What Volume One does

Volume One, operating as Volume One Magazine LLC, is a privately held integrated regional media company founded in 2002 by Nick Meyer in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and serving the Chippewa Valley (Eau Claire, Menomonie, Chippewa Falls). Its core platform consists of a twice-monthly print magazine distributed at 400+ locations, a daily-updated website (VolumeOne.org) generating 4M+ annual page views, seven niche email lists totaling 120,000+ subscribers, and social channels with 40,000+ combined followers. Underlying technology includes a custom event-listing network that powers community calendars for Visit Eau Claire and Downtown Eau Claire Inc., a proprietary ticketing platform (Volume One Tickets) serving 50+ local organizations, retail POS for The Local Store, and reservation systems for Chippewa River Trolley and Eau Claire E-Bike Rental.

Revenue is generated across eight distinct streams: print and digital advertising (including a partnership with Adcellerant for programmatic, OTT, and geo-fencing), digital marketing and social media services, video and photography production (clients have included PBS/Frontline and Fox Business News), event ticketing transaction fees, retail sales through The Local Store, sponsorship- and ticketing-driven community events (Sounds Like Summer, Chalkfest, Restaurant Week, Best Night, Food Truck Fridays, Burger Week, Santa Cycle Rampage, Chippewa Valley Vanguard Awards), and the newer Chippewa River Trolley (launched 2023) and Eau Claire E-Bike Rental (launched 2025) tourism businesses — all operated from the 205 N. Dewey St. headquarters in downtown Eau Claire.

The business model is B2C/B2B hybrid: consumers access free editorial content and pay for tours, rentals, and retail goods, while local advertisers and event organizers purchase print, digital, ticketing, and production services. The company is entirely founder-owned with no disclosed institutional funding, runs a team of roughly two dozen editors, designers, developers, marketers, photographers, writers, and retailers, and has accumulated a multi-decade track record of regional and national journalism and design awards from the Milwaukee Press Club, Association of Alternative Newsmedia, and Local Media Association.

Name

Volume One

Legal name

Volume One Magazine LLC

Website

https://volumeone.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Volume One is a privately held integrated media company serving the Chippewa Valley region of Wisconsin, operating a twice-monthly print magazine, a daily news website, custom ticketing, video production, retail, trolley tours, and e-bike rentals for local residents, businesses, and visitors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Media & Community Marketing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131), Media Buying Agencies (541830), Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

akta.pro secondary industry

Syndication, Licensing & Content Partnerships (Columns, Features, Photos) (MPAJADAI)

Keywords

• Local media publishing
• Digital marketing services
• Event ticketing platform
• Community events production
• Print magazine advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Eau Claire

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Magazine Publication & Print Advertising: Twice-monthly magazine publication with print advertising from local businesses and organizations. 14,000 copies distributed at 400+ locations across Eau Claire, Menomonie, Chippewa Falls, and surrounding areas. The magazine contains feature stories, community developments, event listings, and intentionally-designed advertisements.
2. Digital Marketing Services: Full-service digital marketing including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, pre-roll video, OTT streaming services, search engine optimization and marketing, programmatic display, geo-fencing, streaming audio advertising. Partnered with Adcellerant for national digital marketing expertise.
3. Video & Photography Production: Studio and field video and photography production for community and business clients. Work featured on TV shows, in film festivals, and online for local and national clients including PBS/Frontline and Fox Business News.
4. Event Ticketing: Custom ticketing platform (volumeonetickets.org) selling tickets for local organizations. Has sold tens of thousands of tickets for more than 50 local organizations including Chippewa Valley Airshow, Pre-Eaux Claires Festival events, and Leinenkugel's.
5. Retail Store Operations: The Local Store - a 4,000-square foot retail, art, and event space offering apparel, art, gifts, books, beer, wine, foodstuffs, and other items created by local people or inspired by the Chippewa Valley community.
6. Community Events: Production of community events including Sounds Like Summer Concert Series, Chalkfest, Restaurant Week, Best Night, Food Truck Fridays, Winter After Hours, Burger Week, Santa Cycle Rampage, and Chippewa Valley Vanguard Awards.
7. Chippewa River Trolley: Vintage-inspired trolley tour experiences including food & drink tours, history & cultural tours, nature & farm tours, theatrical & late-night tours, seasonal/holiday tours, and private rentals. Tours launched from The Local Store in downtown Eau Claire.
8. Eau Claire E-Bike Rental: Electric bike rental service with popular urban loops and longer trail rides along the Chippewa River. Both printed and digital route maps available.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Volume One is an integrated media company that publishes a twice-monthly print magazine (14,000 copies at 400+ locations) and operates VolumeOne.org, a daily-updated local news, culture, food, and events website serving western Wisconsin. Beyond editorial, the company produces and monetizes community events (Sounds Like Summer Concert Series, Chalkfest, Restaurant Week, Best Night, Food Truck Fridays), sells print and digital advertising and full-service digital marketing campaigns to local businesses, and operates ancillary hospitality businesses including The Local Store retail/art space, Chippewa River Trolley tours, Eau Claire E-Bike Rental, and the Volume One Tickets event-ticketing platform.

