Chef restaurant business transferring ownership from RTL Germany to Funke

Funke Mediengruppe Acquires Chefkoch, Bolstering Its Cookery Portfolio

In a significant move, Funke Mediengruppe has acquired Chefkoch from RTL Deutschland, following the latest acquisition that saw Gruner + Jahr relinquish its ownership of the popular recipe platform.

With this acquisition, approximately 100 employees of Chefkoch will join Funke. Stephan Schmitter, CEO of RTL Germany, expressed his belief that Funke is the ideal buyer for Chefkoch, citing its digital expertise and food know-how as key factors.

The Chefkoch GmbH will continue to operate essen-und-trinken.de, and kochbar.de will also become part of Funke's portfolio. This acquisition makes sense for Funke's cookery magazine portfolio, which already includes titles such as "So schmeckt" and "Bild der Frau Gut kochen & backen".

Jochen Beckmann, also CEO of Funke Medien National Brands, views Funke as a "docking point" for another "love brand" for both users and advertisers. He is confident that this acquisition will further strengthen Funke's position in the digital food market.

Funke will consider the acquisition of Chefkoch as a key growth area. Jesper Doub, CEO of Funke Medien National Brands, stated that integrating Chefkoch will elevate Funke's food expertise to a new level.

Chefkoch, with its headquarters in Bonn, offers over 360,000 recipes and boasts 20 million unique users per month. Christine Nieland will continue as CEO of Chefkoch after the acquisition, with the current management team also staying on board.

Schmitter also mentioned that Funke will lead Chefkoch into a bright future with its employees. He expressed his excitement about the potential this acquisition holds for both companies.