North Central Regional Library
NCW Libraries is a Washington State public library district serving 250,000 residents across five counties with 30 branches, a bookmobile, and a mail-order service. It provides free access to 700,000+ physical and digital items plus educational programming.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1960
- HeadquartersWenatchee, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What North Central Regional Library does
North Central Regional Library, operating as NCW Libraries, is a public library district established in 1960 and headquartered at 16 North Columbia Street in Wenatchee, Washington. It serves approximately 250,000 residents across Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties, covering a 14,497-square-mile service area that makes it the geographically largest library district in Washington State. The organization operates 30 community library branches, a bookmobile serving rural communities in Chelan, Douglas, and Grant counties, and a mail-order library that delivers materials to remote residents, collectively circulating more than 2 million items per year from a collection of over 700,000 physical and digital items.
The service portfolio is anchored by an Aspen Discovery online catalog for materials management and a broad layer of third-party digital content platforms including Libby/OverDrive for eBooks and audiobooks, Hoopla for digital media, Kanopy for streaming video, LinkedIn Learning for professional development, Mango Languages for language learning, Brainfuse HelpNow for live tutoring, and specialized databases such as Novelist, Chilton, Creativebug, Gale, and the New York Times. Beyond traditional lending, the library runs dedicated programs including the Latino Services outreach department for Spanish-speaking and migrant communities, the Teen Library Council, a High School Writing Competition with Write on the River, a Digital Literacy and Learning program, and pre-recorded virtual programming.
NCW Libraries is a governmental nonprofit entity funded primarily through local property tax levies, governed by a seven-member Board of Trustees appointed by county commissioners. Its revenue model is therefore not transactional but statutory: residents of the five-county service area receive free library cards, while non-residents may purchase fee cards at $10 per month or $120 per year, and reciprocal borrowing agreements extend service to patrons of seven other Washington library systems. Partnerships with school districts, community colleges, Head Start programs, healthcare facilities, and community organizations function as distribution and outreach channels rather than revenue relationships.
North Central Regional Library firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- North Central Regional Library
- Legal name
- NCW Libraries
- Website
- https://ncwlibraries.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1960
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- NCW Libraries is a Washington State public library district serving 250,000 residents across five counties with 30 branches, a bookmobile, and a mail-order service. It provides free access to 700,000+ physical and digital items plus educational programming.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
North Central Regional Library industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Public Library Services
- NAICS
- Libraries and Archives (51921), Libraries and Archives (519210), Educational Services (611)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Public Libraries & Information Services (BPAIACAO)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Library-Based Learning Programs (Public Libraries) (EDAAAFAA), Digital Library & Electronic Resources Operations (e-Resources, Repositories, Licensing) (EDAEAGAF), Library User Services & Information Support (Reference, Research Help, Instruction Support) (EDAEAGAL), Libraries, Archives & Special Collections (BPAGAHAF)
Keywords
Where North Central Regional Library is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Wenatchee
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices30 records
Markets served
North Central Regional Library business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Public Funding (Tax Revenue): As a public library district, primary funding comes from public tax revenues. Operates across Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties serving as geographically largest library district in Washington State.
- Library Card Fees: Free library cards for residents of service area. Fee cards available for non-residents at $10 per month or $120 per year. Reciprocal borrowing agreements with seven Washington library systems.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Annual | Free Resident Card |
| Subscription | Annual | Reciprocal Card |
| Subscription | Monthly | Fee Card (Non-Resident) |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels8 records
North Central Regional Library product offering
Product offeringCore offering
NCW Libraries (North Central Regional Library) is a public library district that provides free access to approximately 700,000 physical items and a broad set of digital resources—including eBooks, audiobooks, streaming video, language learning, online courses, research databases, and newspaper archives—to residents of Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties in Washington State. Service is delivered through 30 branch libraries, a bookmobile, a mail-order library, and online platforms, with targeted programming for children, teens, families, educators, Latino communities, and seniors.
