In addition to the development and marketing of music, the group also deals with the production, logistics and distribution of CDs, DVDs, vinyl records, and books at the production site of the subsidiary optimal media GmbH in Röbel/Müritz as well as with services in the online and book business.

Edel was founded in 1986 by the current chairman of the board of directors and the majority shareholder Michael Haentjes as a one-man company under the name edel Gesellschaft für Produktmarketing mbH[1] and initially dealt exclusively with mail order for film music.

[1] As part of a global strategy, investments were acquired abroad, for example the PIAS Group in Belgium, which also included Connected Music Vertrieb GmbH, founded by Haentjes in 1997,[5] and Eagle Rock, London.

[citation needed] In July 1999, Edel purchased an 80% stake in RED Distribution from Sony Music Entertainment.

In 2002, Edel and Roland Berger Strategy Consultants implemented an extensive corporate restructuring program.

[12] In July 2014, Edel acquired the catalogue of Jazz label MPS Records from Universal Music Group.

[14] In March 2016, Jonas Haentjes, the son of the company's founder, took over the position of Director Corporate Development at Edel.

[10] Joerg Pfuhl, Charles Caldas and Joel Weinstein are members of the Edel supervisory board.

In addition, the general partner of KGaA should be given the legal form of a European Company (SE).

Furthermore, Edel holds 100% of the shares of Pandastorm Pictures GmbH and 100% of the Dutch Brilliant Classics B.V. earMUSIC is a European international record company based in Hamburg, Germany mainly dedicated to rock, pop, metal and alternative rock artists.