Ohio Magazine

What Ohio Magazine does

Ohio Magazine is a privately held regional lifestyle publication focused exclusively on Ohio, operated by Great Lakes Publishing Company. Founded in 1978 and headquartered in Ohio (with subscriber services in Dayton), the company publishes Ohio Magazine seven times per year plus two seasonal editions of LongWeekends Magazine, covering Ohio travel, food and drink, arts, events, home and garden, and general Ohio lifestyle content. The publication serves Ohio residents and visitors seeking curated, editorially vetted information on local events, restaurants, travel destinations, and cultural activities.

The company's product portfolio extends well beyond the core print magazine and includes digital editions, six segmented email newsletters (Explore Ohio, Food & Drink, Outdoor Adventures, Travel, Promotions, and Travel Promotions), curated travel guides, a digital recipe collection, a restaurant directory, a comprehensive events calendar, and a food-focused sub-brand, Proof Magazine. Distribution is handled through statewide newsstand sales, direct-to-consumer mail subscriptions, and digital self-serve access via the ohiomagazine.com website.

Ohio Magazine generates revenue through four primary streams: recurring print and digital subscriptions, single-copy newsstand sales, advertising (digital ad operations managed by Playwire LLC), and ancillary services including custom publishing through its parent company Great Lakes Publishing. The company also markets gift subscriptions and operates a subscriber services center. No AI/ML capabilities, APIs, funding rounds, M&A activity, or major leadership changes are disclosed in available sources, indicating a mature, operationally stable regional media business.

Name

Ohio Magazine

Legal name

Great Lakes Publishing Company

Website

https://ohiomagazine.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Ohio Magazine is a privately held regional lifestyle publication operated by Great Lakes Publishing Company, serving Ohio residents and visitors through a seven-times-yearly print magazine, digital editions, six email newsletters, travel guides, events listings, and sub-brands including LongWeekends and Proof Magazine.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Lifestyle Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Periodical Publishers (51312)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Consumer Lifestyle & Fashion Magazines (MPAJAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Travel & Outdoors Magazines (MPAJAEAH)

Keywords

• Regional lifestyle magazine
• Travel publishing
• State-focused media
• Food and travel content
• Events calendar

Headquarters

HQ city

Cleveland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Print Magazine Subscriptions: Annual subscriptions to Ohio Magazine providing 7 print issues per year plus 2 LongWeekends magazine editions. Subscribers receive print copies delivered to their homes with full access to digital editions.
2. Newsstand Sales: Single copy sales of Ohio Magazine at newsstands throughout Ohio. Published 7 times annually: January/February, March/April, May, June, July, September/October and November/December.
3. Digital Subscriptions: Digital edition access included with print subscriptions, allowing subscribers to read issues online.
4. Advertising: Third-party advertising displayed on the website and in the print magazine, managed by Playwire LLC for digital advertising.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Ohio Magazine is a regional lifestyle magazine published seven times per year plus two LongWeekends seasonal editions, covering Ohio travel, food and drink, arts, events, home and garden, and Ohio life. Subscription and newsstand distribution is complemented by digital editions, six themed email newsletters (Explore Ohio, Food & Drink, Outdoor Adventures, Travel, Promotions, Travel Promotions), curated travel guides, recipe archives, a restaurant directory, and an Ohio events calendar.

Product overview

Ohio Magazine is a regional lifestyle media company offering a portfolio of print and digital products centered on Ohio travel, food, events, and culture. The core offerings include Ohio Magazine (print, published 7 times yearly) and LongWeekends Magazine (seasonal travel edition), complemented by digital editions, six newsletter products (Explore Ohio, Food & Drink, Outdoor Adventures, Travel, Promotions, Travel Promotions), travel guides, recipe collections, restaurant directories, and events listings. The company also offers custom publishing services through its parent company Great Lakes Publishing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Proof Magazine: A food and drink focused magazine publication
• LongWeekends Magazine

