Company Timeline

Organic Garden

1942: Organic Farming and Gardening Launches

Prevention

1950: Prevention Launches

Bicycling

1978: Rodale Acquires Bicycling

Men's Health

1988: Men’s Health Launches

Home Remedies

1991: The Doctor’s Book of Home Remedies Sells 2 Million Copies

Perfect Weight Loss

2000: Picture Perfect Weight Loss Becomes Rodale’s First New York Times Bestseller

South Beach Diet

2003: The South Beach Diet Hits #1 on the New York Times Bestseller List.

Women's Health

2005: Women’s Health Launches.

Eat This Not That!

2008: Eat This Not That!sells more than one million copies.

  • 1930
  • Rodale Manufacturing, a maker of electrical wiring devices, moves from New York City to a former silk mill in Emmaus, PA; J.I. Rodale establishes a publishing business.
  • 1937
  • Rodale Press publishes its first major book, Verb-Finder, a “storehouse of words,” edited by Professor Kingsbury M. Badger of Muhlenberg College.
  • 1940
  • J.I. Rodale buys 63-acre farm in Emmaus, PA; becomes acquainted with and excited about Sir Albert Howard’s ideas about the connection between soil and health.
  • 1942
  • Eager to share his experience from his Emmaus farm with the public, J.I. Rodale publishes Organic Farming and Gardening.
  • 1950
  • Prevention begins publication; the first issue, entirely about polio, attracts 50,000 subscribers.
  • 1951
  • Bob Rodale is named President of Rodale Press Inc.
  • 1971
  • J.I. Rodale dies. Bob Rodale becomes Chairman of Rodale Press Inc.
  • 1978
  • Rodale acquires Bicycling, which began as American Cycling newsletter in 1964. Bob Rodale assumes the new role of Chief Executive Officer.
  • 1983
  • Rodale Press Inc. becomes one of the first large U.S. companies to establish a no-smoking policy.
  • 1985
  • Rodale acquires Runner’s World and Cross-Country Skier.
  • 1986
  • The Runner is acquired and merged with Runner’s World. Prevention tests a new concept, Men’s Health.
  • 1987
  • Rodale acquires Mountain Bike.
  • 1990
  • Bob Rodale dies in a traffic accident in Moscow. His wife Ardath Rodale is named Chairman and CEO of Rodale Press Inc.
  • 1993
  • Rodale launches international: Direct-market sales of The Doctor’s Book of Home Remedies are introduced in the United Kingdom and France. Runner’s World begins its international expansion by publishing an edition in South Africa. Runner’s World U.K. and Germany follow soon thereafter.
  • 1994
  • Rodale Books establishes offices in the United Kingdom. Men’s Health Latin America becomes the magazine’s first international edition.
  • 1999
  • Rodale Inc. replaces Rodale Press Inc. as corporate name. Rodale Inc. is named one of Fortune magazine’s “100 Best Companies to Work for in America.”
  • 2000
  • Steve Murphy is hired as President and Chief Operating Officer of Rodale Inc. Working Woman magazine names Rodale one of the nation’s 'Top 500 Women-Owned Businesses." Picture Perfect Weight Loss becomes Rodale’s first New York Times bestseller.
  • 2001
  • Organic Style begins publication. Rodale opens state-of-the-art child-care center with 6,400 square feet of classroom space to accommodate 160 children of Rodale employees.
  • 2002
  • Steve Murphy is promoted to President & Chief Executive Officer of Rodale Inc.
  • 2003
  • The South Beach Diet becomes Rodale Inc.’s first title to reach No. 1 on The New York Times' bestseller list with 5 million copies in print by the year’s end. Rodale expands its international footprint with new editions of Men's Health in Singapore, Malaysia, Greece, Poland, and China.
  • 2004
  • Rodale Books marks a record year in sales and number of bestselling titles. Pete Rose: My Prison Without Bars becomes Rodale’s second No. 1 New York Times bestseller. Grouped with The South Beach Diet and The South Beach Diet Good Fats Good Carbs Guide, the Rose memoir gives Rodale three national bestsellers in January 2004 alone. Rodale launches men’s lifestyle magazine, Best Life.
  • 2005
  • Rodale launches Women’s Health. Steve Murphy is recognized as one of 2004’s Best Managers of the Year by BusinessWeek magazine.
  • 2006
  • Men’s Health becomes the top-selling men’s magazine. An Inconvenient Truth, by former Vice President Al Gore, reaches No 1. on The New York Times bestseller list. The company grows its subscription Web site business, developing such leading online health properties as BiggestLoserClub.com. Rodale is named Publishing Company of the Year by Advertising Age.
  • 2007
  • Maria Rodale becomes Chairman of the Board. Thirteen Rodale books make The New York Times bestseller list, and the company acquires more than 5.3 million new customers. Working Mother names Rodale to its list of “Best 100 Companies for Working Mothers.”
  • 2008
  • RunnersWorld.com and Bicycling.com win National Magazine Awards. Rodale Books score success with Flat Belly Diet and Eat This Not That!, which both sell more than one million copies, and Intellectual Devotional: Modern Culture.
  • 2009
  • Maria Rodale named Chairman and CEO of Rodale Inc.
  • 2010
  • Maria Rodale's book Organic Manifesto: How Organic Farming Can Heal Our Planet, Feed the World, and Keep Us Safe launches. min and University of Mississippi journalism professor/Guide to New Magazines author Samir "Mr. Magazine" Husni names Men's Health as the Most Notable Launch of the Past 25 Years, and Rodale Books publishes 14 New York Times Bestsellers. Additionally, Rodale was named to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption's 2010 Best Adoption-Friendly Workplaces List.