5 West Magazine

What 5 West Magazine does

5 West Magazine is a privately held regional lifestyle publication operating as 5 West magazine, LLC, headquartered in Cary, North Carolina. Founded originally as Cary Living magazine around 2005 and rebranded to 5 West in 2022, the title serves Western Wake County communities including Cary, Apex, Morrisville, Holly Springs, and Fuquay-Varina. The company publishes six print issues per year, complemented by digital editions, an email newsletter reaching 60,000+ subscribers, a combined 5 West + Midtown subscription bundle, and 100+ free distribution locations across the Triangle (Harris Teeter, Food Lion, Wegmans, Whole Foods, hotels, medical offices, salons).

The publication's core product is a hyperlocal lifestyle magazine covering food and drink, fashion, health and wellness, home and garden, arts, community stories, and local business features. Annual themed special sections include Wellness Q&A, Home & Garden, FACES of Raleigh, Education Guide, Meet the Doctors, Influential Women of Wake, Holiday Gift Guide, Beauty Experts, and Dine & Draft. The technology stack is a standard publishing platform built on WordPress CMS, with digital distribution through Issuu, an email newsletter system, and social media integration across Facebook, Instagram, and X. The publication also operates the Diamond Awards, an annual reader-voted competition recognizing local businesses, services, and venues.

5 West Magazine monetizes primarily through print and digital advertising sold to local small and medium businesses, supplemented by consumer subscriptions and sponsored content under a 'Local Business Spotlight' designation. Sales are led by a Director of Sales and account executives who manage direct advertiser relationships. The company targets affluent suburban readers (average household income $180,000, average home value $500,000) across Western Wake County and reports 140,000+ readers per issue and 500,000+ monthly reach. It operates alongside sister publication Midtown Magazine under common ownership with shared staff, sales, and a joint subscription offering.

Name

5 West Magazine

Legal name

5 West magazine, LLC

Website

https://5westmag.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2008

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

5 West Magazine is a privately held regional lifestyle magazine serving affluent residents of Western Wake County, North Carolina. Founded in 2008 (rebranded from Cary Living in 2022), it publishes six print issues per year supported by digital editions, newsletters, and 100+ retail distribution points, monetized via SMB advertising, subscriptions, and sponsored content.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Regional Lifestyle Magazine

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Consumer Lifestyle & Fashion Magazines (MPAJAEAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Food, Cooking & Beverage Magazines (MPAJAEAF), Home, Garden & DIY Magazines (MPAJAEAG)

Keywords

• Regional lifestyle magazine
• Print advertising
• Magazine subscriptions
• Sponsored content
• Local business marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

Raleigh

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Print and Digital Advertising: Primary revenue stream from local businesses purchasing advertising space in the magazine. Offers themed advertising sections including Wellness Q&A (January/February), Triangle Family Camp Guide (January/February), Home & Garden (March/April), Market Leaders (March/April), FACES of Raleigh (May/June), Education Guide (July/August), Go Play See (July/August), Newcomers Guide (July/August), Meet The Doctors (September/October), Influential Women of Wake (September/October), Holiday Gift Guide (November/December), Beauty Experts (November/December), and Dine & Draft (Every Issue).
2. Magazine Subscriptions: Print and digital magazine subscriptions sold directly to consumers. Options include standalone 5 West Magazine (6 issues/year) or combined 5 West & Midtown subscription (12 issues/year) in 1-year, 2-year, or 3-year terms.
3. Sponsored Content: Paid local business spotlight content categorized as 'Local Business Spotlight' with sponsored content designation. These are featured articles written about local businesses in exchange for compensation.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

5 West Magazine is a regional lifestyle magazine published six times per year (print and digital) covering Western Wake County, North Carolina, with content on local food and drink, fashion, health and wellness, home and garden, arts, community stories, and local business features. The publication reaches 140,000+ readers per issue and 60,000+ digital subscribers, monetized through print and digital advertising sold to local businesses, consumer subscriptions (standalone or bundled with sister publication Midtown), and sponsored content.

