About SuperIllu

SuperIllu

SuperIllu, spelled SUPERillu or SuperIllu by its publisher, is a German-language weekly illustrated magazine published by Hubert Burda Media in Berlin. Founded specifically for the east German market, it appeared for the first time on 23 August 1990, just six weeks before German reunification, and went on to become the best-selling purchased magazine in the eastern German states, a position it still describes as "Nummer 1 im Osten." With a sold circulation of around 126,600 copies in the second quarter of 2026 and a reach of 1.71 million readers, it has grown from a paper conceived as an integration and orientation aid for East Germans into a broadly based family magazine covering politics, entertainment, economy, and homeland topics.

Overview

SuperIllu appears weekly, on Thursdays, as a full-color illustrated magazine aimed primarily at readers in the eastern German states, though it is sold nationwide. It is published by Hubert Burda Media Deutschland from editorial offices at Heiligegeistkirchplatz in Berlin. The magazine describes itself as the most successful purchased magazine of East Germany and has played a distinctive role in the country's post-reunification history: conceived as a compass and source of motivation for East Germans during the transformation years, it set out to do more than entertain, offering guidance and encouragement to readers navigating the upheavals after the fall of the Wall. Over the years the paper broadened its content into a general-interest family magazine covering politics, entertainment, service, and increasingly business topics, while retaining a strong focus on homeland themes, eastern German personalities, and the region's culture and economy. The editor-in-chief is Stefan Kobus. According to IVW figures for the second quarter of 2026, the magazine sells around 126,600 copies per issue with a distributed circulation of about 126,800, and media analyses have credited it with a reach of 1.71 million readers. One of its signature projects is the Goldene Henne, Germany's largest audience-voted entertainment award, whose winners are chosen by the readers themselves in a large public vote.

History

The first issue of SuperIllu appeared on 23 August 1990, six weeks before the German reunification of 3 October 1990. It was launched by Burda as a magazine specifically for the east German market, at a moment when the two German societies were colliding and the East was in the midst of a profound transformation. The paper quickly established itself as the most-read purchased magazine in the new federal states, filling a gap that western publications, arriving with their own assumptions and idioms, could not fill. For the editorial team, many of them young reporters who experienced the turbulent early months in East Berlin firsthand, the magazine became a daily exercise in accompanying readers through the post-reunification years.

From the beginning, SuperIllu defined itself as an instrument of integration: a "Redaktion der deutschen Einheit," as Burda described it on the magazine's 35th anniversary in 2025, that understood its task as being a compass and motivational resource, not merely entertainment, but a credible and competent institution of trust that gave readers courage to tackle the future. This self-understanding carried it through the 1990s and 2000s, a period in which it reached a sold circulation of nearly half a million copies and a readership of more than three million, making it by a distance the market leader in the east. Along the way it broadened from a magazine of homeland and entertainment into a content-rich family paper covering politics, business, health, and service, while never abandoning its eastern identity.

In 2025 SuperIllu celebrated its 35th anniversary, with Burda marking the occasion by honoring the magazine as a newsroom of German unity. Gerald Praschl, who joined the editorial team as a young reporter at the founding in 1990 and continues as political editor, gave interviews recalling the first editorial months, the magazine's role as a compass for East Germans in the transformation period, and the country that has grown together in the 35 years since reunification. The anniversary underscored how unusual SuperIllu's longevity is: a print magazine launched for a specific historical moment that has outlasted the moment by more than three decades, still appearing every week from its Berlin editorial offices.

Coverage and Content

SuperIllu's content mix reflects its identity as a family magazine with an eastern accent. Regular departments cover current affairs and homeland topics, entertainment and celebrity news, and service journalism. A typical issue leads with stories of eastern German resonance: research universities supported by the Excellence Initiative, beloved regional personalities such as the Vogtland singer Stefanie Hertel, industrial traditions like the Diamant bicycle brand of Hartmannsdorf celebrating its 140th anniversary, and cultural events such as the reopening of the Harz mountain theater in Thale after five years of construction. Politics and business coverage has moved into the foreground in recent years, with the magazine reporting on the eastern German economic forum and on how the new federal government plans to manage the economic transition, always from the perspective of the region's entrepreneurs and readers.

Entertainment remains a pillar: cover stories feature stars with strong eastern connections, such as Helene Fischer ending her baby break with a comeback in Dresden, and the magazine's editorial voice consistently speaks to "our SuperIllu community." The Goldene Henne, the magazine's audience award, is the flagship event of the SuperIllu year: readers vote for their favorites across entertainment categories, and the gala, broadcast in the evening program of the public broadcaster, draws national attention. The award, which the magazine calls Germany's largest audience prize, reinforces the bond between the paper and its readership, turning readers into participants rather than mere consumers.

The magazine also produces special issues dedicated to individual eastern states, such as a special edition presenting "Thüringens Top 100" in culture, history, nature, architecture, economy, excursions, festivals, and gastronomy, which drew praise from state politicians as an indispensable portrait of the region. Issues are structured around departments with names such as "Aktuelles und Heimat," and the paper's language is deliberately close to its readers, with editorial greetings addressing the "liebe Leserinnen und Leser" of the SuperIllu community directly.

Organization and Ownership

SuperIllu is published by Hubert Burda Media, the Offenburg-based publishing group of Hubert Burda, whose portfolio includes Focus, Bunte, Burda Style, and Elle alongside the east German SuperIllu. The magazine's editorial offices are at Heiligegeistkirchplatz 1 in Berlin, and the editor-in-chief is Stefan Kobus, whose editorial greetings open each issue. The publisher describes the paper as an integral part of the BurdaVerlag's national portfolio, with a distinct regional mission that sets it apart from the group's other titles.

Long-serving editorial figures include Gerald Praschl, who has been with the magazine since its founding in 1990, working first as a reporter and now as political editor, shaping the paper's political coverage and its self-understanding as a newsroom of German unity. The 35th-anniversary materials of 2025 presented him as the institutional memory of the paper, connecting the turbulent founding months with the present. Financial details of the magazine's operations are not publicly confirmed beyond the circulation and reach figures published by IVW and media analyses.

Digital Presence

SuperIllu maintains a digital home at superillu.de, where the magazine offers news, subscription services, and a newsletter for readers. The paper is active on social networks, with accounts on Facebook and Instagram under the superillu name, and it offers a digital e-paper edition through its own platform, superillu-epaper.de, where sample issues can be browsed. The Goldene Henne voting takes place online, with readers nominating and choosing their favorites through the magazine's digital channels, and the gala is promoted across the paper's social accounts.

The e-paper editions show the magazine's continued weekly rhythm: issues are numbered sequentially through the year, priced at 2.70 euros in Germany with higher prices in neighboring countries, and the digital masthead carries the tagline "Die Nummer 1 im Osten." The online presence also serves the magazine's service functions: subscription management, contact addresses for the editorial office and the subscription service, and data protection information. While the print edition remains the core product, the digital channels extend the magazine's community functions, from the Henne voting to the newsletter, keeping the paper in weekly contact with its readership between issues.