Xpo Press

What Xpo Press does

Xpo Press, Inc. is a privately held Colorado-incorporated publishing company founded in February 2002 that produces gem, mineral, fossil, and jewelry show guides. The company publishes two core products: the Tucson Show EZ-Guide, the official guide for the annual Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase with 30,000 circulation, and the Denver Show EZ-Guide, the official guide for the Denver Gem & Mineral Showcase with 8,000 circulation. Both are full-color print publications mailed to paid subscribers ahead of each event and distributed at show venues, local hotels and restaurants, the Tucson International Airport, and shuttle routes. In April 2025, Xpo Press acquired the assets of the competing Tucson Show Guide from Golden Peak Media, consolidating Tucson under a single official title.

The company's technical platform is a conventional publishing and content management system supporting its websites, vendor directories, news content, and digital advertising inventory. The xpopress.com website hosts a searchable vendor and product directory covering 750+ North American shows, the quarterly Gem Show Insider email newsletter delivered via MailChimp, and organic social channels (GemShowInsider on Facebook and Instagram). Advertising inventory includes full-page, 2-page spread, half-page, and quarter-page print placements, fixed-pixel web banner ads (970x150 and 800x400), newsletter placements, and discounted multimedia packages bundling print, online, and email.

Xpo Press generates revenue through annual print guide subscriptions (priced $16.99-$45.99 USD depending on guide and destination), print advertising sold to show vendors and local businesses, online banner advertising, email newsletter sponsorships, and social media advertising. Customer segments include gem and mineral show attendees/collectors (consumer subscribers), gem show vendors and dealers (primary B2B advertisers), gem show promoters/organizers, and local businesses (hotels, restaurants) seeking show-season traffic. The company is independently owned by Brad Hicks, has 1-10 employees, has never raised venture or private equity capital, and operates without a parent company or subsidiaries.

Name

Xpo Press

Legal name

Xpo Press, Inc.

Website

https://xpopress.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Xpo Press is a Colorado-based publisher of official annual gem, mineral, fossil, and jewelry show guides — the Tucson Show EZ-Guide and Denver Show EZ-Guide — serving collectors, show vendors, and local businesses through print publications, advertising, and a digital vendor directory.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Trade Show Media & Publishing

NAICS

Directory and Mailing List Publishers (51314)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

Recommendation & Discovery Engines (content/product) (BPAMAAAG)

Keywords

• Trade show publications
• Gem show guides
• Mineral show directories
• Event advertising media
• Specialty print publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Arvada

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, Supply Chain, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Print Guide Sales: Sale of printed EZ-Guides for Tucson (30,000 circulation) and Denver (8,000 circulation) gem show showcases, mailed to paid subscribers before events
2. Print Advertising: Advertising in printed EZ-Guides with various ad sizes including full-page, 2-page spread, half-page, and quarter-page formats in full color
3. Online Banner Advertising: Web advertising including top-page ads (970x150 pixels) and middle-page ads (800x400 pixels) on the Xpo Press website
4. Email Newsletter Advertising: Advertising opportunities in the quarterly Gem Show Insider email newsletter
5. Social Media Advertising: Advertising on GemShowInsider social media channels including Facebook and Instagram

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Xpo Press publishes official annual print EZ-Guides for the Tucson and Denver gem, mineral, fossil, and jewelry showcases, with combined circulation of approximately 38,000 copies, distributed by mail subscription and on-site at the events. The company also operates the xpopress.com website (vendor/product directory and show search) and the Gem Show Insider email newsletter, and sells advertising across print, web, newsletter, and social channels to show vendors, dealers, and local show-area businesses.

