Virginia Business

What Virginia Business does

Virginia Business is a monthly regional business publication founded in 1986 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia, operating as a division of BridgeTower Media. It delivers news, analysis, and special reports covering economic activity across 16 industry verticals (finance, law, real estate, healthcare, technology, federal contracting, government, transportation, and others) and 8 geographic regions within Virginia. The publication positions itself as the only Virginia outlet covering all sectors and regions of the state's economy, and it produces recurring annual franchises including the Virginia 500, Legal Elite, Top Doctors, Best Places to Work, C-Suite Awards, Women in Leadership, Forty Under 40, and the newly launched Top Projects & Real Estate Deals program.

The business operates a multi-product media platform spanning a flagship print magazine, a website with subscription-gated premium content, daily email newsletters, digital editions delivered via the Tecnavia platform, and a social presence on X, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Adjacent revenue products include the Leads & Data Center — a proprietary B2B database covering 1,166 Virginia businesses and 572 executives with subscriber-only pre-built industry lists and custom data appending — and a portfolio of annual awards events and networking programs. The underlying technology stack is conventional digital publishing infrastructure (web CMS, email distribution, digital edition delivery) without disclosed AI, API, or proprietary model capabilities.

Virginia Business monetizes through four streams: recurring subscriptions for digital and print access, display and sponsored advertising across web and email, sponsored events and awards programs, and subscription-based access to its leads database. Distribution is regional and self-serve for digital subscriptions, with direct sales for advertising and event sponsorships. The company benefits from being embedded in BridgeTower Media's broader network of regional business publications across 9+ U.S. states, which provides shared corporate, technology, and advertising infrastructure, while operating as a niche, Virginia-only media property serving executives, government officials, and B2B sales professionals.

Name

Virginia Business

Legal name

Virginia Business (BridgeTower Media)

Website

https://virginiabusiness.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Virginia Business is a 40-year-old monthly regional business publication covering all sectors and regions of Virginia, serving executives, government officials, and B2B professionals with print, digital, events, and proprietary leads data products as a BridgeTower Media division.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Business News and Media

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

Keywords

• Business news publication
• Regional business magazine
• Executive leads database
• Business awards events
• B2B media advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Richmond

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Paid subscriptions for digital and print access to Virginia Business content, including newsletters and premium reports
2. Advertising: Display advertising, sponsored content, and promotional placements across website, digital editions, and email newsletters for businesses targeting Virginia executives
3. Events and Awards Programs: Revenue from sponsored award ceremonies and events including Top Projects & Real Estate Deals, Best Places to Work, C-Suite Awards, Women in Leadership, Icons Honors, In-House Counsel Awards, and Forty Under 40
4. Data and Leads Sales: Subscription-based access to proprietary executive leads database with contact information for business development, plus custom list building services and data appending

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Virginia Business is a monthly business magazine and digital publication that delivers news, analysis, and special reports covering economic activity across 16 industry verticals and 8 geographic regions of Virginia. It supplements its editorial coverage with a subscription-based Leads & Data Center offering proprietary executive and business contact data, and an annual portfolio of awards events including Best Places to Work, C-Suite Awards, Women in Leadership, Forty Under 40, Icons Honors, In-House Counsel Awards, and the inaugural Top Projects & Real Estate Deals program.

Product overview

Virginia Business operates as a unified media platform combining a core publication with premium data and events services. The flagship product is the Virginia Business Publication delivering news coverage across Virginia's business landscape, supplemented by a Leads & Data Center offering proprietary executive and company databases, and annual award events (Best Places to Work, C-Suite Awards, Women in Leadership, Forty Under 40, Icons Honors, In-House Counsel Awards). The publication also produces periodic special issues including StartVirginia, Maritime Guide, Virginia 500 Power List, and Legal Elite. Together, these offerings serve Virginia's business community through news, data-driven sales intelligence, and professional recognition programs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Virginia Business Publication A monthly business magazine and digital publication delivering news, analysis, opinion columns, and special reports on Virginia's economy across 16 industry verticals and 8 geographic regions. Available in print and digital editions to subscribers.
• Leads & Data Center A subscription-based B2B database and data center providing proprietary executive and business contact data for Virginia, including 1,166 company records, 572 executive profiles, email addresses, and custom list-building tools for sales and marketing professionals.
• Pre-built Business Lists Pre-built, subscriber-only curated business lists covering Virginia companies across multiple industries including accounting firms, architectural/engineering firms, commercial real estate firms, banks, defense contracts, law firms, and hospitals.
• Virginia Business Awards Events Annual award ceremonies and networking events including Best Places to Work (16 years running, 141 companies in 2026), C-Suite Awards (38 executives in 2026), Women in Leadership, Forty Under 40, Icons Honors, In-House Counsel Awards, and the inaugural Top Projects & Real Estate Deals program (29 projects honored in 2026).