Product overview
NCW Libraries (formerly North Central Regional Library) operates as a unified library system serving Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties in Washington State with 30 physical library locations, a bookmobile, and a mail order service. The core offering centers on physical and digital lending including books, movies, music, and audiobooks through the online catalog. Digital services are delivered through integrated platforms including Libby for eBooks and eAudiobooks, Kanopy for streaming video, Hoopla for digital media, LinkedIn Learning for professional development, Mango Languages for language learning, Brainfuse for tutoring, and various research databases. Additional services include meeting room reservations, Latino outreach programs, digital literacy training, teen leadership programs, and virtual programming. The library serves approximately 250,000 residents across a 14,497 square-mile service area.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Mail Order Library: Delivers library materials straight to patrons' doors at no cost for those living in the service area.
- Bookmobile
Products and services
- NCW Libraries Catalog (Aspen Discovery) Web-based catalog allowing patrons to search the NCW Libraries collection, place holds, renew items, and view reading history for physical and digital library materials.
- Bookmobile Mobile library service delivering approximately 2,500 books, plus WiFi and library services, to rural and underserved communities across Chelan, Douglas, and Grant counties.
- Mail Order Library Postal delivery service that ships paperback and small hardcover books, audiobooks, music CDs, and DVDs directly to patrons' homes at no cost for residents of Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, or Okanogan counties.
- Latino Services Dedicated outreach program serving Latino communities with Spanish-language materials, ELL classes, migrant farm worker camp visits, civic and immigration resources, and partnerships with local schools and community organizations.
- Digital Literacy & Learning One-on-one technology help, workshops, and resources that help community members build digital skills for job applications, healthcare access, everyday technology use, and basic computer and internet skills using the Northstar assessment platform.
- 30 Branch Libraries Physical library locations across the five-county service area offering access to physical collections, public computers and WiFi, community programs, and meeting spaces.
- Teen Library Council Teen leadership program allowing middle and high school students to influence library services, develop leadership skills, and contribute to their community.
- High School Writing Competition Annual writing competition run in partnership with Write on the River that offers cash prizes for original short fiction written by teens in North Central Washington.
- Meeting Room Reservations Free reservation of public meeting and study rooms at select NCW Libraries locations including Ephrata, Royal City, Omak, Quincy, Wenatchee, and Winthrop for non-commercial activities.
- Pre-Recorded Virtual Programs On-demand video library offering storytimes, reading recommendations, STEM activities, author visits, yoga, and wellness programming accessible anytime.
Quantifiable outcome
- Serves 250,000 residents across five counties
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use North Central Regional Library
Customer profileNamed customers8 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
North Central Regional Library technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration26 records
Feature3 records
North Central Regional Library partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Eleven partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.
- School Districts (Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, Okanogan Counties)corePartnerships with public school districts across the five-county service area to provide Online Student Accounts giving students access to digital learning resources. Also collaborates on summer reading programs and educational outreach.
- Community CollegescorePartnerships with Wenatchee Valley College and other community colleges for student support services and educational programs including College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP).
- Healthcare ProviderssecondaryOutreach services to nursing homes, senior retirement centers, and healthcare facilities to provide library services to underserved populations.
- Head Start ProgramscoreEarly childhood education outreach providing books, resources, and literacy support to Head Start programs across the service area.
- Wenatchee School DistrictcoreCollaboration on Latino Services outreach and school partnerships for student services.
- Wenatchee Valley College (CAMP)secondaryCollege Assistance Migrant Program partnership supporting migrant students with educational resources.
- Parque PadrinossecondaryCommunity partnership supporting Latino community initiatives and resources.
- Washington State Public Employees' Retirement Plan (PERS)secondaryParticipating employer in state retirement system providing pension and benefits to library employees.
- Write on the RiversecondaryAnnual partnership for the High School Writing Competition, co-sponsoring cash prizes for teen writers.
- Oregon HumanitiessecondaryVirtual programming partnership for community conversations on civic engagement and the America at 250 commemoration series.
