Archive of Youth Cultures

What Archive of Youth Cultures does

Archive of Youth Cultures (Archiv der Jugendkulturen e.V.) is a Berlin-based, registered non-profit association (eingetragener Verein) founded in 1997/1998 that operates a specialized library and archive dedicated to German youth cultures and subcultures. Its core asset is a collection exceeding 20,000 fanzine issues, supplemented by literature, photographs, objects, and oral history materials documenting post-war German youth scenes. The organization serves educators, researchers, scene participants, students, and the general public through on-site access, a digital reading place, the FAUST library database, traveling exhibitions (including Der z/weite Blick), workshops, and publications.

Its programmatic work spans three pillars: (1) archive and library operations, including cataloging, preservation, and digital access via FAUST; (2) educational and civic projects, most notably the federal model project sUPpress on prevention of right-wing extremism through youth culture work, plus targeted subculture projects such as SPUR II on DDR subcultures; and (3) cultural programming and exhibitions, including collaborations with major Berlin institutions such as the Humboldt Forum (Culture Camp 2026).

The business model is that of a German eingetragener Verein: revenue is generated primarily through project grants from federal bodies — BMFSFJ (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth), the BpB (Federal Agency for Civic Education), and LOTTO-Stiftung Berlin — supplemented by membership fees (€24–180/year across tiers), donations, and sales of self-published books and zines. The organization holds federal recognition as a youth welfare provider under §75 SGB VIII, which underpins its eligibility for sustained public funding. With 1–10 employees, operations are lean and project-driven, and the international Pop- und Subkulturarchiv initiative (launched 2018) signals selective expansion beyond Berlin into the broader German-speaking world.

Name

Archive of Youth Cultures

Legal name

Archiv der Jugendkulturen e.V.

Website

https://jugendkulturen.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1998

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Archive and Youth Culture Education Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Libraries and Archives (519210), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519), Periodical Publishers (513120), Book Publishers (513130)

SIC

Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731), Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF)

Keywords

• Youth culture archive
• Subculture research library
• Political education programs
• Media literacy workshops
• Discrimination prevention training

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: Annual membership fees with three tiers: regular (48 EUR/year), reduced/student (24 EUR/year), and supporting/fördermitglied (180 EUR/year). Additional membership starting from 2 EUR per month.
2. Government Project Funding: Major funding from BMFSFJ (Federal Ministry for Family Affairs) through the 'Demokratie leben!' federal program. Additional support from Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung (BpB), LOTTO-Stiftung Berlin, and other government sources for specific projects.
3. Donations: Accepts donations through betterplace.org platform for supporting the archive's work
4. Publication Sales: Sale of printed materials including family trees of youth cultures posters (5 EUR each or 18 EUR for set of 4), exhibition catalogs, and remaining journal stock sold on-site

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Archiv der Jugendkulturen e. V. operates a specialized library and archive of more than 20,000 fanzine issues, books, and media documenting youth cultures and subcultures, combined with educational programs (workshops, lectures, project days), traveling exhibitions (e.g., "Der z/weite Blick"), and a federal model project (sUPpress) on media competence and democracy education. The organization publishes the Journal der Jugendkulturen, exhibition catalogs, intervention sets addressing discrimination, and the Stammbäume der Jugendkulturen poster series, distributing these primarily through on-site access, traveling exhibitions, school and youth-facility workshops, the OPAC, and digital downloads.

Product overview

The Archive of Youth Cultures is a non-profit association (e.V.) operating as an information and competence center for youth cultures based in Berlin. It functions as a unified cultural archive and educational institution rather than a commercial software product. The core offering consists of a specialized library and collection documenting youth cultures, subcultures, and social phenomena with over 20,000 fanzine issues and various media materials. The archive provides educational programs including workshops, exhibitions, and the federal model project "sUPpress" on media competence. It publishes multiple print and digital publications including the Journal der Jugendkulturen (12 issues), exhibition catalogs, brochures, and intervention sets on discrimination topics. The OPAC provides searchable access to holdings via the FAUST database system. Major projects include the Pop- und Subkulturarchiv International (since 2018) and the traveling exhibition "Der z/weite Blick."

