This study is the first academic analysis of Georg von Holtzbrinck's business activities before 1948. His companies were on the whole rather insignificant. However, the skill with which Holtzbrinck experimented in manipulating these instruments was already an early indicator of his subsequent company strategies. The study provides insights into unexplored areas of the National Socialist book and journal trade, as well as the early history of the modern book club. Thus, it represents a piece of criticial self-examination on the beginnings of today's media structures.