Comstock Publishing

What Comstock Publishing does

Comstock Publishing, Inc., doing business as Comstock's, is a privately held, family-owned regional publishing company founded in 1989 and headquartered in Sacramento, California (2335 American River Drive, Suite 410). It operates Comstock's Magazine, a monthly business publication serving Sacramento and the nine surrounding counties of California's Capital Region for over 35 years. The publication covers 18 topic verticals including finance, real estate, healthcare, manufacturing, technology, and government, supplemented by recurring columns and series such as Startup of the Month, Tips From Leaders, Evil HR Lady, Art Exposed, and Getting to Know.

The company's product surface is an integrated content ecosystem built on a monthly print magazine at its core. Print is delivered via home subscriptions in 1-, 2-, and 3-year tiers priced at $25, $40, and $50 respectively, with rack/newsstand distribution across the region. A free digital edition is delivered to subscriber email inboxes, supported by a website (comstocksmag.com), a weekly email newsletter, and a monthly podcast called Comstock's Talks. Underlying technology is a standard CMS-driven website with no disclosed proprietary platform, app, API, or AI/ML components.

Comstock's revenue model blends recurring subscription fees (printed magazine), freemium audience expansion (free digital edition and newsletter), and advertising — both print and online — sold against an audience in which more than 81% of readers are business owners and managers with purchasing authority. The company maintains an 11–50 employee footprint, is led by President and Publisher Winnie Comstock-Carlson, has not raised outside capital, and has been recognized with five first-place 2024 CNPA Journalism Awards and Western Publishing Association MAGGIE Awards for Best Business Magazine and Best Web Publication/Consumer.

Name

Comstock Publishing

Legal name

Comstock Publishing Inc.

Website

https://comstocksmag.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Comstock Publishing, Inc. (d/b/a Comstock's) is a privately held Sacramento-based regional publisher of Comstock's Magazine, a monthly business publication serving business owners and managers across California's nine-county Capital Region through print subscriptions, a free digital edition, newsletter, and podcast.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Business Publications

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Financial & Trade News Publishers (MPAJADAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Newsstand & Single-Copy Distribution (MPAJAKAC)

Keywords

• Business publications
• Regional media
• Magazine subscriptions
• Business journalism
• Digital publishing

Headquarters

HQ city

Sacramento

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Print Magazine Subscriptions: Annual and multi-year print subscriptions delivered directly to subscribers' homes. Subscription tiers include 1-year ($25), 2-year ($40), and 3-year ($50) options.
2. Digital Edition: Free digital magazine delivered to subscribers' email inboxes. Digital content is provided at no cost to expand reach and support advertising revenue.
3. Print and Online Advertising: The magazine generates revenue through advertising in both print and online formats. The publication emphasizes its high-value demographic - more than 81% of readers are business owners and managers with purchasing authority.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Comstock Publishing publishes Comstock's, a monthly business magazine covering Sacramento and the nine surrounding counties of California's Capital Region. The publication is delivered via paid print subscriptions, a free email-distributed digital edition, an online news site, and a monthly companion podcast (Comstock's Talks), with content spanning regional business intelligence, economic analysis, leadership profiles, and industry coverage.

Product overview

Comstock Publishing operates a single, unified business publication — Comstock's Magazine — delivered across multiple formats. The core product is the monthly print magazine, supplemented by a Digital Edition (web-based digital replica), a free Email Newsletter, the Comstock's Talks Podcast, and various Columns & Series content including Art Exposed, Evil HR Lady, Getting to Know, Startup of the Month, and Taste. These products form an integrated content ecosystem serving California's Capital Region business community.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Comstock's Magazine (print) A Sacramento-based monthly business publication serving California's Capital Region for over 35 years, covering business insight, industry news, regional economic analysis, leadership profiles, and quality-of-life issues. Available via 1, 2, and 3-year print subscriptions delivered directly to subscribers.
• Digital Edition An online digital version of the print magazine allowing readers to access current and archived issues via the web, with free digital magazine delivery to subscribers' email inboxes.
• Email Newsletter An email newsletter delivering updates on print and web-only journalism, commentary, and analysis from throughout the Capital Region to subscriber inboxes.
• Comstock's Talks Podcast A monthly companion podcast to the magazine allowing sources and honorees to share more in-depth perspectives on stories covered in the magazine, featuring conversations with leaders and industry figures.

Quantifiable outcome

• Won five first-place awards at 2024 CNPA Journalism Awards
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Regional players

• San Francisco Business Times: ACBJ-owned California regional business publication serving the Bay Area — directly comparable California B2B audience but operates outside Comstock's Sacramento geography.

Direct peers

• Denver Business Journal: ACBJ-owned weekly serving Denver business community — comparable in audience (business owners/executives), revenue model (advertising + subscriptions + events) and multi-format product.
• D Magazine (Dallas): Independently-owned Dallas regional business and city magazine — same print+digital+events business model, same audience of business owners and executives, similar ad-supported revenue mix.
• Crain's Detroit Business: Independently-owned regional business weekly serving Detroit — comparable in independent ownership structure, regional business journalism, and C-level executive readership.
• Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal: ACBJ-owned weekly covering the Twin Cities — peer across audience (executives/business owners), multi-format delivery, and an ad-supported plus subscription revenue mix.
• Boston Business Journal: ACBJ-owned regional business publication serving Boston — comparable regional B2B audience, ad-driven subscription model, and multi-format delivery (print, digital, events).
• Atlanta Business Chronicle: ACBJ-owned weekly serving metro Atlanta — directly comparable regional business publication model, with the same positioning toward executive readers and B2B advertisers.
• Crain's Chicago Business: Independently-owned regional business weekly serving Chicago — directly comparable to Comstock in format (weekly/monthly business magazine), audience (C-suite/decision-makers) and ad-supported model.
• Sacramento Business Journal: ACBJ-owned weekly covering Sacramento's business community — the most direct in-market competitor for Comstock's readership and advertising base, with deeper digital, data, and event infrastructure.
• Los Angeles Business Journal: Weekly regional business newspaper/magazine serving Los Angeles — same California-relevant regional business audience and ad-driven model, comparably targeting C-level executives.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/comstocksmag
• Facebookfacebook.com/ComstocksMag
• Instagraminstagram.com/comstocksmag

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 Comstock Publishing