Roularta Media Group Sells German Magazines

Roularta Media Group Sells German Magazines

Photo: the German magazines Frau Im Leben, Plus Magazin and G-Geschichte.

Roularta Media Group (RMG) has reached an agreement with Herder Verlag and Agentur2 regarding the acquisition of G-Geschichte, Plus Magazin, and Frau Im Leben. The media group will focus on the strategic development of its two core markets: Belgium and the Netherlands.
 
RMG is the largest publisher of magazine brands in Belgium and the second largest in the Netherlands. Roularta Media Deutschland, RMG's German subsidiary, was a small player in the German market. RMG saw limited growth potential for these three titles within its German magazine portfolio. Therefore, G-Geschichte will be acquired by Herder Verlag, while Plus Magazin and Frau Im Leben will be acquired by Agentur2.

Herder Verlag celebrated the 225th anniversary of its first Herder book from 1798 in 2023. Today, Herder publishes approximately 350 new titles per year and is responsible for more than a dozen magazines. Its book program focuses on themes such as politics and history, society, theology, religion, education, and lifestyle. The publisher, Manuel Herder, now represents the sixth generation of the family business.

Agentur2 is an agency that brings brands to life through communication. Agentur2 is now seizing the opportunity to enter the publishing world. It brings extensive expertise in online marketing, prototyping, product development, and UX. The successful brands Plus Magazin, Frau im Leben, and Rente & Co will be further developed into dynamic multichannel brands.

Xavier Bouckaert, CEO:
"I am pleased that we have managed to find two professional buyers for the magazines. I would also like to thank the German Roularta team for their excellent work over the past 20 years. Despite an increasingly challenging market environment, they managed to maintain their market position and continuously develop the magazines."

RMG will continue its ambitious growth strategy focused on digitalization, innovation, consolidation, and sustainability in its two core markets, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Roularta Media Group (RMG) is a Belgian listed multimedia group with over 1.200 coworkers and a total turnover of 323 million euros. In Belgium, RMG is market leader in magazine brands in Dutch and French as well as market leader in local media with, among others, De Zondag. In the Netherlands, RMG has the second-largest portfolio of magazine brands. RMG has a hypermodern offset printing factory, Roularta Printing, producing high-quality newspapers, magazines and catalogs for the Belgian and international markets. RMG offers powerful digital tools, such as the app 'Mijn Magazines', with a digital kiosk, a 24/24 website with content from all editorial teams and subscriptions available for the whole family. RMG has implemented a trendsetting sustainability program called Roularta Cares. 

In eighth place, and as one of the companies making the most significant progress, Roularta Media Group has joined the top ten most attractive employers in Belgium according to Randstad’s most recent Employer Brand Research (2024).

Xavier Bouckaert, CEO
xavier.bouckaert@roularta.be
+32 (0)51 26 65 26