Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH

What Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH does

Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH is a privately held German limited liability company (GmbH) founded in 1992, operating Northern Germany's largest literature festival from its headquarters at the Literaturhaus Göttingen (Nikolaistraße 22, 37073 Göttingen). The organization runs an annual 10-day October festival plus a spring edition (Göttinger Frühjahrslese, launched 2023) featuring 80+ events, recording 24,600 visitors and 91% capacity utilization in its 2023 record year. Its portfolio spans four sub-brands: the main Literaturherbst festival; the Wissenschaft beim Göttinger Literaturherbst science lecture series (running since 2007, co-hosted with four Max Planck Institutes and the Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek in the Paulinerkirche); the Literaturherbst ON AIR streaming platform (launched 2020) offering live and on-demand remote access; and the annual Science Communication Medaille (since 2014).

The company's technology stack is a PHP-based content management system integrating third-party services — Reservix for ticketing (online plus 20+ physical Vorverkaufsstellen across Südniedersachsen), etracker for GDPR-compliant Germany-only web analytics, and CleverReach for newsletter distribution. The proprietary ON AIR streaming platform and Wissenschaft Videothek archive represent the main technology investments, extending reach beyond the live festival window through end-of-November VOD access. Core infrastructure includes the shared Literaturhaus venue with three floors of programming and office space, plus satellite venues such as the Sheddachhalle im Sartorius Quartier and Deutsches Theater Göttingen.

The business model is multi-stream: transaction-fee ticket revenue (€22 reduced / €25 standard, with free Kulturticket access for students of three local universities) is the primary driver; recurring sponsorship is sold as Premium Sponsorships (from €7,500/year) and Event Sponsorships (from €2,500/event) with logo visibility; the Freundeskreis membership program (from €35/year) provides recurring patron revenue earmarked for the Junger Herbst emerging-author series; donations are accepted via PayPal and direct debit with tax-deductible receipts; and gift vouchers (Gutscheine) are sold through Reservix. Marketing runs through social media (Facebook, Instagram), a CleverReach newsletter, dedicated press relations, and institutional media partners (NDR Kultur). A 7-person core team led by Geschäftsführer Johannes-Peter Herberhold executes operations, supplemented by volunteers, interns (Praktikum/Volontariat), and the Freundeskreis community.

Name

Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH

Legal name

Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH

Website

https://literaturherbst.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH operates Northern Germany's largest literature festival from Göttingen, running a 10-day October event plus spring edition with 80+ author readings, a science lecture series, and ON AIR streaming. It serves regional Südniedershausen audiences and students through ticket sales, sponsorship, memberships, and donations.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Literature Festival / Cultural Events

NAICS

Promoters of Performing Arts, Sports, and Similar Events with Facilities (711310)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Cultural & Community Festivals (Ticketed) (THAJAFAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Venue Sourcing & Site Coordination (HSACAAAD)

Keywords

• Literature festival
• Cultural events
• Author readings
• Science communication
• Festival ticketing

Headquarters

HQ city

Göttingen

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Ticket Sales: Primary revenue stream from sale of admission tickets to festival events. Tickets sold online via Reservix and at physical box offices and partner outlets. Ticket prices range from €22 (reduced) to €25 (standard). Premium events may carry different pricing.
2. Sponsorship: Two sponsorship tiers: Premium Sponsor from €7,500 per year supporting highlight projects, and Eventsponsor from €2,500 supporting individual event realization. Logos displayed on the website and at venues.
3. Freundeskreis Membership: Annual membership dues starting at €35 per year, focused on supporting the 'Junger Herbst' program series for emerging authors and experimental formats. Members receive benefits but no direct product.
4. Donations: Individual donations accepted online via PayPal or bank direct debit. Tax-deductible donation receipts (Zuwendungsbestätigung) issued. Donations support the festival's general operations and programming.
5. Gift Vouchers: Prepaid gift vouchers sold via Reservix at selectable monetary amounts, redeemable against any non-sold-out festival event.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH produces and operates Northern Germany's largest annual literature festival, a 10-day event held each October in Göttingen and surrounding Südniedersachsen venues. The festival features 80+ author readings, discussions, and cultural performances, with supplementary programming including a spring reading festival (Göttinger Frühjahrslese), a science lecture series (Wissenschaft beim Göttinger Literaturherbst), and an ON AIR streaming platform for remote audiences. Revenue comes from ticket sales, corporate sponsorship, and Freundeskreis memberships.

