Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V.

What Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V. does

Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V. (VHS Offenburg) is a registered nonprofit adult education association (eingetragener Verein) founded in 1903 and headquartered at Weingartenstr. 34b in Offenburg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It operates as a community Volkshochschule serving the city of Offenburg and the surrounding municipalities of Hohberg, Neuried, and Schutterwald, with branch locations (Außenstellen) in those communities and additional learning sites in Kehl and Lahr operated through the Grundbildungszentrum Ortenau. The institution delivers roughly 1,500 courses and events annually, totaling over 20,000 instructional hours, across eleven categories: Allgemeinbildung (general education), Kunst & Gestalten (arts and design), Gesundheit (health), Sprachen (languages, including 15+ languages at multiple levels), Beruf & Digitale Kompetenzen (career and digital skills), Schulabschlüsse (school qualifications including Hauptschulabschluss and Abitur preparation), Grundbildung (basic literacy), VHS-Online (digital learning), Junge VHS (youth programs including TalentCampus and summer schools), Familie werden Familie sein (family programs co-developed with the city's gender equality office), and Mit Muße lernen (senior learning).

The core technology stack is a standard third-party course management platform, Kufer/kuferweb, used across the German VHS network, with a public-facing website that handles search, registration, and account management. Online and hybrid delivery is offered through VHS-Online, including on-demand content (VHS zum Mitnehmen), webinars, and the vhs.wissen live digital science lecture series. VHS Offenburg is also integrated into the statewide onlinevhs-bw.de portal, extending its reach beyond the immediate Offenburg catchment.

The business model blends three revenue streams. The primary commercial stream is course registration fees, typically EUR 107-189 per course for standard offerings and EUR 0 (free) for select community events and basic-literacy programming. A second stream is government-funded programming: BAMF-funded integration courses, Kultusministerium Baden-Württemberg- and ESF-funded basic education through the Grundbildungszentrum Ortenau, and Bildungsgutschein (education voucher) coverage for qualifying courses. A third stream is member contributions and municipal partner support from Stadt Offenburg and the three branch municipalities. Pricing is purely per-course (pay-as-you-go) for individual learners, with discounts and Ermäßigungen available. The organization runs with a small core team of 13 paid employees, relying heavily on freelance instructors to deliver the 20,000+ annual teaching hours, and serves a broad, fragmented base of individual learners — general adults, families, children and youth, seniors, migrants, working professionals, and adults with basic education needs — with no named enterprise accounts or B2B contracts disclosed.

Name

Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V.

Legal name

Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V.

Website

https://vhs-offenburg.de

Company type

Private

Founded year

1903

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V. is a nonprofit community adult education association in Offenburg, Germany, founded in 1903, offering approximately 1,500 courses annually across 11 categories including languages, health, arts, career skills, basic literacy, and youth programs, funded through course fees, public grants, and municipal partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Adult Continuing Education

NAICS

Educational Services (61), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAAAEAL

Online/Hybrid Lifelong Learning Platforms & Open Enrollment Programs

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Continuing Education (Noncredit) & Lifelong Learning Programs

Keywords

• Adult education services
• Community education programs
• Language courses training
• Professional development courses
• Continuing education offerings

Headquarters

HQ city

Offenburg

HQ country

Germany

HQ region

Europe

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Course Registration Fees: Per-course fees charged to participants. Individual course fees range from free (for basic literacy/Grundbildung courses) to 100-200 EUR for specialized courses.
2. Government-Funded Programs: Publicly funded educational programs including integration courses (BAMF-funded), basic education courses (Grundbildungszentrum Ortenau funded by Kultusministerium Baden-Württemberg and ESF), and courses covered by Bildungsgutschein (education vouchers).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V. is a community adult education center providing approximately 1,500 courses and events per year with over 20,000 instructional hours across eleven subject areas including languages, health, arts, general education, professional development, school qualifications, basic literacy, and digital learning. Offerings are delivered in-person at the Kulturforum in Offenburg and branch locations in Hohberg, Neuried, and Schutterwald, alongside online and hybrid formats including webinars and the vhs.wissen live digital science program.