- Seven Washington Library Systems (Reciprocal Borrowing)secondaryReciprocal borrowing agreements with King County Library System, Kitsap Regional Library, Libraries of Stevens County, North Olympic Library System, Pierce County Library System, Sno-Isle Regional Library, Timberland Regional Library, and Yakima Valley Regional Library.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights4 records
North Central Regional Library competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Los Angeles Public Library: Municipal library system serving Los Angeles with 73 branches. Larger and more urban than NCW Libraries but operates with the same public-tax-funded, free-access library model and similar digital resource integrations.
- New York Public Library: The largest public library system in the U.S., serving Manhattan, the Bronx, and Staten Island with 92 branches. Operates with much larger scale and budget but shares the public library service model with NCW Libraries.
- Brooklyn Public Library: Independent library system serving Brooklyn, NY with 61 branches. Operates with the same public library mission and serves a comparable role in community education, literacy, and digital equity to NCW Libraries.
Direct peers
- Pierce County Library System: Washington State regional library system with 18 branches serving Pierce County. Direct reciprocal borrowing partner with NCW Libraries, offering overlapping digital lending and educational programming services.
- Timberland Regional Library: Five-county regional library serving western Washington with 27 branches. Direct reciprocal borrowing partner and similarly structured regional library district with comparable collections and digital resource offerings.
- Seattle Public Library: Municipal library system serving the City of Seattle. Compares on digital lending and educational programming but operates in a denser urban geography with a much larger per-branch circulation profile.
- King County Library System: One of the busiest library systems in the U.S., serving 1.5 million residents across King County, Washington. Has a reciprocal borrowing agreement with NCW Libraries and offers comparable digital platforms (Libby, Kanopy, Hoopla, LinkedIn Learning).
- North Olympic Library System: Clallam County, Washington regional library with reciprocal borrowing agreement with NCW Libraries. Smaller scale but very similar rural-serving regional library model with comparable community outreach emphasis.
- Kitsap Regional Library: Single-county Washington library system serving Kitsap County with nine branches. Reciprocal borrowing partner of NCW Libraries with similar community programming focus and digital platform integrations.
- Sno-Isle Regional Library: Two-county regional library system in Snohomish and Island counties, Washington. Operates a similar distributed branch model across a large geographic area with comparable digital lending integrations (Libby, Hoopla, Kanopy) and reciprocal borrowing agreements with NCW Libraries.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
North Central Regional Library social profiles
Digital presenceNorth Central Regional Library financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
North Central Regional Library leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles8 records
North Central Regional Library funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
North Central Regional Library M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about North Central Regional Library
What does North Central Regional Library do?
NCW Libraries (North Central Regional Library) is a public library district that provides free access to approximately 700,000 physical items and a broad set of digital resources—including eBooks, audiobooks, streaming video, language learning, online courses, research databases, and newspaper archives—to residents of Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties in Washington State. Service is delivered through 30 branch libraries, a bookmobile, a mail-order library, and online platforms, with targeted programming for children, teens, families, educators, Latino communities, and seniors.
Is North Central Regional Library a public or private company?
North Central Regional Library is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was North Central Regional Library founded?
North Central Regional Library was founded in 1960. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is North Central Regional Library based?
North Central Regional Library is headquartered in Wenatchee, United States, in the North America region.
How does North Central Regional Library make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Public Funding (Tax Revenue) is the primary driver. The others are library Card Fees.
Who are North Central Regional Library's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Los Angeles Public Library, New York Public Library and Brooklyn Public Library. Direct peers are Pierce County Library System, Timberland Regional Library, Seattle Public Library, King County Library System, North Olympic Library System, Kitsap Regional Library and Sno-Isle Regional Library.
Does North Central Regional Library have an API?
No public API is recorded for North Central Regional Library.
What industry is North Central Regional Library in?
North Central Regional Library's product category is Public Library Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAIACAO, Public Libraries & Information Services, with a secondary code of EDAAAFAA, Library-Based Learning Programs (Public Libraries). Its NAICS code is 51921 and its SIC code is 8200.