Product overview

Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH operates Norddeutschlands largest literature festival, a unified event portfolio centered on the annual autumn festival (October) featuring over 80 events across Göttingen and southern Lower Saxony. The core product is the main festival program, supplemented by the ON AIR streaming module for virtual attendance, the Wissenschaft lecture series for science communication, and the spring-reading event Göttinger Frühjahrslese. Additional offerings include a friends circle membership (Freundeskreis), corporate sponsorship packages, gift vouchers, and volunteer/internship programs. The festival collaborates closely with Literaturhaus Göttingen as a shared venue and organizing hub.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Wissenschaft beim Göttinger Literaturherbst: A lecture series featuring international researchers and science communicators presenting in the Paulinerkirche, part of the festival since 2007. Organized jointly with the four Max Planck Institutes in Göttingen and the Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen.
• Literaturherbst ON AIR
• Göttinger Frühjahrslese

Products and services

• Göttinger Literaturherbst (Hauptprogramm) Northern Germany's largest annual literature festival, a 10-day event held each October across Göttingen and Südniedersachsen with 80+ author readings, discussions, literary performances, award ceremonies, and cultural events. Over 1,100 authors have performed since 1992.
• Literaturherbst ON AIR Streaming Platform Proprietary live-streaming and video-on-demand platform enabling remote attendance of festival events. Provides both live viewing and archive playback through end of November. Free for Kulturticket students; paid for general audiences. The Wissenschaft Videothek archive of recorded science lectures is freely accessible.
• Wissenschaft beim Göttinger Literaturherbst Science lecture series held in the Paulinerkirche featuring international researchers and science writers presenting topics from mathematics to art and culture. Organized since 2007 with the four Max Planck Institutes in Göttingen and the Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek. Includes the Science Communication Medaille award presented annually since 2014.
• Göttinger Frühjahrslese Spring literary festival launched in 2023 in collaboration with the Literarisches Zentrum Göttingen, featuring readings and discussions during a four-day event with six program items across multiple evenings.
• Freundeskreis Membership Annual membership program of the supporting association (Freundeskreis des Göttinger Literaturherbstes e.V.) starting at €35 per year, supporting the Junger Herbst emerging-author and experimental format program. Members receive community benefits.
• Corporate Sponsorship Packages Two-tier corporate sponsorship offering: Premium Sponsor from €7,500 per year supporting flagship/highlight projects, and Eventsponsor from €2,500 supporting individual event realization. Sponsors receive logo placement on the website and at venues.
• Gift Vouchers (Gutscheine) Prepaid gift vouchers sold via Reservix at selectable monetary amounts, redeemable against any non-sold-out festival event.
• Junger Herbst Program series showcasing promising newcomers and experimental literary formats. Supported by the Freundeskreis membership program.

Quantifiable outcome

• 24,600 visitors in 2023, the strongest result in the festival's 32-year history, up 24% from the prior year
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration4 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered flagship, core and minor.