Product overview

Xpo Press is a publishing company that operates a comprehensive digital platform serving the gem, mineral, fossil, and jewelry show industry. The core offering consists of print and digital EZ-Guides (Tucson Show EZ-Guide and Denver Show EZ-Guide) which serve as official show guides distributed via direct mail and at show venues. Supporting the guides is a website platform that provides show search functionality, a vendor/product directory, news coverage through the Gem Show Insider newsletter, and advertising opportunities. The company also offers shuttle route information for the Tucson showcase and maintains regional show profiles for major events across North America.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Gem Show Insider: Newsletter brand for the company's email communications about gem shows
• Tucson Show EZ-Guide
• Denver Show EZ-Guide

Products and services

• Tucson Show EZ-Guide An annual print guide with approximately 30,000 copies in circulation that catalogs vendors, shows, hotels, and shuttle routes for the Tucson gem, mineral, fossil, and jewelry showcases. Targeted at show attendees, with advertising sold to vendors, dealers, and local show-area businesses.
• Denver Show EZ-Guide

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Golden Peak Media (Peak Media)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 30 April 2025In April 2025, Xpo Press purchased all assets of the Tucson Show Guide from its publisher Golden Peak Media. This acquisition merged both guides into one official show guide called the Tucson Show EZ-Guide, serving the annual Tucson Gem, Mineral & Fossil Showcase. The trim size was increased from digest size to magazine size (7.75" x 10.75").

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist: Trade publication serving jewelry makers, lapidarists, and gem/bead hobbyists — an overlapping segment of Xpo Press's gem show attendees. Comparable revenue model (subscriptions plus advertising from bead/jewelry/tool vendors and show promoters), comparable content focus on the same gem show ecosystem.
• The Mineralogical Record: Specialty publication for serious mineral collectors, with advertising from the same gem/mineral show exhibitors. Comparable as a niche publishing business serving the same collector base that attends Tucson and Denver showcases, though The Mineralogical Record is more editorial and international than Xpo Press's event guide focus.
• Rock & Gem Magazine: Long-running print and digital magazine covering rock collecting, gem shows, lapidary, and mineral fossils. Direct comparable: serves the same hobbyist collector and lapidary audience, covers gem shows extensively, and runs advertising from the same vendor base (dealers, tool suppliers, gem/mineral sellers). Xpo Press is event-specific while Rock & Gem is editorial — same end market.
• Golden Peak Media (Peak Media / Tucson Show Guide): Former publisher of the Tucson Show Guide for 37 years, sold to Xpo Press in April 2025. Direct comparability to Xpo Press: same product category (Tucson gem show show guide), same advertisers (gem show vendors and local businesses), same customer base (gem show attendees), same advertising-driven revenue model. Now a divestiture rather than active competitor, but a uniquely direct comparable.

Others

• Gemological Institute of America (GIA): Industry authority and educational institution for gem professionals with a significant publishing arm (Gems & Gemology journal). Not a direct competitor, but a comparable publisher/authority in the gem ecosystem whose alumni and members overlap with Xpo Press's vendor and attendee base.

Broad incumbents

• Trade Show News Network (TSNN): Largest online trade show directory and event industry media outlet, covering thousands of B2B events. Comparable as a trade-show directory and advertising platform, though at vastly broader industry scope than Xpo Press's gem/mineral niche. Demonstrates the digital directory + advertising business model that Xpo Press could scale toward.
• JCK (Jewelers' Circular Keystone): Long-established jewelry industry media brand and trade show organizer (JCK Las Vegas). Comparable as a publishing + advertising + event media business in the same jewelry value chain that Xpo Press's vendors (jewelry dealers at Tucson and Denver shows) operate in. Much larger and B2B-focused.
• National Jeweler: Trade publication for retail jewelers serving the same downstream jewelry vendors who advertise in Xpo Press's EZ-Guides. Comparable advertising-driven revenue model in the same jewelry vertical. Wider retailer/professional focus compared to Xpo Press's consumer/attendee focus.
• Exhibitor Magazine: Media brand covering trade show exhibitors, organizers, and event marketing. Comparable as an advertising-supported trade show media business serving the same client archetype (event exhibitors and organizers). Broader scope across all industries, but its content and ad model apply to the same vendor personas Xpo Press serves.

Emerging players

• Beadwork Magazine (Interweave): Bead-focused hobbyist publication overlapping with Xpo Press's beading and jewelry-making attendee segments. Smaller circulation and narrower bead focus compared to Xpo Press's comprehensive show coverage, but reaches adjacent hobbyists who attend Tucson/Denver shows.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/GemShowInsider
• Instagraminstagram.com/gemshowinsider
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/xpo-press-inc

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 Xpo Press