, educational bug hunting kit sales through NHBS (with a 10% donation back to the Society), donations including Gift Aid and legacy giving, book sales, grants, and partnership income. Distribution and engagement channels span direct e-commerce, the Wiley institutional channel, social media (Twitter/X, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, Bluesky), an email newsletter, and high-visibility partnerships with WWT/Aardman, Harper Adams University, UKCEH/JNCC, Dryad, Project Giving Back, and others. The Society also acts as secretariat for the Bees, Pollinators and Invertebrates All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), anchoring it as an influencer on UK insect and pollinator policy.

Name

Royal Entomological Society

Legal name

Royal Entomological Society of London

Website

https://royensoc.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

1833

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Royal Entomological Society is a UK-registered charity founded in 1833 that advances insect science through a portfolio of eight peer-reviewed journals, membership programmes, the annual Ento conference, Insect Week, conservation projects, and educational outreach, serving professional entomologists, amateur enthusiasts, educators, policymakers, and the general public.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Green Lane

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Journal Publishing: The society publishes seven peer-reviewed journals through a partnership with Wiley, including Ecological Entomology, Insect Conservation and Diversity, Agricultural and Forest Entomology, Systematic Entomology, Physiological Entomology, Medical and Veterinary Entomology, and Insect Molecular Biology. A new open access journal, Approaches in Entomology, was launched in 2026.
2. Membership and Fellowship: The society generates revenue through membership subscriptions offering various tiers including membership and fellowship for insect scientists and enthusiasts, as well as organisational membership for institutions.
3. Merchandise and Educational Kits: Sale of entomological equipment kits through partnership with NHBS, including Educational Bug Hunting Kit (£49.99), Advanced Bug Hunting Kit (£66.66), and Class Bug Hunting Kit (£265), with 10% of each sale donated to the society.
4. Donations and Fundraising: The society accepts donations with Gift Aid scheme (25% additional value from UK taxpayers). The Big Give Green Match Fund secured £20,043 in funding. Legacy giving through wills is also encouraged.
5. Books and Publications Sales: Sale of books including 'How to be a Dung Beetle', 'How to be a Ladybird', and other entomological publications through the society's shop.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

No factual source material was provided in the input to describe the company's offerings.

Product overview

The Royal Entomological Society is a learned society and registered UK charity (no. 213620) devoted to insect science. Its core offerings consist of an eight-journal peer-reviewed publications portfolio (covering ecological entomology, systematic entomology, insect conservation and diversity, agricultural and forest entomology, medical and veterinary entomology, physiological entomology, insect molecular biology, and the new Approaches in Entomology), its quarterly membership magazine Antenna, Insect Week (the UK's major insect celebration initiative), the RES Insect Garden at Stratford Cross, conservation science programmes, and membership and fellowship programmes. The Society also offers educational bug hunting kits via NHBS, an annual scientific conference (Ento), awards and grants, library and archive services, and acts as secretariat for the Bees, Pollinators and Invertebrates APPG. The Society was awarded Best Learned Society in the 2025 MemCom Excellence Awards.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Insect Week: Annual UK-wide celebration of insects and insect science, organized by the Royal Entomological Society.
• RES Garden
• Ento

