Verlag Galiani Berlin

What Verlag Galiani Berlin does

Verlag Galiani Berlin is a German-language literary publisher founded in 2009 and headquartered at Friedrichstraße 119, Berlin. The imprint operates within the Kiepenheuer & Witsch brand family under the Holtzbrinck publishing conglomerate, alongside other German trade publishers including Rowohlt, S. Fischer, Droemer Knaur, and Argon. Its catalog spans contemporary German-language fiction (Gegenwartsliteratur), crime and thriller (Krimis & Thriller), cultural history non-fiction (Kulturgeschichte), biographies, anthologies, and world literature classics (Klassiker). The publisher positions itself around literary discovery, pairing emerging authors with established names, and has built award-winning lists across both fiction and non-fiction categories. The imprint maintains a roster including Bruno Preisendörfer, Markus Orths, Peggy Mädler, Kat Menschik, Monika Helfer, Daniel Schwartz, and Toni Rivera.

The business is built on a small operating team of approximately 6-10 staff led by two program directors (Wolfgang Hörner, Esther Kormann), under publishing director Kerstin Gleba and commercial managing director Steffen Müller. Core products are hardcover editions (€20-€32, up to €98 for scholarly works), paperbacks (€13-€17), EPUB 3 e-books (€9.99-€22.99) compliant with the EPUB Accessibility Specification 1.1, and audiobooks published via sister imprint Argon Verlag. The technical platform includes an accessible webshop (WCAG 2.1 Level AA) with HTML5, CSS, and ARIA-attribute compliance, integration with the tolino Cloud ecosystem for cross-device reading, and PCI-DSS / 3D-Secure payment processing.

The go-to-market is a hybrid e-commerce and event-driven model. Direct-to-consumer sales flow through the proprietary galiani.de webshop with free shipping within Germany only (international orders are not accepted). Physical books are also distributed through five major German book retailers — Amazon, Thalia, Hugendubel, Genialokal, and Osiander — with returns processed via Libri GmbH and shipments via DHL. Marketing combines a newsletter, an online magazine featuring author interviews, organic social presence on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Google, plus analog and digital book premieres and readings. A Rights & Licensing division handles international rights sales, and a separate audiobook channel routes through Argon Verlag. Pricing is unit-based across all formats with German VAT included, and customer contracts are technically concluded with parent entity Holtzbrinck Buchverlage GmbH rather than the imprint directly.

Name

Verlag Galiani Berlin

Legal name

Verlag Galiani Berlin bei Verlag Kiepenheuer & Witsch GmbH & Co. KG

Website

https://galiani.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Literary Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

General Trade Publishing (Adult Fiction & Nonfiction) (MPAJAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Literary & Classics Publishing (MPAJAAAC), Lifestyle, Travel & Leisure Books Publishing (MPAJAAAH), Politics, Current Affairs & Social Commentary Publishing (MPAJAAAM)

Keywords

• Literary publishing
• Contemporary fiction
• Cultural history books
• Accessible e-books
• German book retail

Headquarters

HQ city

Berlin

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Physical Book Sales: Sale of hardcover and paperback books through webshop and book retail partners. Products include novels, non-fiction, biographies, and literary classics.
2. E-Book Sales: Digital book downloads in EPUB format delivered via email and customer account. Download links valid for three years after purchase.
3. Audiobook Sales: Audiobook sales through partner Argon Verlag.
4. Rights & Licensing: Rights and licensing division (Rights | Rechte & Lizenzen) for international licensing of publishing rights.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Verlag Galiani Berlin publishes German-language contemporary literature, cultural history non-fiction, narrative non-fiction, and world literature classics in hardcover, paperback, and EPUB-3 e-book formats. The publisher sells directly through its galiani.de webshop with domestic German delivery, distributes physical books through major German book retailers, and licenses publishing rights internationally. The imprint is part of the Holtzbrinck publishing group, operating as an imprint of Kiepenheuer & Witsch.

