Golden Peak Media

What Golden Peak Media does

Golden Peak Media is a private U.S. media and education company headquartered in Golden, Colorado (legal entity Peak Media Properties, LLC), that operates as the largest portfolio of dedicated art and craft content in the United States. Founded in 2019 following the acquisition of the crafts and fine arts assets of F+W Media and backed by Macanta Investments LLC (the family office of former Goldman Sachs private equity co-founder Terence O'Toole), the company operates a horizontally-segmented portfolio across Craft Brands (Interweave, Quilting Daily, Sew Daily, Interweave @ Home) and Fine Art Brands (Artists Network, Southwest Art, Wet Canvas), in addition to live event properties (Bead Fest, Yarn Fest, Stitch Fest under Maker Festivals). The business reaches 8.1 million+ enthusiasts via 13+ print magazines, 6 owned websites, 5,300+ on-demand videos, 15,000+ digital patterns, 48 specialized email lists, and 3.5 million+ social followers.

The company's core product is the Creativebug subscription learning platform (acquired June 2025 from Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores), a video-on-demand service with 1,000+ sewing, art, craft, and needle art classes delivered 24/7 over the web. It is complemented by two library distribution layers: Creativebug for Libraries, an annual enterprise licensing program for U.S. public library systems, and Creativebug Borrow, a pay-per-use add-on launched April 2026 that enables seven-day patron checkouts with Artists Network and Gibson App as launch content partners. Underlying technology is largely off-the-shelf content management (WooCommerce for commerce, Google Analytics for measurement, Google AdSense for monetization), with the proprietary value residing in the curated content library and brand portfolio rather than in technology differentiation. The Berkeley, California Creativebug team maintains operations post-acquisition alongside the Golden headquarters.

Golden Peak Media monetizes across six streams: recurring magazine subscriptions (auto-renewing monthly/annual), Creativebug individual subscriptions, Creativebug for Libraries enterprise licenses, B2B advertising sales across owned print/digital/email/event channels, live and virtual event ticket and marketplace revenue (Maker Festivals, Interweave @ Home Summit), and membership programs (Artists Network Membership, Makers Clubs, Interweave+). Its go-to-market is a hybrid product-led motion via Creativebug self-serve subscription, a community-led motion via festivals and social/email, and a sales-led motion for enterprise library licensing and B2B advertising under dedicated sales leadership (Chief Sales Officer and Sales Directors). The company is led by Chairman Jeffrey Litvack, CEO David Saabye, CDO Nicole Woods, CTO Andrew Mok, and CRO Mike McHenry.

Name

Golden Peak Media

Legal name

Peak Media Properties, LLC

Website

https://goldenpeakmedia.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Golden Peak Media is a private U.S. media and education company serving art and craft enthusiasts through 13+ print magazines, the Creativebug video-on-demand subscription platform, library enterprise licensing, 5,300+ instructional videos, 15,000+ digital patterns, live events like Bead Fest, and 6 owned websites.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Arts and Crafts Media and Education

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210), Book Publishers (513130), Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741), Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

Humanities & Arts Scholarly Publishing (EDAGAFAE)

Keywords

• Arts and crafts media
• Online craft education
• Print craft magazines
• Maker event festivals
• Digital pattern library

Headquarters

HQ city

Golden

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions: Recurring subscription revenue from 13+ print magazines including Love of Quilting, Artists Magazine, McCall's Quilting, and others. Subscriptions auto-renew with monthly or annual billing cycles.
2. Creativebug Individual Subscriptions: Subscription-based online learning platform offering 1,000+ sewing, art, craft and needle art classes available 24/7. Revenue from monthly and annual individual consumer subscriptions.
3. Creativebug for Libraries: Enterprise licensing program allowing public libraries to provide patrons with unlimited access to Creativebug's digital creative education platform, plus new Creativebug Borrow pay-per-use add-on.
4. Advertising Revenue: Advertising sales across digital properties, print magazines, newsletters (48 specialized email lists), and websites reaching 8+ million enthusiasts. B2B advertisers targeting craft and art consumer market.
5. Live and Virtual Events: Revenue from Maker Festivals (Bead Fest, Yarn Fest), ticket sales, workshop fees, and marketplace vendor participation. Interweave @ Home virtual events and Maker Festivals generate event-related income.
6. Membership Programs: Membership programs including Artists Network Membership, Makers Club, and Interweave+ offering exclusive content, resources, and benefits to subscribers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Golden Peak Media is a media and education company that publishes 13+ print magazines, operates six digital content websites, and runs the Creativebug subscription platform offering 1,000+ online craft and fine art classes. It also produces live and virtual Maker Festivals (Bead Fest, Yarn Fest, Stitch Fest), distributes 15,000+ digital patterns, and licenses its content to public libraries through Creativebug for Libraries and Creativebug Borrow.