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Der z/weite Blick: A traveling exhibition on youth cultures and discriminations, featuring reports from scene-goers about antisemitism, right-wing extremism, sexism, racism, anti-Muslim racism, age discrimination, homo- and transphobia, violence, and social media in youth cultures.
• sUPpress
• Diversity Box
• New Faces
• Pop- und Subkulturarchiv International
• Queer History Month / Queer History Spring

Products and services

• Bibliothek & Sammlung (Library & Collection) A specialized library and collection containing books, more than 20,000 individual fanzine issues, videos, and digital materials documenting youth cultures, subcultures, and related social phenomena (e.g., punk, techno, hip-hop, graffiti, skateboarding, football fan culture, and discrimination in youth scenes), offered for on-site research use.
• OPAC (Online Public Access Catalogue) Online searchable catalogue of the library and collection, powered by the FAUST library database system (upgraded from version 7 to version 9), accessible at jugendkulturen.faust-iserver.de.
• Digital Reading Place (Digitaler Leseplatz) On-site digital reading infrastructure for secure access to digitized collection materials, including old science-fiction fanzines, concert posters, photos, and audio recordings from the Berlin Senate rock competitions in the 1980s.
• Journal der Jugendkulturen Specialized academic journal covering youth cultures, youth research, scene developments, event notices, and book reviews; 12 issues were published, covering topics such as techno, punk, hip-hop, and right-wing extremism.
• Ausstellungskataloge (Exhibition Catalogs) Exhibition catalogs accompanying the archive's traveling and permanent exhibitions, including the catalog for the "Der z/weite Blick" exhibition on youth cultures and discriminations.
• Stammbäume der Jugendkulturen (Family Trees of Youth Cultures poster series) Series of four large-format posters tracing the development of major youth and music cultures over the last 100 years, including separate posters for Techno/Elektro, Punk, and Hip-Hop, produced in cooperation with Museum für Kommunikation Berlin.
• Intervention Sets DIY intervention sets addressing right-wing extremism, anti-Muslim racism, sexism, and antisemitism; each set includes informative postcards, stencils, stickers, jewelry, tattoos, and links.
• Interview-Broschüren (Interview Brochures) Publications featuring interviews with scene attendees about discrimination in youth cultures, covering antisemitism, right-wing extremism, sexism, racism, anti-Muslim racism, and social media in youth cultures.
• Der z/weite Blick (Traveling Exhibition) Traveling exhibition on youth cultures and discriminations, with scene-goers reporting on antisemitism, right-wing extremism, sexism, racism, anti-Muslim racism, age discrimination, homo- and transphobia, violence, and social media in youth cultures; revised and expanded multiple times since 2015.
• Culture Camp Five-day holiday workshop for teenagers aged 13-19 featuring creative research and production in pop and subculture contexts, including sculpture, street art, comics, rap, and urban/street art workshops, held in collaboration with cultural institutions.
• sUPpress – Medienkompetenz für Engagement und Selbstwirksamkeit (Federal Model Project) Federal model project (2020-2024) on media competence for engagement and self-efficacy, working with journalists, youth scene attendees, political and cultural educators, media educators, and police at Berlin and Brandenburg schools on media, democracy, identities, hate speech, conspiracy theories, and fake news.
• Pop- und Subkulturarchiv International International pop and subculture archive project building on the earlier Berliner Pop- und Subkulturarchiv, with a four-person team and funding from LOTTO-Stiftung Berlin, aimed at professional archival development of Berlin's pop and subculture history.
• Diversity Box Queer educational work project providing events, workshops, and networking on diversity in educational work over five years (2014-2019).