Product overview

Volkshochschule Offenburg e.V. is a community adult education center (Volkshochschule) offering approximately 1,500 courses and events annually with over 20,000 teaching hours. The organization operates as a multi-category educational platform providing in-person, online, and hybrid learning formats. The portfolio comprises eleven interconnected course categories: Allgemeinbildung (general education), Kunst & Gestalten (arts & design), Gesundheit (health), Sprachen (languages), Beruf & Digitale Kompetenzen (career & digital skills), Schulabschlüsse (school qualifications), Grundbildung (basic literacy education), VHS-Online (digital learning platform), Junge VHS (youth programs), Familie werden, Familie sein (family programs), and Mit Muße lernen (senior learning). The center serves as a qualified educational institution since 1903, operating from its main location at Kulturforum in Offenburg with additional branch locations in Hohberg, Neuried, and Schutterwald.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Allgemeinbildung (General Education)

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Stadt Offenburg (City of Offenburg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary municipal partner providing institutional support and collaboration. The VHS operates as a key component of the city's educational infrastructure, serving residents of Offenburg and surrounding municipalities. The city's logo appears prominently on partner sections of the website.
• Gemeinde HohbergcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMunicipal partner hosting a branch location (Außenstelle) of VHS Offenburg. Serves local residents of Hohberg municipality with access to VHS courses.
• Gemeinde NeuriedcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMunicipal partner hosting a branch location (Außenstelle) of VHS Offenburg. Serves local residents of Neuried municipality with access to VHS courses.
• Gemeinde SchutterwaldcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorMunicipal partner hosting a branch location (Außenstelle) of VHS Offenburg. Serves local residents of Schutterwald municipality with access to VHS courses.
• Gleichstellungsstelle der Stadt Offenburg (Gender Equality Office)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerJoint initiative for the 'Familie werden, Familie sein' (Becoming a Family, Being a Family) program, providing comprehensive support and education around childbirth and parenting. The partnership enables compact, flexible access to expert information and direct contact with local specialists for expectant mothers, fathers, and grandparents.
• Kultusministerium Baden-Württemberg (Ministry of Education Baden-Württemberg)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGovernment funding partner for the Grundbildungszentrum Ortenau (Basic Education Center Ortenau). Provides funding and institutional support for adult literacy and basic education programs.
• Volkshochschulverband Baden-Württemberg (VHS Association Baden-Württemberg)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional VHS umbrella organization. VHS Offenburg participates in the statewide onlinevhs@bw portal and follows association standards. The association also coordinates advocacy efforts, such as the press release against cuts to integration courses.
• Freizeitbad StegermattImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLocal recreational swimming pool facility used for swimming courses for children and adults, including baby swimming and children's swimming lessons during holidays.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Goethe-Institut: Germany's global cultural and language institution. Overlaps with VHS on German-as-a-foreign-language instruction and integration support (similar BAMF-aligned courses). Broader geographic scope but partial product overlap.

Direct peers

• WBS Training: Vocational training provider funded heavily through Bildungsgutschein, directly competing with VHS in Beruf & Digitale Kompetenzen and integration courses. Highly comparable customer base and funding model.
• Deutsche Angestellten-Akademie (DAA): Large adult education network offering integration courses, professional retraining, and school qualification prep. Direct competitor on BAMF integration and Bildungsutschein-funded programs.
• Volkshochschule Frankfurt: Another major German municipal VHS with comparable eleven-plus program categories, multiple locations, and hybrid in-person/online delivery. Strong functional comparator for product breadth and operational model.
• Volkshochschule Stuttgart: Direct VHS peer in Baden-Württemberg offering the same range of adult continuing education courses under the same state association. Most directly comparable on product portfolio, regional governance, and funding model.
• Volkshochschule München: Large municipal Volkshochschule with comparable program breadth (languages, professional, health, arts, school qualifications). Comparable in mission and product mix, larger in scale.
• Berlitz Deutschland: Private language school chain operating in Germany with similar adult language learners as a core customer segment. Competes directly on Vhs.sprachkurs offerings (English, French, Spanish, business languages).

Emerging players

• ILS Institut für Lernsysteme: Germany's largest distance-learning provider. Overlaps with VHS on professional development, school qualifications (Hauptschulabschluss telc preparation), and digital learning offerings.
• Studiengemeinschaft Darmstadt (sgd): Major German distance-learning provider with comparable vocational, language, and school-completion programs. Competes with VHS for adult learners seeking flexible, asynchronous study formats.

Regional players

• Volkshochschulverband Baden-Württemberg: State umbrella association coordinating all VHS institutions in Baden-Württemberg and operating the onlinevhs@bw portal. VHS Offenburg is a member; the association sets curriculum, quality standards, and joint digital infrastructure.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@VolkshochschuleOffenburg
• Instagraminstagram.com/vhsoffenburg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/volkshochschule-offenburg-e-v-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

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