Products and services

• Ohio Magazine A regional lifestyle magazine published 7 times a year covering Ohio travel, food and drink, arts, events, home and garden, and Ohio life features.
• LongWeekends Magazine A seasonal travel magazine published in Spring-Summer and Fall-Winter editions, offering short trip and adventure content for Ohio travelers.
• Digital Editions Digital versions of Ohio Magazine and LongWeekends accessible to subscribers, viewable on web and mobile platforms.
• Explore Ohio Newsletter Weekly e-newsletter featuring activities and events across Ohio.
• Food & Drink Newsletter Weekly newsletter featuring recipes, iconic Ohio eats and landmark restaurants.
• Outdoor Adventures Newsletter Newsletter covering Ohio's best hiking trails, camping tips and outdoor activities.
• Travel Newsletter Travel-focused newsletter featuring short trips and big adventures for Ohio explorers.
• Promotions Newsletter Newsletter featuring deals, bargains and special offers for Ohio residents.
• Travel Guides Curated travel guides including Ohio Travel Guide, Hocking Hills Visitors Guide and themed destination guides.
• Recipe Collection Digital archive of recipes curated from Ohio Magazine food contributors.
• Restaurant Directory Featured restaurant listings and profiles throughout Ohio.
• Events Listings Event search and calendar featuring Ohio festivals, fairs, concerts and marquee museum exhibits.
• Custom Publishing Custom publishing services offered through Great Lakes Publishing Company for branded content.

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Midwest Living: A regional lifestyle magazine covering the broader Midwest with the same travel-food-events-home-garden content mix as Ohio Magazine, published on a similar bimonthly-plus cadence and sold through subscriptions and newsstand. It is the closest structural comparison given the regional scope and editorial formula.
• Cincinnati Magazine: A long-running Ohio city/regional lifestyle magazine covering dining, arts, travel, and home topics within the same state as Ohio Magazine. Direct competitor for Ohio-resident subscription dollars and regional ad budgets.
• Columbus Monthly: An Ohio-based city lifestyle magazine covering local events, dining, arts, and travel across the state. Competes for overlapping Ohio advertisers and the same subscriber demographic.
• Indianapolis Monthly: A Midwest city/regional lifestyle magazine with the same content verticals (food, travel, home, events, arts) as Ohio Magazine, monetized via subscriptions, newsstand, and advertising. Comparable scale and business model benchmark.
• Chicago Magazine: A larger Midwest regional lifestyle title covering dining, travel, home, and culture across a similar audience profile. Comparable business model with deeper scale, useful for aspirational benchmarking on multi-product expansion.
• St. Louis Magazine: A regional lifestyle magazine with strong events, dining, and travel coverage in the Midwest. Comparable structure and revenue mix to Ohio Magazine, with similar scale and cadence.
• 5280 Magazine: Denver's regional lifestyle magazine with a strong focus on local travel, dining, and home content, sold via subscriptions and supported by event and advertising operations. Closely mirrors Ohio Magazine's content/utility playbook in another regional market.
• Yankee Magazine: A New England regional lifestyle publication emphasizing travel, food, and local culture, sold predominantly through subscriptions. Similar scale and editorial positioning to Ohio Magazine but in a different geography.
• Texas Monthly: A flagship state-level lifestyle magazine with deep local authority on travel, food, and culture — closely analogous to Ohio Magazine's positioning within Ohio. Larger scale, but a useful aspirational comparison for monetizing a dominant regional lifestyle brand.

Broad incumbents

• Travel + Leisure: A national travel-media brand whose editorial scope overlaps significantly with Ohio Magazine's LongWeekends title and Ohio travel coverage. Represents the broader incumbent Ohio Magazine competes with for travel advertising dollars in the Ohio category.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/OhioMagazine
• Facebookfacebook.com/ohiomagazine

Compliance1 record

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 Ohio Magazine