Quantifiable outcome

• Reached thousands of youth and adults with hundreds of workshops, lectures, and project days (2015-2019)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor.

• Gesellschaftsspiele Berlin e.V.minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2023Cooperation partner for events including the Wochenendrebellen II book reading and other educational events
• Fanprojekt der Sportjugend BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 June 2023Cooperation partner for football fan culture events and education programs
• LSVD Berlin-BrandenburgminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 September 2021Cooperation partner for events on LGBTQ+ topics including Queer History Month and discussions on sexualized violence in football
• Transmission.netminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2021Partner organization for the 'Emergent Bass' interdisciplinary event series focusing on marginalized Black, Indigenous, People of Color, and migrants in Berlin club culture
• Wetek gGmbH BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Educational measures for youth in media and cultural work. Christoph Happel is Managing Director of Wetek gGmbH and board member of Archiv der Jugendkulturen
• Museum für Kommunikation BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Collaborated with the museum on the Stammbäume der Jugendkulturen poster project with over 50 employees involved
• Kulturprojekte BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Programming partner for the 80th anniversary of the end of WWII commemoration weeks '80 Jahre Kriegsende'
• Jugend Museum BerlinminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Collaboration partner for events on youth and protest themes

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• British Library Sound Archive: National UK sound and moving-image archive preserving popular music, oral history, and recorded culture. Directly comparable as a publicly funded special archive of recorded and printed popular-culture material with research access and educational outreach.
• Berlinische Galerie: Berlin museum of modern art, photography, and architecture with its own collection and archive functions. Comparable as a Berlin-based non-profit combining a specialized cultural archive with exhibitions and public programming, though focused on visual rather than subcultural material.
• Deutsches Filminstitut & Filmmuseum (DFF): Frankfurt-based German film institute and museum combining a film heritage archive with exhibitions and educational programming. Closely analogous as a non-profit cultural archive that uses physical exhibitions and pedagogic outreach to preserve and interpret popular-culture material.
• Museum für Kommunikation Berlin: Federal museum in Berlin on communication and media culture, an established cooperation partner of the Archive of Youth Cultures (e.g., on the Stammbäume der Jugendkulturen poster series with 50+ contributors). Shares the combined archival collection, exhibition, and educational-program model with a comparable Berlin-based audience.
• Deutsches Literaturarchiv Marbach: Major German literary archive and museum combining manuscript and print collections with research, exhibitions, and publishing. Comparable as a German non-profit special archive that monetizes and disseminates a deep, focused collection through catalogs, exhibitions, and digital access.
• Zentral- und Landesbibliothek Berlin (ZLB): Berlin's central and state library, providing both lending and deep archival/metadata services. Comparable as a Berlin-based publicly funded library-and-archive institution serving researchers, schools, and the general public with both physical and digital access.
• Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Library and Archives: US-based museum and library dedicated to preserving popular music and youth-culture history. Direct international analogue as a specialized archive of youth/popular culture, with a comparable mix of physical collection, exhibitions, and educational programming.

Broad incumbents

• Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin: Major Prussian cultural-heritage library with deep special collections and digital cataloging (comparable use of professional library infrastructure such as FAUST). Functions as a broader incumbent offering comparable archival and access services across far larger scale and scope.
• Deutsches Historisches Museum (DHM): Berlin-based national history museum with library and archival holdings. Comparable as a federally supported institution combining permanent collections, traveling exhibitions, and educational programming, though operating at a much broader historical scope.

Regional players

• Wienbibliothek im Rathaus: Vienna's municipal and state library with extensive special collections on popular and everyday culture, including the 'Wiener Volksliedwerk'. Comparable as a German-speaking regional library-archive serving a similar research and civic-education mission but in Austria.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/Jugendkulturen
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/Jugendkulturen
• Facebookfacebook.com/jugendkulturen
• Instagraminstagram.com/archiv_der_jugendkulturen

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 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 Archive of Youth Cultures