Rock & Gem Magazine

What Rock & Gem Magazine does

Rock & Gem Magazine is a print and digital publication founded in 1971 and operated by EG Media Investments, LLC, serving the rockhound, mineral collector, lapidary artist, gemstone enthusiast, and fossil collector communities primarily in the United States. The publication delivers expert field guides, collecting location information, lapidary technique tutorials (cabbing, faceting, tumbling, intarsia), mineral and fossil features, and gemstone educational content through monthly issues. Beyond the magazine, the company maintains directory infrastructure including a national Show Dates listing, Club Listings for rock and mineral clubs, and a geolocation-based Rock Shop Locator tool that connect hobbyists to local resources.

The company monetizes primarily through recurring print and digital magazine subscriptions with auto-renewal features, supplemented by single-issue sales (print at $7.99 and digital ranging from $3.99 to $6.99), advertising managed by an in-house Sales Executive, and a Digital Issue Library archive. Marketing is executed through a multi-channel organic strategy spanning Facebook, Instagram, Twitter/X, and Pinterest social platforms, a weekly email newsletter, and a content-rich website blog. The company operates with 11–50 employees, is privately held with no identified external investors, parent company, or M&A activity, and is governed under the laws of the State of Texas while maintaining mailing addresses in Durham, NC, Lexington, KY, and Irvine, CA.

Name

Rock & Gem Magazine

Legal name

EG Media Investments, LLC

Website

https://rockngem.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1971

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Rock & Gem Magazine is a privately held print and digital publication founded in 1971 serving rockhound, mineral collector, lapidary artist, and gemstone enthusiast hobbyists in the United States through subscription-based editorial content and community directory services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hobby Magazine Publishing

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120)

akta.pro primary industry

Home, Garden & DIY Magazines (MPAJAEAG)

akta.pro secondary industry

Arts, Culture & Literary Magazines (MPAJAEAN)

Keywords

• Hobby magazine publishing
• Mineral collecting content
• Lapidary technique guides
• Rockhound enthusiast subscription
• Gem and fossil education

Headquarters

HQ city

Durham

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, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Magazine Subscriptions: Recurring print and digital magazine subscriptions with auto-renewal. The magazine has been published since 1971 and offers various subscription tiers including options with free gifts.
2. Single Issue Sales: Direct sales of individual print and digital magazine issues at varying price points.
3. Advertising: The magazine accepts advertising, with a dedicated Sales Executive (Jenny Van Wieren-Page) handling advertising inquiries.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Rock & Gem Magazine publishes a monthly hobby magazine (in print and digital formats) covering rocks, gems, minerals, fossils, lapidary techniques, collecting locations, and jewelry making, distributed primarily through recurring subscriptions with auto-renewal and direct single-issue sales. Beyond the magazine itself, the publication operates community directory services including a Show Dates listing, Club Listings directory, and a geolocation-based Rock Shop Locator tool. The publication was founded in 1971 and has served rockhound, mineral collecting, lapidary, and gemstone enthusiast audiences for over 50 years.

