Merger of publishers Rudolf Steiner Verlag and Verlag am Goetheanum
On 8 May, the publishing company Philosophisch-Anthroposophische Verlage was entered in the Swiss commercial register. The publishers Rudolf Steiner Verlag and Verlag am Goetheanum have merged under this name.
The merger, a result of the tense situation in publishing, unites the responsibilities for the complete edition of Rudolf Steiner‘s work (‘Gesamtausgabe’ or GA) from the Rudolf Steiner Archives and those of the School of Spiritual Science at the Goe-theanum under one umbrella. The aim is to stabilize the publishers economically by reducing administration and duplication.
The new name refers to the former publisher ‘Philosophisch-Anthroposophischer Verlag’ from which the two companies originally evolved. After the split that resulted from a conflict about Rudolf Steiner‘s estate, Rudolf Steiner Verlag published Rudolf Steiner‘s works, while Verlag am Goetheanum focused on anthroposophical literature edited by the School of Spiritual Science and its Sections. The former publishers of the Rudolf Steiner estate administration (Nachlassverwaltung) and of the Goetheanum will continue to exist within the new publishing group, as will the trade names Natura, Ogham, Rudolf Geering and Zbinden.
As managing director of the publishing group, Johannes Onneken is holding the different publishing brands together. He knows the publishing business from various angles because he managed his own publishing company for ten years, worked as graphic designer for several publishers and has been managing director of Rudolf Steiner Verlag since 2024. The merger will result in a publishing house with around 650 available titles from Rudolf Steiner Verlag and around 500 available titles from Verlag am Goetheanum.
English by Margot M. Saar
Generic image Complete edition of Rudolf Steiner‘s work in the bookshop at the Goetheanum (Photo: Xue Li)