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Business Profile

Book Publishers

Kalmbach Media

This business is NOT BBB Accredited.

Find BBB Accredited Businesses in Book Publishers.

Complaints

This profile includes complaints for Kalmbach Media's headquarters and its corporate-owned locations. To view all corporate locations, see

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Kalmbach Media has 2 locations, listed below.

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    Customer Complaints Summary

    • 4 total complaints in the last 3 years.
    • 1 complaint closed in the last 12 months.

    If you've experienced an issue

    Submit a Complaint

    The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

    Sort by

    Complaint status

    Complaint type

    • Initial Complaint

      Date:05/20/2025

      Type:Service or Repair Issues
      Status:
      UnansweredMore info

      Complaint statuses

      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I paid for Discover magazine renewal to Kalmbach media. It was never recorded and my subscription ran out. I did not receive a refund.
    • Initial Complaint

      Date:01/25/2024

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      ResolvedMore info

      Complaint statuses

      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      I have been a customer since 2017 (and actually before). During the 2023 holidays I wanted to purchase several magazines. All the magazines I wanted had free shipping. When I loaded the magazines in a my cart, one magazine had shipping costs even though it was listed as free shipping. I removed it bought two magazines and then loaded it in my cart after purchase of the others and then it was free.I wrote customer service and received no reply. In fact I got a read receipt on an email that the email I sent to customer service was not read.Why is ordering do difficult from your online store? Why is your customer service non responsive.As a longtime customer I would like an answer.

      Business Response

      Date: 02/02/2024

      We are very sorry this customer experienced any problems using our online shopping system. Our **************** Manager investigated this customers concern and confirmed the following: He did put through two orders on December 3, 2023; none of the orders were charged shipping. Our investigation could not determine why his initial order appeared to include a shipping charge, but we appreciate that he tried again and was able to successfully load his order in his online shopping basket without shipping charges, which was a promotion we were running at the time. In addition, our **************** Manager has informed the manager at the call center facility handling the email correspondence of this customers concern that his email was not read nor was it responded to as it should have been and has asked them to review this matter with the employees there. We apologize that he did not receive an answer to his correspondence; he should have.

      We thank this gentleman for his patronage of our company over the years and we appreciate that he took the time to bring his concerns to our attention.

      - Kalmbach Media

      Customer Answer

      Date: 02/04/2024

      [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

      Better Business Bureau:

      I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is barely satisfactory to me. The response is weak. Kalmbach in the past was responsive, but no longer.  The website is not customer friendly.  ********************** customer service needs new management.


      Regards,

      *************************


    • Initial Complaint

      Date:10/17/2023

      Type:Product Issues
      Status:
      ResolvedMore info

      Complaint statuses

      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      A few weeks again, I received an issue of Classic Trains Magazine out of the blue. Today I got a bill for $19.95 for an annual subscription. I never subscribed to this magazine and do not want to receive it. My guess is that some scammer got my address from my AARP membership.

      Business Response

      Date: 10/20/2023

      We appreciate this customer contacting the ******************** about the subscription to Classic Trains magazine that he is receiving. Our **************** Manager has canceled the subscription and he should ignore any invoices he receives for a Classic Trains subscription. Any of the Classic Trains magazines that he has received since this started are his to keep - free of charge. Although the cancellation was put through immediately, he may still receive the next Classic Trains issue, which is the Winter issue. We're sorry he has been inconvenienced. We have attached the subscription card we received for him so he can see what triggered the subscription. If he has any questions, he should feel free to contact our **************** Manager at ************.

      Best regards,

      Kalmbach Media

      Customer Answer

      Date: 10/20/2023

      Better Business Bureau:

      I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.

      While I am happy that I will not be billed for this fraudulent subscription, the business needs to investigate this case thoroughly and see who is scamming people by involuntarily signing them up for this publisher's magazines. I did not complete this form, and one can see from the ******** postmark that it is fraudulent. I live in ********** and not in ********. The address is also cut out and pasted on the form, not filled out by hand. Whoever mailed in this form is presumably engaging in mail fraud as well, which is a serious felony: **********************************************************************************************************************************************************).%22%20Schmuck%20v. . The publisher should report this incident to the *** for investigation and prosecution.

      Regards,

      *********************

      Business Response

      Date: 10/25/2023

      We can understand this customer's frustration with the fraudulent subscription; it is a problem we encounter occasionally, and unfortunately, there is rarely any way to trace it back to the wrongdoer. We aren't able to determine whether a card is fraudulent when we receive the subscription cards, either. We receive legitimate subscriptions that are handwritten or have labels on them as well, and the postmark doesn't always match the recipient's "mail to" address. It is frustrating for everyone involved. We don't have the manpower to contact everyone for whom we receive a subscription card to determine if it is legitimate before the subscription goes into effect, but we're happy to cancel any subscription that a customer says was not ordered personally or received as a gift. One option for this customer might be to consider filing a report with his local police since it was a fraud perpetrated with his address information.

      Best regards,

      Kalmbach Media

      Customer Answer

      Date: 10/25/2023

      [A default letter is provided here which indicates your acceptance of the business's response.  If you wish, you may update it before sending it.]

      Better Business Bureau:

      I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me. 

      Regards,

      *********************
    • Initial Complaint

      Date:11/16/2022

      Type:Billing Issues
      Status:
      AnsweredMore info

      Complaint statuses

      Resolved:
      The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.
      Unresolved:
      The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.
      Answered:
      The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.
      Unanswered:
      The business failed to respond to the dispute.
      Unpursuable:
      BBB is unable to locate the business.
      This morning, 11/16/2022, I received notice from *************** that my account was charged $24.95 for a subscription that I did not authorize.In the past year I have received "Discover" magazine but thought it was related to my Discover card. The issues have not been read but sent to the recycle bin.I have no subscriptions and do not intend on beginning any. I placed a call to Kalmbach and their office was closed, so I left a message advising on the above.

      Business Response

      Date: 11/28/2022

      We are truly sorry that this customer had a problem with a charge to his credit card that he did not expect. In examining his account, we found that it was set up for an auto-renewal of his magazine subscription, which is why his credit card was charged. Our customer service manager has removed the auto-renewal status, which changed his subscription status to expired. Any issues of the magazine that he received from the auto-renewed subscription are his to keep for no charge. He will receive a refund of the amount charged to his credit card. Our customer service manager contacted him by telephone and left her phone number in case he wants to discuss anything else about this matter. 

      Once again, our apologies for the inconvenience this situation caused.

      - Kalmbach Media

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