Product overview

Verlag Galiani Berlin is a German literary publisher founded in 2009 as an imprint of Kiepenheuer & Witsch, specializing in German-language contemporary literature, cultural history non-fiction, and world literature classics. The publisher offers books primarily in hardcover (Gebundene Ausgabe) and paperback formats, complemented by E-Books in EPUB-3 format. Notable products include the 'Illustrierte Lieblingsbücher' series featuring illustrated editions and the crime series 'Mörderisches Lugano'. The publisher operates an online shop for direct sales of physical and digital books, with E-Books delivered via email download links and accessible through tolino Cloud and other E-Reading platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Gebundene Ausgabe (Hardcover Books) Hardcover editions of literary fiction and non-fiction books published by Galiani Berlin, including contemporary literature, crime novels, and cultural history works. Targeted at German-speaking readers of literary fiction and cultural non-fiction.
• Paperback / Taschenbuch Paperback editions of selected titles, typically released after initial hardcover publication. Priced €13-17. Targeted at price-conscious readers seeking accessible formats.
• E-Books (EPUB Format) Digital books in EPUB-3 format with full accessibility (EPUB Accessibility Specification 1.1), delivered via email download links valid for three years after purchase. Compatible with all major E-Readers including tolino Cloud. Priced €9.99-22.99.
• Illustrierte Lieblingsbücher (Illustrated Favorites Series) Illustrated editions of favorite books, including works by Kat Menschik featuring full-page color illustrations. Targeted at readers seeking premium illustrated literary editions.
• Mörderisches Lugano (Crime Series) Crime fiction series featuring Capitano Rossi investigating cases in Ticino, Switzerland. Targeted at readers of regional crime fiction and thriller genre.
• Rights & Licensing (Rechte & Lizenzen) International publishing rights licensing service for translation, audio, film, and other rights to Galiani Berlin titles. Targeted at international publishers and rights buyers.
• Audiobooks (via Argon Verlag) Audiobook editions of selected titles distributed through partner Argon Verlag. Targeted at audio-book consumers.

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Holtzbrinck Buchverlage GmbHcoreOthersParent company of Galiani Berlin. Handles e-commerce contracts, returns processing (Holtzbrinck c/o Libri GmbH), and overall publishing group operations. Kaufverträge über den Webshop kommen ausschließlich mit der Holtzbrinck Buchverlage GmbH zustande.
• Kiepenheuer & Witsch (KiWi)coreOthersGaliani Berlin is an imprint of Kiepenheuer & Witsch, operating within the KiWi brand family. Located at Bahnhofsvorplatz 1, 50667 Köln.
• Argon VerlagminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorAudiobook publishing partner. Audiobooks such as 'Aus dem Haus' by Miriam Böttger are available through Argon Verlag.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Aufbau Verlag: Berlin-based literary publisher of contemporary German fiction, cultural history and classics. Closely comparable program identity, location and target audience.
• Carl Hanser Verlag: Independent German publisher of literary fiction, essays and cultural non-fiction. Closely comparable scope, target reader and editorial positioning to Galiani Berlin's program.
• Diogenes Verlag: Swiss-German independent publisher of literary fiction, crime and cultural non-fiction. Comparable editorial style and trans-regional DACH-market reach, and a frequent rival for German-language literary authors.
• Rowohlt Verlag: Sister Holtzbrinck imprint publishing German literary fiction, non-fiction and translations. Same parent distribution, returns, and webshop infrastructure; comparable program breadth and target audience of German-reading literary enthusiasts.
• Suhrkamp Verlag: Independent German literary publisher of contemporary fiction, essays and classics. Competes for the same German-language literary authors and readers and is widely considered a benchmark in the German trade publishing market.
• Kiepenheuer & Witsch (KiWi): Direct parent imprint within Holtzbrinck. Publishes contemporary German fiction and non-fiction and shares editorial infrastructure, e-commerce, fulfillment (Libri) and rights operations with Galiani Berlin, making it the closest internal comparator.
• S. Fischer Verlag: Prestigious Holtzbrinck literary imprint publishing contemporary German fiction, international literature in translation and non-fiction. Directly comparable editorial mission and Holtzbrinck parent economics.

Broad incumbents

• dtv Verlagsgesellschaft: Major German general-interest publisher with a strong literary list and large paperback program. Competes for German-language literary authors and shares the same bookseller distribution channels.
• Droemer Knaur: Large Holtzbrinck sister-imprint covering a much broader fiction and non-fiction program including commercial bestsellers. Overlaps with Galiani on cultural-history non-fiction but at significantly larger scale.

Regional players

• Droschl Verlag: Austrian literary publisher of contemporary fiction, poetry and essays. Comparable in scale and curatorial approach but serves the Austrian/German-language market rather than a Germany-centric one.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/verlag-galiani-berlin

Compliance5 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Verlag Galiani Berlin