Product overview

5 West Magazine is a lifestyle magazine serving Western Wake County, North Carolina, published six times per year in print and digital formats. The core product is the 5 West Magazine publication covering local food and drink, fashion, health and wellness, home and garden, arts, community stories, and business features. The publication is complemented by special annual sections including the Diamond Awards reader-voted business awards, Meet the Doctors healthcare directory, and Holiday Gift Guide. Readers can subscribe to 5 West Magazine alone (6 issues/year) or as a combined bundle with Midtown Magazine (12 issues/year). The magazine also offers digital advertising services to local businesses reaching its readership audience of 140,000+ readers per issue and 60,000+ digital subscribers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• 5 West Magazine A lifestyle magazine covering Western Wake County, NC (Cary, Morrisville, Apex, Fuquay-Varina, and Holly Springs), published six times per year in print and digital formats. Content spans food and drink, fashion, health and wellness, home and garden, arts, community stories, and local business features, reaching 140,000+ readers per issue.
• 5 West & Midtown Combined Subscription

Quantifiable outcome

• 140,000+ readers per issue reach
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Midtown MagazinecoreOthersSister publication under the same company (Midtown/5 West magazines, LLC). Joint subscription offerings available combining both publications (12 issues/year). Shared staff, sales team, and advertising operations. Both publications serve the greater Triangle area.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Raleigh Magazine: Regional lifestyle magazine covering Raleigh and the broader Triangle market. Competes with 5 West for the same affluent Triangle audience and for the same local SMB advertising dollars.
• Durham Magazine: Triangle-wide lifestyle publication covering Durham and surrounding areas with similar local advertising, dining, and community editorial. Comparable operating model and overlapping audience within the broader Triangle region.
• Cary Magazine: Long-running regional lifestyle magazine serving Cary and Western Wake County, with a similar mix of local advertising, themed sections, and affluent-suburban audience targeting. The most direct local competitor for 5 West's advertisers and readers.
• So Raleigh: Hyperlocal Raleigh lifestyle publication covering food, home, and community. Similar model of themed editorial with local SMB advertising in an adjacent Triangle sub-market, overlapping with 5 West's audience and advertiser base.

Others

• Midtown Magazine: Sister publication to 5 West under the same Midtown/5 West magazines, LLC, sharing staff, sales, and a joint subscription bundle. Operates in adjacent Triangle geography, making it the most operationally comparable entity even though it is under common ownership.
• Triangle Business Journal: Regional business publication covering the same Triangle market where 5 West operates, sharing advertiser pools (B2B and professional services). Overlaps with 5 West's Market Leaders and business-content sections, and competes for some of the same premium advertisers.

Regional players

• Charlotte magazine: Established North Carolina lifestyle magazine in the Charlotte metro with a similar themed-issue and affluent-demographic pitch. Comparable business model but in a different region, making it a useful operational/format peer rather than direct competitor.
• Our State Magazine: North Carolina statewide lifestyle magazine covering travel, food, and community. Comparable regional lifestyle format and advertising-supported model, though serving a broader statewide audience rather than a single metro.
• INDY Week: Triangle-based alternative weekly covering news, arts, food, and culture. Competes for local Triangle advertising budgets and reader attention, but with a different editorial positioning (alternative/news vs. affluent lifestyle).

Emerging players

• Local Eats North Carolina: Smaller Triangle-focused digital food and lifestyle outlet. Represents the digital-native, niche-content competitor type that is increasingly absorbing local SMB advertising share away from traditional print lifestyle magazines like 5 West.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/midtownmagazine
• Facebookfacebook.com/midtownmag
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/midtown-magazine/posts/?feedView=all&viewAsMember=true
• Instagraminstagram.com/midtownmagazine

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 5 West Magazine