Product overview

Volume One is an integrated media company offering a diversified portfolio of products and services centered around community-focused media, events, and hospitality/tourism. The core offerings include the flagship Volume One Magazine (twice-monthly print publication), VolumeOne.org (daily-updated news and events website powering regional calendars), and Digital Marketing Services (with Adcellerant partnership). These are complemented by Video and Photography Studio, Design Services, and Social Media Services. Community events production includes several signature events leading to the Best of the Chippewa Valley Reader Poll program. Additional revenue streams include Volume One Tickets (event ticketing platform serving 50+ organizations), The Local Store (4,000 sq ft retail space), Chippewa River Trolley (vintage trolley tour experiences launched 2023), and Eau Claire E-Bike Rental. The company operates as a multi-platform media and community action agency serving the Chippewa Valley region of Wisconsin.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Local Store: Historic 4,000-square foot retail, art, and event space in downtown Eau Claire offering apparel, art, gifts, books, beer, wine, foodstuffs, and other community-inspired items.
• Chippewa River Trolley
• Eau Claire E-Bike Rental
• Volume One Tickets
• Best of the Chippewa Valley Reader Poll

Products and services

• Volume One Magazine Twice-monthly print magazine containing feature stories, community developments, event listings, and advertisements. 14,000 copies printed and distributed at 400+ locations throughout Eau Claire, Menomonie, Chippewa Falls, and surrounding areas. Sold to advertisers and distributed free to consumers.
• VolumeOne.org Daily-updated online destination and network of mobile-first websites featuring editorial, breaking civic news, community events, restaurant guide, short-form video features, and podcasts. Generates 4M+ annual page views and powers community calendars for Visit Eau Claire and Downtown Eau Claire Inc. Sells digital advertising.
• Digital Marketing Services Full-service digital marketing for local businesses including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, pre-roll video, OTT streaming services, SEO/SEM, programmatic display, geo-fencing, and streaming audio advertising. Delivered via partnership with Adcellerant for national digital marketing expertise. Sold to local businesses and organizations.
• Video and Photography Studio Studio and field video and photography production services creating community and business content with warmth, authenticity, and style. Work has been featured on TV shows, in film festivals, and online for local and national clients including PBS/Frontline and Fox Business News. Sold to business clients on a project basis.
• Community Events Production of community events including Sounds Like Summer Concert Series, Chalkfest, Restaurant Week, Best Night, Food Truck Fridays, Winter After Hours, Burger Week, Santa Cycle Rampage, and Chippewa Valley Vanguard Awards. Attracts tens of thousands of locals and visitors annually; monetized through sponsorships, ticketing, and partnership activations.
• Volume One Tickets Custom online ticketing platform for selling general admission and reserved seating tickets to events. Has sold tens of thousands of tickets for 50+ local organizations including Chippewa Valley Airshow, Pre-Eaux Claires Festival events, and Leinenkugel's. Connected to Volume One's media network for built-in promotion. Sold to event organizers as a ticketing service.
• The Local Store Historic 4,000-square-foot retail, art, and event space at 205 N. Dewey St. offering apparel, art, gifts, books, beer, wine, foodstuffs, and other items created by community members or inspired by the Chippewa Valley. Also serves as the departure point for Chippewa River Trolley tours.
• Chippewa River Trolley Vintage-inspired trolley tour experience offering food & drink tours, history & cultural tours, nature & farm tours, theatrical & late-night tours, seasonal/holiday tours, and private rentals to thousands of guests annually. Now in its fourth season.
• Eau Claire E-Bike Rental Electric bike rental service offering popular urban loops and longer trail rides along the Chippewa River. Both printed and digital route maps available. Located at The Local Store.
• Design Services Print, web, and motion graphics design services creating designs that connect with audiences and make brands and ideas shine across multiple formats. Design and web work has received top-tier awards from regional and national media associations.

