Pure Michigan
Pure Michigan is the official state tourism promotion brand of Michigan, operated under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. It markets Michigan destinations to domestic and international travelers via the michigan.org platform, seasonal campaigns, and brand partnerships.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2008
- HeadquartersLansing, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Pure Michigan does
Pure Michigan is the official travel and tourism promotion brand of the State of Michigan, operated as a program under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), a public-private partnership entity headquartered in Lansing, Michigan. Founded in 2008, the organization employs 51–100 staff and serves prospective domestic U.S. travelers and international visitors, promoting seasonal experiences across Michigan's two peninsulas including outdoor recreation, urban and cultural attractions in Detroit and other cities, culinary and agritourism offerings, and natural landmarks such as Pictured Rocks and Sleeping Bear Dunes. Its primary digital product is the michigan.org website platform, which provides destination discovery, event calendars, attraction and accommodation listings, itinerary builders, virtual tours, and accessibility resources, supplemented by an e-newsletter service and a physical/digital travel guide.
The business model is government-funded rather than revenue-generating: Pure Michigan does not sell products or services to end users and operates free of charge to visitors. Funding flows from state appropriations allocated to MEDC for economic development and tourism marketing purposes. The organization spends on national advertising campaigns — including a $3 million 'Keep It Fresh' fall 2025 campaign and a $743,204 multi-publication scratch-n-sniff campaign across Travel + Leisure, Food & Wine, Magnolia, Real Simple, and Midwest Living — and on co-marketing partnerships with Michigan-based consumer brands (Grand Traverse Pie Company, Ryba's Fudge Shops, Short's Brewing Company, The Aroma Labs). Distribution relies on the official website, a #PureMichigan social media presence across Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube, and brand collaborations. Underlying performance is measured at the macroeconomic level — tourism contributed $54.8 billion to Michigan's economy and attracted 131.2 million visitors in 2024 — rather than through commercial KPIs.
Pure Michigan firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Pure Michigan
- Legal name
- Michigan Economic Development Corporation
- Website
- https://michigan.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2008
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Pure Michigan is the official state tourism promotion brand of Michigan, operated under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. It markets Michigan destinations to domestic and international travelers via the michigan.org platform, seasonal campaigns, and brand partnerships.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Pure Michigan is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lansing
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Pure Michigan business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Tourism Promotion Services: Pure Michigan operates as a government-funded tourism promotion agency under MEDC. Revenue derives from state funding allocated for economic development and tourism marketing purposes. The organization spends on advertising campaigns across national publications to attract visitors who contribute to Michigan's economy through tourism spending.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels6 records
Pure Michigan product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Pure Michigan operates as Michigan's official state travel and tourism promotion agency under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). It provides free travel planning resources, destination discovery tools, event calendars, attraction and accommodation listings, and curated itineraries via michigan.org, complemented by seasonal marketing campaigns and brand partnerships designed to attract visitors to Michigan.
Product overview
Pure Michigan is Michigan's official state tourism promotion agency under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC), operating the michigan.org website platform as its primary digital product. The platform provides travel planning tools, destination discovery, event listings, attraction and accommodation search, virtual tours, and webcams. Supporting products include a physical/digital Travel Guide and an E-Newsletter service. The agency also runs seasonal tourism campaigns including fall harvest initiatives, slow tourism promotion, and national advertising campaigns.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- michigan.org Website Platform Official state tourism website providing travel planning tools, destination discovery, event calendars, attraction and accommodation listings, itinerary builders, virtual tours, and accessibility resources for Michigan visitors.
- Pure Michigan E-Newsletter Email newsletter service providing subscribers with travel information, adventure updates, and seasonal content about Michigan destinations and experiences.
- Pure Michigan Travel Guide Physical and digital travel guide offering comprehensive information about Michigan destinations, attractions, accommodations, and travel itineraries for visitors.
Quantifiable outcome
- Tourism contributed $54.8 billion to Michigan's economy in 2024 with 131.2 million visitors
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Pure Michigan
Customer profileSegments7 records
Ideal customer profiles1 record
Pure Michigan technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature1 record
Pure Michigan partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- Travel + LeisurecoreTravel + Leisure magazine was one of five publications used for Pure Michigan's $743,204 scratch-n-sniff magazine advertisement campaign, targeting 3.3 million readers.
- Food & WinecoreFood & Wine magazine was part of Pure Michigan's scratch-n-sniff advertising campaign across five publications.
- MagnoliacoreMagnolia was one of five publications in Pure Michigan's scratch-n-sniff magazine advertising campaign.
- Real SimplecoreReal Simple magazine participated in Pure Michigan's scratch-n-sniff advertising campaign reaching 3.3 million readers.
- Midwest LivingcoreMidwest Living magazine was used in Pure Michigan's regional scratch-n-sniff advertising campaign targeting travelers to the Midwest.
