STL Bucket List

What STL Bucket List does

STL Bucket List is a privately held, St. Louis-based independent media and marketing company founded in fall 2018 by Lucas and Marissa Farrell. The company operates the flagship @stlbucketlist Instagram account (over 300,000 combined followers across platforms), the weekly STL Bucket List Show podcast co-hosted by the founders, and the annual Local's Choice Awards community-voted event spanning 50+ categories. It has expanded through the founding of Bucket List Creative, a full-service digital marketing agency, and two acquisitions: @stlouisgram (a 117,000+ follower arts and culture Instagram page, acquired September 2022) and Sauce Magazine (a 25+ year food and dining publication, acquired July 2025). The platform reaches hundreds of thousands of St. Louis locals monthly and self-describes as "St. Louis' largest independent media outlet."

The underlying technology stack is conventional media publishing infrastructure: owned social media channels (Instagram primary), podcast distribution platforms, a content management system powering the Bucket List Blog, and ancillary tools such as an Instagram Story Bucket List Template. The company also operates Bucket List Studios as a podcast recording facility, in partnership with Half Coast Studios for production. Headcount is disclosed at 1-10 employees, with content creation, photography, and social media management handled by a small in-house team.

Monetization is diversified across four streams: (1) direct advertising sales to local and regional businesses across social media, (2) podcast sponsorships and presenting partnerships on The STL Bucket List Show, (3) annual Local's Choice Awards event sponsorships, and (4) Bucket List Creative's professional services revenue from social media management, content creation, and web design for local businesses. Pricing is quote-based rather than publicly disclosed. Customer logos span healthcare (SSM Health), banking (First Community Credit Union, ~400,000 members), real estate (Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Select Properties), automotive (Bommarito Automotive Group), and home organization (Saint Louis Closet Co.). All revenue is concentrated in the Greater St. Louis Metro Area.

Name

STL Bucket List

Legal name

STL Bucket List

Website

https://stlbucketlist.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

STL Bucket List is a St. Louis-based independent media company operating social media, a weekly podcast, community events (Local's Choice Awards), and a digital marketing agency (Bucket List Creative), serving St. Louis residents and local/regional business advertisers across its multi-platform portfolio.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Digital Media & Marketing Services

NAICS

Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (51621)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330)

akta.pro primary industry

Content Curation & Bookmarking/Read-Later Platforms (MPACAKAH)

Keywords

• Local digital media
• Social media advertising
• Podcast sponsorship
• Digital marketing services
• Community event marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

St Louis

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Podcast Sponsorships: Podcast sponsorship opportunities for local and regional businesses seeking to reach St. Louis audiences through the STL Bucket List Show podcast.
2. Advertising Services: Reaches out to team for advertising options. Digital advertising across social media platforms reaching hundreds of thousands of local followers.
3. Local's Choice Awards: Annual awards event with sponsorship opportunities, featuring categories for Food & Dining, Arts & Culture, Entertainment & Influencers, Sports & Rec.
4. Bucket List Creative Agency: Full-service digital marketing agency offering social media management, content creation, and web design for local businesses. Founded in 2019.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

STL Bucket List operates a St. Louis-focused independent media business that produces and distributes original local content across social media (Instagram accounts totaling 300,000+ combined followers), a weekly podcast, and editorial series. The company monetizes this audience primarily through digital advertising, podcast and event sponsorships, and a full-service digital marketing agency (Bucket List Creative) that offers social media management, content creation, and web design for local businesses.

Product overview

STL Bucket List is a St. Louis-based independent media company operating multiple digital brands and content series across social media, podcasting, events, and digital marketing services. At its core, the company runs the STL Bucket List social media brand (Instagram, 300K+ combined followers) and The STL Bucket List Show podcast as its flagship media properties. It has expanded through acquisitions — @stlouisgram (arts & culture Instagram, 117K followers) and Sauce Magazine (food & dining publication, 25+ years) — and a subsidiary digital marketing agency, Bucket List Creative (founded 2019). Supporting content series include the Women-Owned Wednesday Series, Neighborhood Series, and Livin' in the Lou housing series, all presented by commercial partners. The company also hosts the annual Local's Choice Awards, maintains a weekly jobs board (Bucket Open Jobs List), and offers an Instagram Story Bucket List Template. Revenue streams include advertising, podcast sponsorships, event tickets, and Bucket List Creative agency services. The portfolio reaches millions of people per month across combined platforms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Bucket List Creative: Full-service digital marketing agency offering social media management, content creation, and web design services for local businesses, entrepreneurs, and organizations.
• Bucket List Studios