Quantifiable outcome

• 4 million+ annual page views on VolumeOne.org
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers7 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Visit Eau ClairecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerVolume One's event listing network powers the community calendar on Visit Eau Claire's website, driving mutual visibility and community engagement. Visit Eau Claire is the area's official tourism promotion organization.
• Downtown Eau Claire Inc.coreGTM or Marketing PartnerVolume One's event listing network powers Downtown Eau Claire Inc.'s community calendar, creating built-in promotion and exposure for downtown events and activities.
• AdcellerantcoreTechnology or IntegrationDigital marketing partnership enabling Volume One to offer national-level digital advertising services including programmatic display, geo-fencing, and streaming audio advertising alongside local expertise.
• Leinenkugel'sminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-sponsor of Music Capital of the North initiative. Long-standing community partnership supporting local music scene coverage and events.
• Westconsin Credit UnionminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor for Best of Menomonie guide, helping drive community engagement and local business visibility in the Menomonie area.
• Mason CompaniesminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor for Best of Chippewa Falls guide, supporting local business recognition and community engagement in Chippewa Falls.
• Northwestern BankminorGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor for Best of Chippewa Falls guide, supporting local business recognition and community engagement in Chippewa Falls.
• Eau Claire Area Chamber of CommercecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to launch ThinkEauClaire.com relocation guide website and videos. Joint effort to promote the Chippewa Valley as a destination for businesses and residents.
• Chippewa Valley MuseumminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCommunity board participation and collaborative initiatives supporting regional cultural preservation and education.
• Pablo Center at the ConfluenceminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCapital campaign donation recipient for legacy community projects. Volume One pledged support for the arts center development.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Boise Weekly: Boise, Idaho alternative weekly covering local news, arts, food, and events with a print-and-digital integrated model. Operates Best of Boise reader poll and produces community events — a near-template match to Volume One's content + events + Best Of poll structure.
• Riverfront Times: St. Louis alternative weekly and digital outlet covering local news, arts, food, and events. Once a benchmark alt-weekly with a print+digital+events model, closely comparable to Volume One's integrated community media approach in a similar Midwestern metro.
• Block Club Chicago: Chicago-based nonprofit digital news outlet covering neighborhood-level news, arts, food, and events with strong community engagement. Comparable to Volume One's community-led, hyper-local newsroom model, though digitally native without the print magazine leg.
• Tucson Weekly: Independent alternative weekly in Tucson covering news, arts, culture, and events with print and digital editions. Same alt-weekly editorial DNA and local advertiser base as Volume One, scaled to a comparable mid-size U.S. metro.
• The Pitch: Kansas City alternative weekly that combines print, digital, and events coverage of arts, music, food, and local culture. Closely mirrors Volume One's editorial positioning as a lifestyle/events-driven local media brand serving a mid-size Midwestern market.
• LEO Weekly: Louisville, Kentucky alternative weekly producing local news, arts, food, and event coverage across print and digital. Shares the alternative-weekly + integrated-events editorial and business model that defines Volume One's approach.
• Nashville Scene: Nashville's alternative weekly covering local news, arts, food, and music with print, digital, and event programs. Comparable integrated-media-plus-events model and similar reliance on Best Of-style reader engagement to drive advertiser loyalty.
• Isthmus: Madison, Wisconsin-based independent alternative weekly and digital media outlet covering news, arts, food, and events. Most direct geographic and editorial analog to Volume One in Wisconsin's other major college town, with a similar integrated events, print, and digital model.

Others

• Eau Claire Convention & Visitors Bureau (Visit Eau Claire): Regional tourism promotion organization that partners with Volume One on event listing syndication. Thematically adjacent given Volume One's growing tourism, trolley, and e-bike rental verticals, and useful as a regional tourism-peer benchmark for those expansion lines.
• Adcellerant: Digital marketing partner that provides programmatic, OTT, geo-fencing, and streaming audio capabilities to Volume One. Comparable as a technology/enabler for the same kind of local media digital ad sales motion, and could be viewed as a peer-style comparable for the digital marketing services revenue line.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/VolumeOneMag
• Facebookfacebook.com/VolumeOne
• Instagraminstagram.com/VolumeOne
• Xx.com/VolumeOne

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries2 records

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 Volume One