Product overview

Rock & Gem Magazine is a print and digital publication that serves as the leading resource for rockhounds, mineral collectors, lapidary artists, and gemstone enthusiasts. The magazine operates on a subscription model offering print and digital editions (including single-issue purchases and back-issue access through the Digital Issue Library). Beyond content publication, the company provides community directory services including Show Dates listings (gem and mineral shows), Club Listings, and a Rock Shop Locator tool. The magazine also produces educational content including detailed lapidary technique guides (cabbing, faceting, tumbling, intarsia) and material-specific cutting tutorials published as articles.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Rock & Gem Magazine Print Subscription Monthly print magazine subscription (with auto-renewal) covering rocks, gems, minerals, fossils, lapidary techniques, collecting locations, and jewelry-making tutorials. Aimed at rockhounds, mineral collectors, lapidary artists, and gemstone/fossil enthusiasts.
• Rock & Gem Magazine Digital Subscription Digital edition subscription providing online access to the magazine, including the Digital Issue Library archive. Same editorial coverage as the print edition, aimed at consumers who prefer digital reading.
• Print Single Issues Individual print copies of Rock & Gem Magazine sold without an ongoing subscription commitment. Priced at $7.99 per issue for recent editions (e.g., July 2026).
• Digital Single Issues Individual digital issues of Rock & Gem Magazine available for one-time purchase, separate from an ongoing subscription. Pricing varies by issue date, ranging from $3.99 (older back issues) to $6.99 (recent issues).
• Digital Issue Library Online archive of past digital issues of Rock & Gem Magazine, accessible to subscribers and single-issue purchasers for browsing and downloading back issues.
• Complete Your Collection Offer (Digital Full Access) Promotional bundled offer providing full digital access to Rock & Gem Magazine's complete archived collection for readers seeking comprehensive back-issue access.
• Show Dates Listing Directory service listing gem, mineral, and fossil show events across the United States with dates, locations, admission details, and dealer information. Includes submission capability for event organizers.
• Club Listings Directory of rock and gem clubs with contact information across the U.S., supporting club-submission capabilities and club profile features for the hobbyist community.
• Rock Shop Locator Geolocation-based online search tool helping readers find rock shops and crystal stores near their location across the United States.
• Books (Rock & Gem Book Category) Companion book product line sold through the Rock & Gem website alongside the magazine, covering rocks, gems, minerals, fossils, and lapidary topics.
• Magazine Advertising Sales Advertising space in Rock & Gem Magazine sold to advertisers reaching the rockhounding, mineral collecting, lapidary, and gemstone enthusiast audience; handled in-house by Sales Executive Jenny Van Wieren-Page.

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The Mineralogical Record: Independent publication focused on mineral specimens, mineral localities, and collector culture. Comparable in serving the serious mineral collector niche with high-quality editorial content, though oriented toward a more advanced collector audience than Rock & Gem's broader hobbyist base.
• Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist: Direct competitor magazine serving the lapidary, jewelry making, and gemstone cutting enthusiast community. Closely comparable in subject matter (lapidary techniques, cabbing, faceting) and target audience (hobbyist jewelry makers), making it the most directly comparable peer to Rock & Gem.
• Rocks & Minerals Magazine: Peer publication covering mineralogy, rocks, and mineral collecting for both hobbyists and professionals. Highly comparable in audience overlap (mineral collectors and rockhounds) and editorial scope, representing the other major dedicated title in the rock/mineral collecting space.

Broad incumbents

• Gems & Gemology (GIA): Quarterly journal published by the Gemological Institute of America covering gemology research, identification, and trade topics. Comparable in gemstone subject matter but oriented toward a more professional/trade audience, positioning it as a broad incumbent in the gem knowledge space.
• Smithsonian Magazine: Large-circulation consumer magazine covering science, history, and natural history topics including mineralogy and geology features. Represents a broad incumbent in the consumer science/nature publishing space that occasionally competes for reader attention in the geology and mineral collecting domain.

Emerging players

• Rock&Gem.tv / BlueCap Productions (YouTube lapidary creators): Network of YouTube channels and digital creators producing lapidary, cabbing, and rockhounding video content. Represents the emerging digital-native competition that addresses the same hobbyist needs through free, video-first formats—a structural threat to traditional magazine publishers like Rock & Gem.
• Bead&Button Magazine: Magazine serving the beadwork and jewelry-making craft community with tutorials, project ideas, and technique guides. Overlaps with Rock & Gem's lapidary and jewelry-making content while addressing a related but distinct (beadwork-focused) sub-segment of the jewelry hobbyist market.

Others

• CabKing: Leading retailer of lapidary equipment and supplies (cabbing machines, saws, tumblers) serving the same lapidary hobbyist audience. While not a publisher, it represents an adjacent ecosystem participant whose customer base substantially overlaps with Rock & Gem's lapidary artist segment and which could be a natural advertising or partnership counterpart.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/RandG_official
• Facebookfacebook.com/RockandGem
• Instagraminstagram.com/rockandgemmagazine
• Pinterestpinterest.com/rockandgemmagazine

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 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 Rock & Gem Magazine