MBS Nürnberg

MBS Nürnberg (formerly Maul-Belser Studios) was a German service company headquartered in Nuremberg. It operated as a full-service agency in the fields of advertising, photography, e-commerce services and digital. The company emerged from the printing businesses of Maul & Co. of Nuremberg and Chr. Belser of Stuttgart, which were merged in 1982 under the name Maul-Belser. MBS belonged to the Bertelsmann Printing Group, Europe's largest printing group. It was closed in May 2025. After the Second World War, gravure printing developed into a widespread printing technique. In 1976 Bertelsmann took over the two traditional printing houses Maul & Co. from Nuremberg and Chr. Belser from Stuttgart. In 1982 both operations were merged under the name Maul-Belser. The Schickedanz Holding, which had acquired a stake in Maul & Co. in 1971, remained a minority shareholder with 25% of Maul-Belser. The company developed into one of the highest-revenue employers in Middle Franconia. Maul-Belser gained greater attention in the late 1980s, among other things because the company received an order to print a partial edition of the news magazine Der Spiegel. This led to conflicts over a works agreement that regulated working hours deviating from the collective agreement. Alongside the printing business, the Maul-Belser Studios division became a leading service provider for the advertising industry in Europe. In the early 1990s the company positioned itself for the first time as a full-service agency for conception, layout and photography. To set itself apart from increasing competition from abroad, Maul-Belser also built a new printing center in Nuremberg from 1993 for more than 130 million Deutsche Mark. It was one of the world's first gravure presses with a width of 3.5 meters. By the end of the 1990s the number of employees rose to over 1,200 with revenue of one billion Mark. In the 1980s and 1990s Gunter Thielen shaped the company. In addition to managing Maul-Belser, he headed Bertelsmann's printing and industrial division. In 1999 this division received the name Arvato to reflect the transformation into an international communication and media service provider. Maul-Belser's business fit this strategy, which is why Bertelsmann reportedly expressed interest in acquiring the remaining shares as early as 2004. The struggling retail group KarstadtQuelle of the Schickedanz family still held 25% and only officially put it up for disposal in 2005. In the same year Arvato, Gruner + Jahr and Axel Springer bundled their printing activities in the company Prinovis. Bertelsmann initially contributed 75% of Maul-Belser and then negotiated with KarstadtQuelle about the sale, which was completed in 2006. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Prinovis, Europe's largest gravure printing company, the Maul-Belser Studios became "MBS". In 2011 the company was realigned as a "Betrieb für Wahrnehmung und Visualisierung" (operation for perception and visualization). With the founding of the Bertelsmann Printing Group on 1 January 2016, MBS moved together with its parent company Prinovis under the roof of the new corporate group. There MBS formed one of 13 largely independent business units. The company operated as an advertising agency for start-ups, medium-sized businesses and large corporations. It conceived, created and produced advertisements, catalogs and campaigns for various industries. For the photography division MBS maintained its own studios, which together were more than 5,000 square meters in size. One of the most important fields of work was fashion photography. In addition, MBS supported its clients in setting up and maintaining online shops, including technology and logistics (e-commerce). The expansion of the Digital division as the company's fourth pillar completed the offering with state-of-the-art solutions for web, desktop and mobile. With over 120 employees, MBS was one of the largest communication agencies in the region.