- Grand Traverse Pie CompanyminorPure Michigan partnered with Grand Traverse Pie Company for the fall harvest season tourism campaign coinciding with Michigan Agritourism Month. The pie company created seasonal maple-glazed apple pies as part of the collaborative marketing initiative.
- Ryba's Fudge ShopsminorPure Michigan collaborated with Ryba's Fudge Shops for the fall harvest season campaign. The fudge shop created pumpkin spice fudge products to promote Michigan's artisan food culture.
- Short's Brewing CompanyminorShort's Brewing Company partnered with Pure Michigan for the fall harvest campaign, creating a fall IPA brewed with Michigan-grown ingredients to showcase local craft beverages.
- The Aroma LabscoreThe Aroma Labs developed a line of scents evoking summer, fall, and winter in Michigan for Pure Michigan's innovative sensory marketing campaign. The scents aim to enhance mood and memory associated with Michigan's natural attractions through magazine displays and in-person experiences.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves5 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Pure Michigan competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Visit California: Visit California is California's official state tourism marketing organization, operating under a public-private partnership model virtually identical to Pure Michigan under MEDC. It runs national advertising, content marketing, and brand partnerships to drive visitor spending — the closest structural and operational peer in scale and remit.
- Travel Oregon: Travel Oregon is Oregon's official state Destination Marketing Organization (DMO), promoting outdoor experiences, culinary tourism, and scenic road trips. It is a directly comparable state-level DMO with similar budget structure, content-led website, and campaign-driven GTM motion to Pure Michigan.
- I LOVE NY: I LOVE NY is New York State's iconic tourism brand, operating as a state government tourism promotion program with national advertising campaigns. It is directly comparable to Pure Michigan as a long-running, state-funded tourism brand with multi-channel marketing and cultural/experiential positioning.
- Visit Florida: Visit Florida is Florida's official state tourism marketing corporation, a public-private partnership promoting Florida as a travel destination. It operates with a similar DMO structure, multi-channel marketing, and seasonal campaign model to Pure Michigan, making it a directly comparable peer in scope and operation.
- VisitNC: VisitNC (Visit North Carolina) is North Carolina's official state tourism marketing agency, operating under a public-private partnership. It runs national campaigns, content marketing, and brand partnerships comparable to Pure Michigan's structure and seasonal campaign cadence.
- Colorado Tourism Office: Colorado Tourism Office (operating colorado.com) is Colorado's state government tourism promotion office. It is directly comparable to Pure Michigan in promoting outdoor adventure, scenic drives, and seasonal experiences through a state-funded content and campaign model.
- Visit Texas: Visit Texas is Texas's official state tourism promotion program, running national marketing campaigns and operating a content-driven state tourism website. It is a directly comparable peer to Pure Michigan in scale, structure, and DMO remit.
- NYC & Company: NYC & Company is New York City's official destination marketing organization, promoting urban tourism, cultural attractions, and culinary experiences. While city-focused rather than state-focused, it is directly comparable to Pure Michigan in DMO structure, content platform model, and campaign-driven GTM.
- Brand USA: Brand USA is the United States' national destination marketing organization, promoting inbound international travel to the United States. It is a directly comparable peer to Pure Michigan at a national rather than state scale, sharing the same DMO mission, multi-channel marketing model, and public-private funding structure.
Regional players
- Tourism Australia: Tourism Australia is Australia's national tourism agency, operating a destination marketing model highly analogous to Pure Michigan but at a country scale and focused on inbound international travel. Comparable in mission and GTM motion but operates in a different geography.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Pure Michigan social profiles
Digital presencePure Michigan financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Pure Michigan leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Pure Michigan funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Pure Michigan M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Pure Michigan
What does Pure Michigan do?
Pure Michigan operates as Michigan's official state travel and tourism promotion agency under the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC). It provides free travel planning resources, destination discovery tools, event calendars, attraction and accommodation listings, and curated itineraries via michigan.org, complemented by seasonal marketing campaigns and brand partnerships designed to attract visitors to Michigan.
Is Pure Michigan a public or private company?
Pure Michigan is a private company. It is classified as state government owned and is currently operating.
When was Pure Michigan founded?
Pure Michigan was founded in 2008. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Pure Michigan based?
Pure Michigan is headquartered in Lansing, United States, in the North America region.
How does Pure Michigan make money?
One revenue line is on record: tourism Promotion Services.
Who are Pure Michigan's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Visit California, Travel Oregon, I LOVE NY, Visit Florida, VisitNC, Colorado Tourism Office, Visit Texas, NYC & Company and Brand USA. Tourism Australia is listed as a regional player.
Does Pure Michigan have an API?
No public API is recorded for Pure Michigan.