• Four Max Planck Institutes in GöttingenflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2007Co-hosts of the 'Wissenschaft beim Göttinger Literaturherbst' science lecture series (running since 2007). The four institutes partner with the festival and the Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen to bring international researchers and science communicators to the Paulinerkirche. Includes co-presentation of the Science Communication Medaille (awarded since 2014).
• Marktplatz Südniedersachsen Internet GmbH & Co. KG (MPSN)coreTechnology or IntegrationMPSN serves as the external web service provider for the festival's website, handling web design and hosting. The company was carefully selected and commissioned under a data processing agreement (Auftragsverarbeitungsvertrag) compliant with GDPR. Their Prinzenstr. 21, 37073 Göttingen office provides technical operations support.
• Jazzfestival GöttingenflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-presenting partner for the '100 Miles – Hommage an Miles Davis' event celebrating the 100th anniversary of Miles Davis's birth. The event features Christian Brückner as narrator and the Martin Auer Quintett, combining jazz and literature on 9 October 2026 at the Sheddachhalle.
• Reservix GmbHcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary ticketing platform partner handling online ticket sales and managing a network of 20+ physical advance booking outlets across Göttingen and Südniedersachsen. Provides the ticketing infrastructure for the festival's presale and door sales. Both venue tickets and ON AIR streaming tickets sold through Reservix.
• Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen (SUB)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of the Wissenschaftsreihe alongside the four Max Planck Institutes and the festival. Provides the venue (Paulinerkirche) and institutional support for the science lecture series.
• Literarisches Zentrum GöttingenflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-occupant of the Literaturhaus Göttingen (shared venue at Nikolaistraße 22) and co-organizer of the Göttinger Frühjahrslese (spring literary weekend). A core institutional partner for the festival's programming and venue operations.
• NDR KulturcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMedia partner providing broadcast coverage and promotion for the festival. Their logo appears as a partner on the website. NDR Kultur also hosted the live podcast 'eat.READ.sleep' at the festival in 2022.
• Stadt GöttingencoreGTM or Marketing PartnerMunicipal partner and co-funder of the festival. Stadt Göttingen provides institutional support, venue access, and promotional backing. Their logo appears as a partner on the festival website.
• Sartorius AGminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCorporate sponsor whose logo appears on the festival website. The Sheddachhalle im Sartorius Quartier is a key festival venue provided as part of the partnership. Sartorius Quartier is a commercial technology campus that hosts literary events.
• VGH StiftungminorGTM or Marketing PartnerFoundation sponsor supporting the festival, visible through logo placement on event pages (e.g., the Caroline Wahl event page). Represents the regional insurance group's cultural commitment.
• Rowohlt VerlagminorOthersPublisher of Caroline Wahl's '1999 Meter über dem Meer' (2026), appearing at the festival. Represents a commercial publishing partnership for author appearances.
• Literaturhaus GöttingencoreOthersA shared cultural venue at Nikolaistraße 22 housing both the Göttinger Literaturherbst and the Literarisches Zentrum Göttingen. Three floors of programming, organization, and event space serving the broader Göttingen literary community.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Frankfurter Buchmesse: The world's largest trade fair for books, held annually in Frankfurt. Operates in the same German literature ecosystem as Göttinger Literaturherbst and shares many publisher partners, but is a B2B trade show rather than a consumer literature festival.
• Leipziger Buchmesse: Major annual book fair in Leipzig, Germany, with a strong literary reading program alongside the trade show. Comparable as a German book/reading event that competes for the same publishers, authors, and audiences.

Direct peers

• Melbourne Writers Festival: Annual writers' festival held in Melbourne, Australia, featuring author talks, panels, and readings. Comparable as a ticketed, sponsor-supported literature festival with similar program structure and audience.
• Edinburgh International Book Festival: Annual book and author festival held in Edinburgh's Charlotte Square Gardens. Comparable as a ticketed, sponsor-supported international literature festival with similar scale (hundreds of events) and audience model.
• Hay Festival: International literature and arts festival held annually in Hay-on-Wye (Wales) and globally. Comparable as a multi-day, ticketed, sponsorship-supported literature festival with similar program format and breadth.
• lit.Cologne: Germany's largest pure literature festival, held annually in Cologne with a comparable mix of author readings, discussions, and awards. Directly comparable as a ticketed, multi-venue, sponsor-supported German literary festival with similar revenue model and audience size.
• Cheltenham Literature Festival: The UK's oldest literature festival, operated by Cheltenham Festivals. Directly comparable as a multi-venue, ticketed, multi-sponsor literature event with similar program mix of readings, panels, and award ceremonies.
• Jaipur Literature Festival: The world's largest free literature festival, held annually in Jaipur, India. Comparable as a multi-day, sponsor-supported international literature festival with similar program format and free/ticketed hybrid model.
• Erlanger Poetenfest: Annual late-summer poetry and literature festival in Erlangen, Germany, focused on contemporary authors and readings. Closely comparable as a regional German literature festival with similar event structure and ticketed model.
• Tage der deutschsprachigen Literatur / Ingeborg-Bachmann-Preis: Annual German-language literature days in Klagenfurt, Austria, featuring the prestigious Ingeborg-Bachmann-Preis award. Comparable as a ticketed, multi-event literature festival with strong award-ceremony component.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Literaturherbst
• Instagraminstagram.com/literaturherbst
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/g%C3%B6ttinger-literaturherbst-gmbh

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 Göttinger Literaturherbst GmbH