About bestattungskultur

bestattungskultur

bestattungskultur is the monthly trade journal of Germany's funeral profession — the official magazine of the Bundesverband Deutscher Bestatter (BDB), the federal association of German undertakers. Published in Düsseldorf by the Fachverlag des deutschen Bestattungsgewerbes, it reaches the funeral directors, embalmers and cemetery professionals who accompany families through death and mourning. With a circulation of around 3,700 copies directed at this tightly defined professional community, the magazine combines practical business journalism with reflection on the cultural dimensions of its subject: changing burial customs, the rise of cremation and alternative funeral forms, grief psychology, and the evolving legal framework of funeral law. The published Themenplan for 2026 shows a forward-looking editorial programme that treats the funeral not merely as a service but as a cultural practice in transformation. In an industry that rarely seeks the spotlight, bestattungskultur is the quiet, authoritative voice of the profession.

Overview

bestattungskultur is a German-language monthly magazine serving the funeral industry (Bestattungsgewerbe). It is the official organ of the Bundesverband Deutscher Bestatter e.V. (BDB), the national trade association representing funeral homes across Germany, and is published by the association's own publishing house, the Fachverlag des deutschen Bestattungsgewerbes GmbH, based in Düsseldorf. The magazine's readership consists of funeral directors and their staff, suppliers to the funeral trade — coffin and urn manufacturers, cemetery equipment providers, software companies — and the institutional partners of the profession, including cemetery administrations, crematoria operators and relevant authorities. With a print circulation of approximately 3,700 copies, it follows the classic B2B niche model: modest in numbers, but reaching virtually the entire organised profession. The editorial scope spans the full agenda of the funeral business — market developments, business management, marketing, staff training and recruitment — alongside the cultural and ethical dimensions of dealing with death: mourning customs, religious and secular funeral rites, remembrance culture and the psychology of grief. The magazine's title, which translates as "funeral culture," signals this dual mission: it is about both the business and the culture of the last farewell.

History

The history of bestattungskultur is inseparable from the organisation of the German funeral trade in the twentieth century. The Bundesverband Deutscher Bestatter was founded to represent the interests of funeral homes at a time when the profession was moving from a craft rooted in local custom toward a modern service industry. A dedicated trade publication became necessary as the industry's agenda grew more complex: the harmonisation of funeral law across the federal states, the professionalisation of training, the establishment of quality standards and the collective representation of the trade's interests in politics and public debate. bestattungskultur emerged as the association's communication channel to its members and the wider profession.

Over the decades, the magazine documented profound changes in German burial culture. The post-war era was dominated by the traditional earth burial with church service; from the 1970s onward, cremation rates rose steadily, and by the twenty-first century cremation had become the majority choice in many regions. New forms of remembrance appeared — anonymous burials, woodland cemeteries, burial at sea, diamond burials — and the magazine covered each development from the practitioner's perspective: what do these trends mean for the funeral home's business, for its advisory role toward families, for the dignity of the farewell? The liberalisation of funeral law in several states, the debate over the cemetery obligation (Friedhofspflicht) and the arrival of digital remembrance formats all found their reflection in the magazine's pages. The Themenplan for 2026, published by the Fachverlag, demonstrates the journal's continued forward orientation, with planned focal topics addressing the profession's current challenges. Through these decades of change, bestattungskultur maintained its role as the profession's internal forum — the place where funeral directors read about their own industry's transformation.

Content and Sections

The editorial programme of bestattungskultur, as outlined in its annual Themenplan, is organised around the professional concerns of funeral directors. Business management coverage addresses the economics of the funeral home: pricing and calculation, cost structures, investment in facilities and vehicles, and strategies for succession in the many family-run businesses that characterise the trade. Marketing and communication topics reflect the industry's delicate position — how does a funeral home advertise with dignity? — covering corporate design, web presence, social media and public relations. Personnel issues have become increasingly prominent: the magazine reports on training pathways in the funeral profession, the recruitment of young talent and the working conditions of staff who perform emotionally demanding work.

The cultural heart of the magazine lies in its treatment of mourning and remembrance. Articles explore changing funeral customs across religions and worldviews, new forms of farewell ceremonies, the design of mourning spaces and the role of music, ritual and symbolism in saying goodbye. Grief psychology features regularly, giving funeral directors professional insight into the emotional processes of the families they serve. Legal coverage tracks funeral law at federal and state level — burial obligations, cemetery regulations, the handling of ashes — a complex field in Germany's federal system. Supplier and product news keep readers informed about innovations in coffins, urns, funeral vehicles and digital administration tools. Interviews with association leaders, obituaries of distinguished colleagues and reports from the BDB's events and the industry's trade fairs complete the picture. The tone throughout is respectful and professional, befitting a publication whose readers work daily with death and grief.

Publisher and Organization

bestattungskultur is published by the Fachverlag des deutschen Bestattungsgewerbes GmbH, the publishing house of the German funeral trade, based in Düsseldorf. The Fachverlag is closely tied to the Bundesverband Deutscher Bestatter e.V., the federal association headquartered in Düsseldorf, whose contact and representative structures are published through the association's channels. This association-publisher model is typical of German professional publishing: the magazine serves simultaneously as a member-communication channel, an industry forum and a commercial publishing product financed through subscriptions and advertising from suppliers to the trade.

The BDB represents funeral homes across Germany's federal states, organised through regional associations, and advocates for the profession's interests in legislation, standard-setting and public discourse. The magazine is one of the association's central instruments: it informs members about the association's work, builds professional identity and sets the terms of industry debate. The Fachverlag's Düsseldorf base places it in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany's most populous state and a centre of the funeral industry's institutional life. The published Themenplan for 2026 illustrates the professional planning behind the magazine: focal topics are scheduled across the year, giving advertisers and contributors a transparent editorial calendar — standard practice in German B2B publishing and a sign of the journal's established market position. Publicly confirmed details of editorial staffing are limited, but the magazine's continuous monthly appearance and its role as the association's official organ indicate a stable, professionally managed operation.

Digital Presence

The magazine's digital presence is anchored in bestatter.de, the web portal of the German funeral trade association and its publishing house. The site hosts information about the magazine, including the downloadable Themenplan that outlines the editorial programme for the year, and serves as the point of contact for subscriptions and advertising. For a B2B niche title, the website functions primarily as a service platform for the professional community: readers find subscription management, media data and contact points for the editorial team and the Fachverlag.

The broader digital strategy of the funeral trade reflects the industry's cautious but real embrace of online channels. Funeral homes increasingly maintain websites and social media profiles, online remembrance pages and digital condolence books have become standard, and the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the adoption of streamed funeral services. bestattungskultur covers these developments from the practitioner's perspective, helping a traditionally analogue profession navigate digitalisation without losing the personal, human character of its work. The association's online channels distribute the magazine's content themes and the BDB's positions on industry issues to members and the public. In a profession defined by trust and personal contact, the digital presence supports rather than replaces the printed magazine — but as the generation change in funeral homes progresses, the online dimension of bestattungskultur's brand continues to grow in importance.