That’s So Tampa

What That’s So Tampa does

That's So Tampa is a privately held hyperlocal digital media company founded in 2013 and operated under the WallMedia Partners parent, focused exclusively on the Tampa Bay region. The company publishes editorial Stories, curated Guides, and a community Events Calendar covering local dining, arts, sports, events, and small businesses, and distributes this content across a WordPress-based website, an email newsletter, and social media channels that together reach approximately 165,000 followers (Facebook ~102K, Instagram ~55K, Twitter ~8.2K, plus TikTok and YouTube). The audience is primarily Tampa Bay residents and visitors seeking authentic local discovery content, while the paying customer base consists of local small and medium-sized businesses purchasing sponsored content, display advertising, and event-promotion placements.

The product portfolio consists of four integrated surface areas: the Stories and Guides editorial properties, the Events Calendar and its self-service Event Submission Platform, a branded merchandise store selling Tampa-themed apparel and accessories at $24–$34, and a Sponsored Content & Advertising product sold to local businesses. The underlying technology is a standard WordPress CMS with The Events Calendar plugin and Mailerlite for email; the company has no public API, no mobile app, and no proprietary data products.

That's So Tampa is a bootstrapped, sub-ten-person operation with no disclosed institutional funding. Monetization relies on three streams: advertising and sponsorship sold to local SMBs, a self-service event listing product (free basic, paid promotion), and merchandise sales. Geographic coverage is explicitly bounded — event listings are restricted to Hillsborough County — and adjacent Florida Gulf Coast coverage is delivered through sister properties I Love the Burg (St. Petersburg) and That's So Sarasota under the same parent.

Name

That’s So Tampa

Legal name

RKC.me

Website

https://thatssotampa.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

That's So Tampa is a privately held hyperlocal digital media company founded in 2013 that covers Tampa Bay events, dining, arts, and small businesses through a WordPress-based website, email newsletter, and social media channels reaching roughly 165,000 followers, monetizing via local SMB advertising, event promotion, and branded merchandise.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Digital Media

NAICS

Broadcasting and Content Providers (516), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYMPAGAFAO

Local Community & Multi-Category Fairs

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Live Entertainment & Events (Concerts, Theater, Festivals)/Exhibitions, Fairs & Expos (Consumer/Public)

Keywords

• Hyperlocal media platform
• Local news coverage
• Event calendar listings
• Sponsored content advertising
• Branded merchandise store

Headquarters

HQ city

Tampa

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Advertising & Sponsorship: The site generates revenue through sponsored content, display advertising, and partnership promotions with local businesses. The About page explicitly states they accept 'forms of cash advertising, sponsorship, paid insertions or other forms of compensation'.
2. Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including t-shirts, hats, and mugs through the Shop section of the website. Products range from $24-$34.
3. Event Listings: Free and paid event submission options. The site mentions additional advertising options for events to reach 100,000+ people in the Tampa region.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

That's So Tampa is a hyperlocal digital media platform that publishes editorial Stories and curated Guides covering Tampa Bay events, dining, arts, sports, and community topics, and operates a community Events Calendar where local organizers can submit and promote events. The platform monetizes through paid advertising and sponsored content placements, event listing upgrades, and a branded merchandise e-commerce shop selling t-shirts, hats, mugs, and enamel pins.

Product overview

That's So Tampa is a hyperlocal media platform launched in 2013, operating as a WordPress-based content website with multiple integrated offerings. The core product consists of Stories (editorial articles covering local events, dining, arts, sports, and community), an Events Calendar (allowing local organizers to submit and promote events to a large local audience), and Guides (curated recommendation content). The platform monetizes through a Merchandise Store (selling Tampa-branded apparel and accessories) and a Sponsored Content & Advertising product (offering businesses promotional placements across website and social media). An Event Submission Platform enables community-driven event discovery. All offerings are integrated within a single WordPress infrastructure, with distribution amplified through major social media channels including Facebook (102,000 followers), Instagram (55,000 followers), Twitter (8,200 followers), TikTok, and YouTube.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• That's So Tampa Stories
• That's So Tampa Guides
• That's So Tampa Events Calendar
• Event Submission Platform
• That's So Tampa Merchandise Store
• Sponsored Content & Advertising

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• WallMedia PartnerscoreOthersWallMedia Partners maintains the That's So Tampa website and provides creative resources needed for day-to-day operations. Dex Fabian serves as both Founder & Partnerships for That's So Tampa and is associated with WallMedia Partners.
• I Love the BurgcoreOthersSister site focused on St. Petersburg, Florida. Both sites are operated under the WallMedia Partners umbrella. Dex Fabian is founder and publisher of both I Love the Burg and That's So Tampa.
• That's So SarasotaminorOthersAnother sister site in the WallMedia Partners network, extending coverage to the Sarasota area.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Hoodline: Data-driven hyperlocal news and lifestyle publisher covering neighborhoods with stories about dining, events, and local businesses; matches TST's editorial format and SMB advertising revenue model.
• Patch.com: National hyperlocal digital media network that publishes local news, events, and business spotlights town-by-town; closest scaled analog to TST's model of monetizing local attention through ads, sponsorships, and event listings.
• That's So Sarasota: Third WallMedia Partners property extending the TST formula to the Sarasota market — identical monetization (ads, sponsored content, merchandise) and editorial structure, making it the cleanest comparable alongside I Love the Burg.
• I Love the Burg: Direct sister site under WallMedia Partners covering St. Petersburg with the same hyperlocal editorial + events + advertising model; same founder/operators and effectively the same business reproduced in a neighboring Tampa Bay sub-market.
• St Pete Catalyst: Independent local news outlet covering St. Petersburg and Tampa Bay with an editorial + events + local advertiser model; effectively an in-market neighbor competing for the same audience and SMB sponsorships.
• 6AM City: Local newsletter-first media company operating in dozens of U.S. metros with sponsored content, events calendar, and local storytelling — directly comparable digital-first local publisher monetizing engaged city audiences.
• 83 Degrees Media: Tampa Bay-focused digital publication covering local business, entrepreneurship, and community stories; serves the same regional advertiser base and competes for the same Tampa Bay audience.

Broad incumbents

• Tampa Bay Times: Regional legacy newspaper covering the same Tampa Bay geography; competes for local advertisers and audience attention though via a traditional newsroom model rather than social-first community storytelling.
• Axios Local: National digital media brand that ran metro-specific newsletters and local advertising — adjacent strategic model (digital-first local news monetized through native sponsorships) before scaling back local operations.
• Nextdoor: Large-scale neighborhood community platform that competes for the same hyperlocal attention and SMB advertising dollars, but operates a national user-generated network rather than an editorial-first media product.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/thatssotampa
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCzBNbLuuoKOVkY8QbKX2TUQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/thatssotampa
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/thatssotampa
• Instagraminstagram.com/thatssotampa
• TikTokhttps://tiktok.com/@thatssotampa

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 That’s So Tampa