MBS Nürnberg (formerly Maul-Belser Studios) was a German service company headquartered in Nuremberg. It operated as a full-service agency in the fields of advertising, photography, e-commerce services and digital. The company emerged from the printing businesses of Maul & Co. of Nuremberg and Chr. Belser of Stuttgart, which were merged in 1982 under the name Maul-Belser. MBS belonged to the Bertelsmann Printing Group, Europe's largest printing group. It was closed in May 2025. After the Second World War, gravure printing developed into a widespread printing technique. In 1976 Bertelsmann took over the two traditional printing houses Maul & Co. from Nuremberg and Chr. Belser from Stuttgart. In 1982 both operations were merged under the name Maul-Belser. The Schickedanz Holding, which had acquired a stake in Maul & Co. in 1971, remained a minority shareholder with 25% of Maul-Belser. The company developed into one of the highest-revenue employers in Middle Franconia. Maul-Belser gained greater attention in the late 1980s, among other things because the company received an order to print a partial edition of the news magazine Der Spiegel. This led to conflicts over a works agreement that regulated working hours deviating from the collective agreement. Alongside the printing business, the Maul-Belser Studios division became a leading service provider for the advertising industry in Europe. In the early 1990s the company positioned itself for the first time as a full-service agency for conception, layout and photography. To set itself apart from increasing competition from abroad, Maul-Belser also built a new printing center in Nuremberg from 1993 for more than 130 million Deutsche Mark. It was one of the world's first gravure presses with a width of 3.5 meters. By the end of the 1990s the number of employees rose to over 1,200 with revenue of one billion Mark. In the 1980s and 1990s Gunter Thielen shaped the company. In addition to managing Maul-Belser, he headed Bertelsmann's printing and industrial division. In 1999 this division received the name Arvato to reflect the transformation into an international communication and media service provider. Maul-Belser's business fit this strategy, which is why Bertelsmann reportedly expressed interest in acquiring the remaining shares as early as 2004. The struggling retail group KarstadtQuelle of the Schickedanz family still held 25% and only officially put it up for disposal in 2005. In the same year Arvato, Gruner + Jahr and Axel Springer bundled their printing activities in the company Prinovis. Bertelsmann initially contributed 75% of Maul-Belser and then negotiated with KarstadtQuelle about the sale, which was completed in 2006. As a wholly owned subsidiary of Prinovis, Europe's largest gravure printing company, the Maul-Belser Studios became "MBS". In 2011 the company was realigned as a "Betrieb für Wahrnehmung und Visualisierung" (operation for perception and visualization). With the founding of the Bertelsmann Printing Group on 1 January 2016, MBS moved together with its parent company Prinovis under the roof of the new corporate group. There MBS formed one of 13 largely independent business units. The company operated as an advertising agency for start-ups, medium-sized businesses and large corporations. It conceived, created and produced advertisements, catalogs and campaigns for various industries. For the photography division MBS maintained its own studios, which together were more than 5,000 square meters in size. One of the most important fields of work was fashion photography. In addition, MBS supported its clients in setting up and maintaining online shops, including technology and logistics (e-commerce). The expansion of the Digital division as the company's fourth pillar completed the offering with state-of-the-art solutions for web, desktop and mobile. With over 120 employees, MBS was one of the largest communication agencies in the region.

• 2025

  MBS Nürnberg was closed in May 2025.

• 2016

  With the founding of the Bertelsmann Printing Group on 1 January 2016, MBS moved under the new group together with Prinovis, forming one of 13 largely independent business units.

• 2011

  MBS realigned as a "Betrieb für Wahrnehmung und Visualisierung" (operation for perception and visualization).

• 2006

  Bertelsmann completed the acquisition of the remaining 25% from KarstadtQuelle; Maul-Belser Studios became a wholly owned subsidiary of Prinovis and was renamed MBS.

• 2005

  Arvato, Gruner + Jahr and Axel Springer bundled their printing activities in Prinovis; Bertelsmann contributed 75% of Maul-Belser.

• 1999

  Bertelsmann's printing and industrial division received the name Arvato.

• 1993

  Construction of a new printing center in Nuremberg for over 130 million Deutsche Mark, one of the world's first gravure presses with a width of 3.5 meters.

• 1982

  Maul & Co. and Chr. Belser merged under the name Maul-Belser.

• 1976

  Bertelsmann took over the printing houses Maul & Co. (Nuremberg) and Chr. Belser (Stuttgart).

Full-service agency for advertising, photography, e-commerce and digital, serving start-ups, medium-sized businesses and large corporations.

• Advertising campaigns

  Conception, creation and production of advertisements, catalogs and campaigns for various industries.

• Photography

  Own studios totaling more than 5,000 square meters, with fashion photography as a key field.

• E-commerce services

  Support for clients in setting up and maintaining online shops, including technology and logistics.

• Digital solutions

  State-of-the-art solutions for web, desktop and mobile.

1. 1MBS Nürnberg - Wikipediade.wikipedia.org
2. 2MBS Nürnberg - Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Home - TERRITORYterritory.de