Quantifiable outcome

• Only business publication covering all sectors and all regions of Virginia

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Best Companies GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Best Companies Group to produce the annual Best Places to Work in Virginia list. Best Companies Group evaluates companies based on workplace policies (25%) and employee surveys (75%). Virginia Business has conducted this program for 16 years. Both companies are divisions of BridgeTower Media.
• Capital SquareminorOthersCapital Square's Chasen multifamily development was named a 2026 Top Project by Virginia Business in its inaugural awards program. The project was funded through CSRA Opportunity Zone Fund VII, LLC.
• ThunderCat TechnologyminorOthersThunderCat Technology was named to Virginia Business's 2026 Best Places to Work list, placing 2nd in the mid-size employer category. ThunderCat is a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business providing technology products and services to government and commercial clients.
• UnanetminorOthersUnanet CEO Craig Halliday was named a 2026 Virginia Business C-Suite Award winner and selected for the Wash100 list for the fourth consecutive time. Recognition highlights strategic moves including acquisition of Contraqer and partnerships with Wyatt and U.K.-based Algorithms Software.
• Melone Hatley P.C.minorOthersCharles Hatley, CEO of Melone Hatley P.C., was selected as an honoree in the private company category (51-149 employees) for the 2026 Virginia Business C-Suite Awards.
• BridgeTower MediacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVirginia Business is a division of BridgeTower Media, a business media company operating publications across multiple states including Louisiana, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Minnesota, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia. BridgeTower Media provides corporate support, shared technology platforms, and advertising services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Idaho Business Review: BridgeTower Media state-level business publication covering Idaho. Closely comparable regional B2B media brand operating under the same corporate infrastructure.
• Long Island Business News: BridgeTower Media regional business publication serving Long Island, NY. Shares parent, distribution model, and event-franchise playbook with Virginia Business.
• Rochester Business Journal: BridgeTower Media publication covering the Rochester, NY business community. Closely mirrors Virginia Business in scope, vertical coverage, and event-driven monetization.
• Lehigh Valley Business: BridgeTower Media regional business publication covering Pennsylvania's Lehigh Valley. Operates with same parent and comparable print + digital + events model.
• NJBIZ: BridgeTower Media sister publication covering New Jersey business news. Same parent, same business model (print + digital + events + data), making it the closest operational and structural comparable.
• Charlotte Mecklenburg Times (Mecklenburg Times): BridgeTower Media regional business publication serving the Charlotte/Mecklenburg market. Same ownership, same single-state/region focus, comparable revenue mix.
• Finance and Commerce (Minnesota): BridgeTower Media Minnesota business publication. Same parent, same regional B2B media approach covering state economy across sectors.
• Central Penn Business Journal: BridgeTower Media publication covering central Pennsylvania's business community. Direct peer in scale, vertical mix, and event-led monetization strategy.

Regional players

• Virginia Lawyers Weekly: BridgeTower Media legal trade publication serving Virginia. Sister brand within the parent network with narrower legal vertical focus, useful as a vertical-spinoff comparable.

Broad incumbents

• Washington Business Journal: American City Business Journals regional business publication covering greater Washington, D.C., including Northern Virginia. Overlaps Virginia Business's territory with substantially larger scale and national ACBJ backing.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/virginiabiz
• Facebookfacebook.com/VirginiaBiz
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/virginia-business
• Instagraminstagram.com/virginia_business

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Virginia Business