Dear Media
Dear Media is a female-focused multi-platform podcast network of 100+ shows in pop culture, wellness, and lifestyle, founded by Michael Bosstick in 2018, monetizing through advertising, owned commerce, acquired DTC brands, and live events.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersAustin, United States
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Dear Media does
Dear Media is a multi-platform podcast network founded in 2018 by Michael Bosstick (with co-founder Raina Penchansky), operating more than 100 shows with roughly 90% of its catalog skewed to female-facing audiences in pop culture, wellness, and lifestyle. The network's core product is an owned-and-operated portfolio of podcasts distributed across Apple, Spotify, and YouTube, anchored by a small group of A-list hosts including a flagship property tied to the Kardashian franchise (The Toast, renewed under a three-year deal in late 2025). Dear Media also operates Dear Media Shop, an in-house commerce surface, and runs Dear Media By Night/Day live events, including geographic activations such as Austin, that convert its online audience into in-person and merchandise revenue.
The company generates revenue through three primary streams: (1) podcast advertising and sponsorships from brands in beauty, wellness, fashion, and consumer lifestyle; (2) commerce, including Dear Media Shop and equity-backed DTC brands such as The Skinny Confidential and, post-June 2025, Obé Fitness; and (3) live events and experiential monetization. The capital base includes an approximately $8 million round from Magnet Companies in April 2020 and an SEC-registered exempt offering of approximately $4.99 million in August 2022, with growth funded further through advertising cash flow and bolt-on M&A. According to Axios reporting referenced in the input, Dear Media crossed $50 million in revenue in 2024 with roughly 70% year-over-year growth, supported by a 101–250 employee base. Strategically, the company has pursued an offensive posture through vertical integration (fitness via Obé, lifestyle via Skinny Confidential), exclusive talent lock-ups (The Toast renewal), and new content surfaces (Polymarket partnership for "What Are The Odds?"), while operating with no disclosed proprietary AI/ML capability.
Dear Media firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Dear Media
- Legal name
- Dear Media LLC
- Website
- https://dearmedia.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- Dear Media is a female-focused multi-platform podcast network of 100+ shows in pop culture, wellness, and lifestyle, founded by Michael Bosstick in 2018, monetizing through advertising, owned commerce, acquired DTC brands, and live events.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Dear Media industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Podcast Network
- NAICS
- Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Podcast Networks & Multi-Show Publishers (MPACADAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Podcast Hosting Platforms (RSS, Analytics, Distribution) (MPACADAA), Live Podcast Recordings (MPAGACAJ), Audio Production & Podcasting (BPAFAIAE)
Keywords
Where Dear Media is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Austin
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Dear Media business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Advertising and Sponsorships: Primary revenue stream from podcast advertising and sponsorships across the network of 100+ shows targeting female audiences in pop culture, entertainment, and lifestyle categories.
- Commerce and Product Sales: Revenue from direct product sales including The Skinny Confidential branded merchandise (ice rollers, caffeinated sunscreen, mouth tape, nontoxic toilet paper) and Obé Fitness platform.
- Live Events: Revenue from in-person experiences including 'Dear Media By Night', 'Dear Media By Day' events, and various podcast live tours featuring network talent.
- Acquisition Investments: Strategic investments and acquisitions such as Obé Fitness to enhance brand-building and monetization capabilities for female-focused content.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Branded merchandise pricing |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels5 records
Dear Media product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Dear Media is a multi-platform podcast network that produces, distributes, and monetizes over 100 podcasts primarily targeting female audiences across pop culture, wellness, beauty, parenting, and lifestyle categories. The company also operates a branded merchandise e-commerce store (Dear Media Shop), produces live events (Dear Media IRL), and has expanded into fitness and wellness content through acquisitions including Obé Fitness and a strategic investment in The Skinny Confidential brand.
Product overview
Dear Media is a multi-platform podcast network and lifestyle media company founded in 2018, operating as a platform-plus-services model. The core product is the Dear Media Podcast Network hosting over 100 shows across categories including pop culture, health and wellness, beauty and style, relationships, career and money, and parenting. The portfolio includes flagship shows like The Toast (with its landmark three-year renewal), Khloé in Wonder Land, Coming In Hot, and The Bossticks, complemented by acquired brands such as The Skinny Confidential (with its product line including ice rollers and skincare) and Obé Fitness (digital fitness platform acquired in 2025). The company has expanded beyond traditional podcasting into creator-led live experiences through Dear Media IRL events (including By Night and By Day formats), e-commerce via the Dear Media Shop, and the What Are The Odds? podcast in partnership with Polymarket. The network maintains a female-focused positioning with approximately 90 percent of content targeting women, generating over $50 million in 2024 revenue with 70 percent year-over-year growth.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- The Skinny Confidential: Beauty and wellness brand by Lauryn Bosstick, including blog, podcast, and product line (ice rollers, skincare, beauty products)
- Dear Media IRL
- Dear Media Shop
Products and services
- Dear Media Podcast Network Multi-platform podcast network hosting over 100 entertainment, pop culture, and lifestyle shows, with 90% female-facing content, offering advertising, production, and creator partnership services for listeners across categories including pop culture, wellness, beauty, parenting, and relationships.
- Dear Media Shop Proprietary e-commerce platform selling branded merchandise and products from podcast hosts and shows, including the Lucky Girl and She's So Lucky product lines, with items ranging from $18 to $55 in price.
- Dear Media IRL Events
- The Toast
- Khloé in Wonder Land
- Obé Fitness Digital fitness platform acquired by Dear Media in 2025, offering innovative workout content tied to popular media and enhancing the company's fitness and wellness vertical for women.