Product overview

Golden Peak Media operates a multi-platform media and education company serving art and craft enthusiasts, combining print magazines, digital content, video-on-demand classes, live events, and online communities. The core product portfolio is organized into Craft Brands (Interweave, Quilting Daily, Sew Daily, Interweave @ Home) and Fine Art Brands (Artists Network, Southwest Art, Wet Canvas), anchored by the Creativebug subscription learning platform (acquired June 2025) which provides 1,000+ online classes in sewing, art, craft, and needlework. The company extends its offerings through Creativebug for Libraries (enterprise licensing for public libraries) and Creativebug Borrow (pay-per-use library add-on launched April 2026). Maker Festivals (including Bead Fest and Yarn Fest) provide live event experiences. The portfolio includes 13+ print magazines (Love of Quilting, Artists Magazine, Watercolor Artist, etc.), 6 websites, 5,000+ on-demand classes, and 15,000+ digital patterns.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Interweave: Craft brands including quilting, knitting, beading, and sewing content
• Quilting Daily
• Artists Network
• Sew Daily
• Southwest Art
• Wet Canvas
• Maker Festivals
• Creativebug

Products and services

• Creativebug Subscription-based online learning platform offering 1,000+ sewing, art, craft, and needle art classes available 24/7 for individual consumers on monthly or annual plans.
• Creativebug for Libraries Enterprise program enabling U.S. public libraries to provide patrons with unlimited access to Creativebug's digital creative education platform, plus programming support and digital learning tools.
• Creativebug Borrow Pay-per-use library add-on that allows library patrons to access premium digital creative learning platforms for seven-day checkout periods as a complement to the core Creativebug for Libraries subscription.
• Interweave Craft media brand serving serious, year-round crafters, hobbyists, and aspiring makers with books, magazines, and digital content across knitting, beading, jewelry making, and other craft categories.
• Quilting Daily Craft media brand focused on quilting enthusiasts, offering Quilting Arts Magazine, Love of Quilting, Quilting Daily TV, Love of Quilting TV, Quilting Arts TV, and supporting digital content.
• Sew Daily Craft media brand serving sewing enthusiasts with daily content, workshops, Sew Daily TV programming, and the Sew Daily Makers Club membership.
• Artists Network Fine art media brand offering 850+ instructional video workshops, digital magazine archives, eBooks, art competitions, and membership programs for painters, illustrators, and fine art enthusiasts.
• Southwest Art Fine art magazine and digital publication celebrating Southwestern and Western art, featuring artist profiles, galleries, and market coverage.
• Wet Canvas Online art community providing forums, resources, and social features for artists to connect, share work, and discuss techniques.
• Love of Quilting Long-standing quilting magazine serving quilting enthusiasts with skill-building content and community connection.
• Artists Magazine Fine art instruction magazine covering painting, drawing, and mixed media techniques for artists at all skill levels.
• Watercolor Artist Magazine dedicated to watermedia painting, helping water-based painters master techniques and grow their practice (celebrating 30 years).
• Interweave @ Home Virtual on-demand learning platform offering year-round digital crafting classes, workshops, and education complementing live event programming.
• Maker Festivals Live and virtual crafting event brand uniting Bead Fest, Yarn Fest, and Stitch Fest under one umbrella, featuring multi-day workshops, vibrant marketplaces, and programming for cross-crafters.
• Bead Fest Large-scale educational beading and jewelry-making event featuring multi-day workshops, vendor marketplace, networking, and competitions including the Bead Arts Awards.
• Makers Club Memberships Subscription membership programs including Artists Network Membership, Interweave Knits Makers Club, Bead + Jewelry Makers Club, and Sew Daily Makers Club offering exclusive content, resources, and benefits to subscribers.