Quantifiable outcome

• Funded £20,043 through Big Give Green Match Fund 2025
• +2 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• UK Edible Insects Association (UKEIA)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 June 2026The Royal Entomological Society and UKEIA co-hosted a roundtable in London to launch development of new Codes of Practice for insect farming in the UK. The partnership aims to support responsible growth of the insect farming sector through industry standards.
• Danish Nature Agency Storstrøm and Vordingborg MunicipalitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Partnership with Danish agencies through the LIFE Orchids nature restoration project for Large Blue Butterfly conservation, showcasing European conservation success stories during Insect Week 2026.
• Sparsholt CollegeminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 June 2025RES partnered with Sparsholt College at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2025, supporting their Silver-Gilt award winning garden 'The Ugly Bug Ball' in the Green Stem Zone.
• Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) and AardmanmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 25 March 2025Partnership to launch the 'Lloyd of the Flies Wetland Bug Hunt' - an interactive Aardman augmented reality trail at WWT sites, bringing families an epic minibeast wetlands adventure and promoting insect science.
• 1% for the PlanetminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2025Royal Entomological Society became an official environmental partner in the global effort to tackle the planet's most pressing environmental issues through this environmental giving network.
• Paramo ClothingminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 18 November 2024Partnership with Paramo Clothing, a sustainable outdoor apparel brand, to support the society's work and outdoor activities.
• DryadcoreTechnology or Integration · 20 August 2024New data archiving policy partnership with Dryad to improve reproducibility and robustness of published articles by making research data openly available.
• NHBScoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 27 March 2024Partnership with NHBS (Natural History Book Service) for sale of RES-branded entomological equipment kits. NHBS develops and sells kits including Educational (£49.99), Advanced (£66.66), and Class Bug Hunting Kits (£265), with 10% donation to RES on each sale.
• WileycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorWiley serves as the publishing partner for eight RES journals including Ecological Entomology, Insect Conservation and Diversity, Agricultural and Forest Entomology, Systematic Entomology, Physiological Entomology, Medical and Veterinary Entomology, Insect Molecular Biology, and new Approaches in Entomology.
• Harper Adams UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership for the annual HAU/RES Entomology Summer School - a five-day course for PhD students and early-career researchers. The society also supports three Master's student scholarships annually through this partnership.
• UKCEH and JNCCcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerRES leads communication for the UK Pollinator Monitoring Scheme (PoMS), led by UKCEH and JNCC, supporting citizen science data collection on UK insect pollinator abundance and diversity.
• BASF / Rawcliffe Bridge Award for SustainabilityminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with BASF's Rawcliffe Bridge Award for Sustainability organised with The Andersons Centre to promote insect science among the UK farming community. RES serves as one of the judges for the award.
• FarewillminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPartnership with Farewill, UK's leading will writing service, to offer free will writing to supporters who pledge to leave a gift to the society in their will. RES receives legacy donations through this partnership.
• Tom MasseycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGarden designer Tom Massey created the award-winning RES Garden, designed for RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2023 and now relocated as a teaching garden at Stratford Cross.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Zoological Society of London: A UK-registered charity (and Royal Charter body) focused on zoological science and conservation, publishing research via journals and the Journal of Zoology, operating zoos and conservation programmes, and running major public engagement campaigns — a broader but structurally similar scientific society and charity.
• Geological Society of London: A UK Royal Chartered learned society publishing journals (Journal of the Geological Society, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems), offering fellowship tiers, running scientific conferences, and engaging in education and policy — structurally aligned with RES's publishing-and-membership model.
• Entomological Society of America: The largest professional entomological society in the world, publishing journals (e.g., Journal of Economic Entomology, Environmental Entomology, Annals of the Entomological Society of America), running the annual ESA annual meeting, and offering membership tiers to professional and student entomologists — directly comparable to RES's journal + conference + membership model.
• British Ecological Society: The oldest ecological society in the world (founded 1913), publishing five peer-reviewed journals (including Journal of Animal Ecology, Journal of Ecology) via Wiley, running the annual British Ecological Society meeting, and offering membership, grants, and policy engagement — structurally almost identical to RES.
• Royal Society of Biology: A UK-registered charity and membership organisation for biologists, operating under Royal Charter, with chartered membership tiers (AMRSB, MRSB, FRSB), grants, regional branches, and policy advocacy — directly analogous to RES's learned society structure.
• Linnean Society of London: A UK-based learned society (founded 1788) with a comparable model: peer-reviewed publications (Biological Journal, Botanical Journal, Zoological Journal), elected fellowship, a specialist library and archive, public lectures, and member tiers for professional and amateur natural historians.
• Royal Geographical Society: Another UK-based Royal learned society (with Royal Charter) offering fellowship tiers, peer-reviewed journals (Area, The Geographical Journal, Transactions), research grants, public lectures, and a specialist library and archive — a closely comparable learned society operating model.

Broad incumbents

• Cambridge University Press: A global academic publisher that distributes journals for many learned societies and offers comparable publishing services (editorial, production, distribution, open access infrastructure) to RES — relevant as a potential alternative to the Wiley partnership.
• Springer Nature: One of the world's largest scientific publishers, distributing journals for numerous learned societies across the life sciences including ecology and zoology titles — a broad incumbent and potential alternative publishing partner comparable to Wiley in RES's distribution stack.
• Royal Society of Chemistry: A much larger UK Royal Chartered learned society and major scientific publisher, operating dozens of peer-reviewed journals, a massive membership base, grants programmes, and policy engagement — a broader incumbent demonstrating the scaled version of RES's model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/RoyEntSoc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/RoyalEntomologicalSociety
• Facebookfacebook.com/Royentsoc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/royentsoc
• Instagraminstagram.com/royentsoc

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Royal Entomological Society