Pure Michigan

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.

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

Headquarters

HQ city

Lansing

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Marketing or Sales, Operations, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. 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

Core 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

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Travel + LeisurecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 December 2025Travel + 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 & WinecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 December 2025Food & Wine magazine was part of Pure Michigan's scratch-n-sniff advertising campaign across five publications.
• MagnoliacoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 December 2025Magnolia was one of five publications in Pure Michigan's scratch-n-sniff magazine advertising campaign.
• Real SimplecoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 December 2025Real Simple magazine participated in Pure Michigan's scratch-n-sniff advertising campaign reaching 3.3 million readers.
• Midwest LivingcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 19 December 2025Midwest Living magazine was used in Pure Michigan's regional scratch-n-sniff advertising campaign targeting travelers to the Midwest.
• Grand Traverse Pie CompanyminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 14 October 2025Pure 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 ShopsminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 14 October 2025Pure 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 CompanyminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 14 October 2025Short'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 LabscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 14 October 2025The 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

Direct 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

• Xx.com/puremichigan
• YouTubeyoutube.com/user/puremichigan
• Facebookfacebook.com/puremichigan
• Instagraminstagram.com/puremichigan
• TikToktiktok.com/@puremichigan
• Pinterestpinterest.com/puremichigan
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pure-michigan

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pure Michigan