Quantifiable outcome

• 8+ million enthusiasts engaged with content monthly
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core, secondary and minor.

• Artists NetworkcoreTechnology or Integration · 1 April 2026Artists Network is a launch partner for Creativebug Borrow, offering 850+ instructional video workshops across painting, drawing, and mixed media, plus digital magazine archives, eBooks, and expert-led skill-building resources available through the library platform.
• Gibson AppsecondaryTechnology or Integration · 1 April 2026Gibson App is a launch partner for Creativebug Borrow, providing interactive guitar lessons, real-time feedback, genre-based learning paths, and built-in practice tools through the library platform.
• Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft StorescoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 June 2025Creativebug was acquired from Jo-Ann Fabric and Craft Stores. Creativebug was formed in 2012 by two busy moms as an online arts and crafts learning platform. The acquisition brought Creativebug under Golden Peak Media's portfolio, combining two high-quality content providers in the arts and crafts space.
• Xpo PressminorOthers · 12 May 2025Golden Peak Media sold the Tucson Show Guide to Xpo Press, publisher of Tucson and Denver EZ-Guides. The sale combined two competing guides for the Tucson Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Showcase.
• Jewelry Television (JTV)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 May 2023Maker Festivals collaboration with Jewelry Television (JTV) for festival programming including streaming shows, JTV Rockstar Designer Challenge, and fashion show elements.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Craftsy: Online arts-and-crafts learning platform offering video classes in sewing, knitting, quilting, and other crafts via subscription. Directly comparable to Golden Peak's Creativebug business model, target customer (hobbyist crafters), and category coverage.
• Active Interest Media: Specialty media company publishing enthusiast magazines and digital content in crafts, woodworking, home, and outdoor verticals (e.g., Woodcraft, Horticulture, Log Home Living). Closely comparable to Golden Peak's portfolio of niche hobbyist magazines and digital properties.
• Make Community (Maker Media): Operator of Make: Magazine and Maker Faire, serving the maker and DIY community with instructional content, events, and a learning platform. Comparable to Golden Peak's combination of instructional magazines, video content, and live Maker Festivals.
• Bluprint (formerly Craftsy): Previously a major direct-to-consumer online craft learning platform offering video classes and kits; wound down original operations but illustrates the same product category and target customer as Creativebug. Highly comparable on product/audience, with a cautionary tale on the economics of craft subscriptions.

Broad incumbents

• Trusted Media Brands: Multi-brand consumer magazine and digital media company (Reader's Digest, Taste of Home, The Family Handyman, Birds & Blooms). Comparable business model—portfolio of enthusiast magazines plus digital content and community—operating at significantly larger scale than Golden Peak.
• Dotdash Meredith: Large-scale digital and print media company formed from IAC's Dotdash and Meredith Corporation, operating hundreds of enthusiast, lifestyle, and hobby brands. Comparable to Golden Peak as a multi-brand enthusiast publisher, but with broader verticals and much greater scale and resources.

Emerging players

• Skillshare: Subscription-based online learning marketplace with significant craft and illustration course offerings. Comparable on the online subscription learning model and creative-hobbyist target audience, though broader in scope than Creativebug.
• MasterClass: Premium subscription video learning platform featuring expert-led courses across creative disciplines including illustration, design, and fine arts. Comparable to Creativebug on the curated expert-led video learning model and creative enthusiast customer, positioned at a higher price point.

Others

• Quarto Group: Illustrated book and digital publisher producing high-quality content across crafts, fine art, and lifestyle categories. Comparable as a creator and distributor of craft and fine-art instructional content, particularly books and digital learning products, though distributed through retail rather than direct subscription.
• Hachette Book Group: Major trade book publisher with established craft, art instruction, and lifestyle titles. Comparable to Golden Peak as a publisher of craft and fine-art instructional content, though operating primarily through traditional book distribution rather than subscription and events.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Golden Peak Media