- The Skinny Confidential Brand Beauty and wellness brand founded by Lauryn Bosstick, including blog (300,000 subscribers), podcast content, and product line featuring ice rollers (200,000+ units sold), caffeinated sunscreen, mouth tape, and nontoxic toilet paper.
- What Are The Odds? Weekly podcast partnership between Polymarket and Dear Media combining pop culture news with real-time prediction market trading data, hosted by Claudia and Jackie Oshry (The Toast).
Quantifiable outcome
- Over $50 million in 2024 revenue with 70% year-over-year growth
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Dear Media
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Dear Media technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Dear Media partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.
- PolymarketcoreDear Media partnered with Polymarket, the world's largest prediction platform, to launch 'What Are the Odds?' - a weekly 15-minute podcast combining pop culture news with real-time trading data from the platform. The show premiered with hosts Claudia and Jackie Oshry (The Toast) and marks Polymarket's entry into mainstream audio/video content.
- The Toast (Claudia and Jackie Oshry)flagshipLandmark three-year renewal deal securing exclusive rights for advertising and production of The Toast podcast. The show outperformed traditional morning shows among millennials and Gen Z, surpassing 100 million Spotify streams. Deal followed competitive bidding involving SiriusXM and iHeart.
- Obé FitnesscoreDear Media acquired Obé Fitness, a digital fitness platform co-founded by former CAA agents Mark Mullett and Ashley Mills. The platform is known for innovative fitness content tied to popular media and celeb-favorite workouts. Acquisition enhances Dear Media's focus on fitness and wellness content.
- Ritual (Kat Schneider)minorDear Media launched 'For The Real Body Builders' podcast hosted by Kat Schneider, founder and CEO of Ritual vitamin company. Partnership brings wellness-focused content to the network.
- The Skinny Confidential (Lauryn Bosstick)coreDear Media invested $1 million in The Skinny Confidential brand alongside Drybar founder Alli Webb. The beauty and wellness blog has grown to 300,000 subscribers and 2.5M social followers. Product line includes ice rollers (200,000+ sold), caffeinated sunscreen, mouth tape, and nontoxic toilet paper.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Dear Media competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- iHeartPodcasts: Podcast publishing arm of iHeartMedia, distributing hundreds of shows and competing head-to-head for talent and ad dollars. Closely aligned business model of network aggregation plus monetization.
- Wondery: Amazon-owned premium podcast network producing and licensing scripted and unscripted shows across multiple genres. Directly comparable as a multi-show publisher with celebrity hosts and brand extensions.
- Audioboom: Independent podcast hosting and ad-network platform serving premium creators with monetization, production, and distribution. Comparable as a podcast network/platform serving lifestyle and entertainment creators.
- Pushkin Industries: Premium independent podcast publisher producing high-end narrative and interview shows. Comparable as a multi-show publisher monetizing through advertising, licensing, and branded content.
- Podcast One: Podcast network producing and distributing a large catalog of celebrity and lifestyle shows. Comparable multi-show publisher model targeting advertising and sponsorships.
- Betches Media: Female-focused digital media and podcast company targeting millennial and Gen Z women with pop culture, dating, and lifestyle content. Comparable audience and content vertical.
- The Ringer: Spotify-owned podcast and media network producing pop culture, sports, and lifestyle shows. Comparable multi-show publisher model with comparable celebrity-driven host roster.
- Lemonada Media: Female-founded podcast network focused on storytelling across wellness, relationships, and lifestyle. Closely comparable female-led, premium-narrative podcast network competitor.
Broad incumbents
- SiriusXM: Satellite radio and audio entertainment giant with a large podcast portfolio (including Stitcher). Comparable as a major bidder for Dear Media's flagship talent and as a broader audio incumbent.
Emerging players
- Girlboss Media: Female-focused media and community platform producing editorial, events, and podcasts for millennial and Gen Z women. Comparable female-skewing content vertical with lighter scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Dear Media social profiles
Digital presenceDear Media financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Dear Media leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Dear Media subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries2 records
Dear Media funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Dear Media M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A1 record
Investments1 record
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Dear Media
What does Dear Media do?
Dear Media is a multi-platform podcast network that produces, distributes, and monetizes over 100 podcasts primarily targeting female audiences across pop culture, wellness, beauty, parenting, and lifestyle categories. The company also operates a branded merchandise e-commerce store (Dear Media Shop), produces live events (Dear Media IRL), and has expanded into fitness and wellness content through acquisitions including Obé Fitness and a strategic investment in The Skinny Confidential brand.
Is Dear Media a public or private company?
Dear Media is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Dear Media founded?
Dear Media was founded in 2018. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is Dear Media based?
Dear Media is headquartered in Austin, United States, in the North America region.
How does Dear Media make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Advertising and Sponsorships are the primary driver. The others are commerce and Product Sales, live Events and acquisition Investments.
Who are Dear Media's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are iHeartPodcasts, Wondery, Audioboom, Pushkin Industries, Podcast One, Betches Media, The Ringer and Lemonada Media. SiriusXM is listed as a broad incumbent. Girlboss Media is listed as an emerging player.
Does Dear Media have an API?
No public API is recorded for Dear Media.
What industry is Dear Media in?
Dear Media's product category is Podcast Network. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPACADAB, Podcast Networks & Multi-Show Publishers, with a secondary code of MPACADAA, Podcast Hosting Platforms (RSS, Analytics, Distribution). Its NAICS code is 516210.