Products and services

• STL Bucket List (Social Media Brand) St. Louis' largest independent media outlet, featuring an Instagram account with over 300,000 combined followers, highlighting local people, places, events, restaurants, and neighborhoods across the St. Louis metro area. The brand reaches hundreds of thousands of locals monthly.
• The STL Bucket List Show (Podcast) Weekly podcast featuring interviews with influential St. Louis business owners, entrepreneurs, and artists, co-hosted by founders Lucas and Marissa Farrell. New episodes are released weekly and serve as a platform for podcast sponsorship opportunities.
• Bucket List Creative (Digital Marketing Agency) Full-service digital marketing agency providing social media management, content creation, web design, and related services focused on local business growth. Operates as a wholly-owned subsidiary of STL Bucket List.
• Local's Choice Awards Annual community-voted awards event with 50+ categories recognizing the best of St. Louis. Businesses can participate through sponsorship opportunities, and the event drives both community engagement and sponsorship revenue.
• Sauce Magazine St. Louis' leading food, dining, and culture publication with 25+ years of history, now operating as a wholly-owned brand under STL Bucket List. Combined platforms reach millions of people each month.
• @stlouisgram Arts and culture-focused Instagram account with over 117,000 local followers, covering local murals, artists, and cultural events across the St. Louis region.
• Bucket List Studios Podcast recording and distribution studio with state-of-the-art audio and video equipment, supporting first-class podcast production for the STL Bucket List Show and external podcasters.

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Twelve partnerships are on record, tiered core and supporting.

• First Community Credit UnioncoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Banking Partner of STL Bucket List. First Community is the largest credit union in St. Louis, among Top 10 financial institutions in the region, operating for 90 years with over 400,000 members across metro STL area including St. Louis City, County, and Southern Illinois.
• SSM HealthcoreGTM or Marketing PartnerOfficial Healthcare Partner. SSM Health has been providing care to St. Louis community for over 150 years with over 40,000 employees across four states. Partnership features nurse recruitment content and healthcare career opportunities.
• Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Select PropertiescoreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting partner for Neighborhood Series. Full-service real estate company serving Greater St. Louis region with agents living and working in local communities.
• Saint Louis Closet Co.coreGTM or Marketing PartnerPresenting sponsor for Women-Owned Wednesday series. Award-winning locally owned woman-owned business providing custom closets and organizational systems for over 35 years.
• Bommarito Automotive GroupsupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerPodcast partner and Missouri's #1 Automotive Group. Sells and services every make and model with 20 St. Louis area locations.
• Regional Arts Commission of St. LouissupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerPodcast partner. Investor in the arts and artists prioritizing quality and equity. Promotes partnerships to strengthen the arts sector in St. Louis region.
• 4 Hands Brewing CompanysupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerPodcast partner. Founded in 2011 in LaSalle Park neighborhood, brews wide range of year-round, seasonal, and limited-release beers and seltzers. 20,000 square foot facility with tasting room.
• Bankhead & Firth OrthodonticssupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerPodcast partner. Family-owned orthodontic practice with three specialists and five convenient locations serving Oakville, Sunset Hills, Eureka, Waterloo, and Columbia.
• Birch Tree RecoverysupportingGTM or Marketing PartnerPodcast partner. Recovery center in St. Louis, Missouri helping individuals establish self-connection and effective coping mechanisms for anxiety, depression, and recovery.
• Ballpark Village St. LouissupportingGTM or Marketing Partner2021 Local's Choice Awards sponsor. Sports and entertainment venue in the heart of St. Louis.
• Half Coast StudiossupportingTechnology or IntegrationPodcast recording and distribution studio partner equipped with state-of-the-art audio and video equipment for first-class podcast production.
• Sauce MagazinecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAcquired in 2025. Leading voice in St. Louis food, dining, and culture for over 25 years. Combined platforms reach millions of people monthly.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Axios Local: Axios operates a network of local city newsletters and digital editions covering major U.S. metros with a Smart Brevity content format. Comparable as a digital-first local media brand monetized through advertising and events, though at significantly larger scale and as part of a national platform.
• Patch.com: National hyperlocal news network operating thousands of community-specific sites, monetized via advertising and sponsored content. Comparable hyperlocal digital media model but at vastly greater geographic scale and with a different editorial format (news vs. lifestyle/curated discovery).
• Thrillist: National digital lifestyle media brand covering food, travel, and entertainment across U.S. cities, monetized through advertising and branded content. Comparable in city-based lifestyle media positioning and digital-first audience model, though operating at significantly larger national scale as part of Group Nine/NowThis media portfolio.
• Time Out: Global city-guide media brand covering restaurants, events, and cultural attractions in major cities worldwide. Comparable as a multi-platform local discovery and lifestyle content brand monetized through advertising, sponsorships, and events, though at global scale and with a much broader editorial footprint than STL Bucket List.

Direct peers

• Eater: National food and dining media brand with city-specific editions (including a former Eater St. Louis), covering restaurants, chefs, and local food culture. Comparable in that STL Bucket List now owns Sauce Magazine, the dominant local food/dining media brand in St. Louis, making it a direct vertical overlap in the food/lifestyle media category.
• 6AM City: Network of locally branded, weekday morning newsletters covering U.S. cities with curated local content and sponsor partnerships. Closely comparable in operating model — owned audience, local sponsorship sales, event monetization, multi-city expansion playbook — making it one of the strongest direct peers for STL Bucket List's city-level media model.
• The Infatuation: Digital restaurant discovery and city-guide platform featuring editorial content, reviews, and city-specific recommendations. Comparable as a content-driven, city-level food and lifestyle media brand monetized through advertising, sponsorships, and brand partnerships — overlapping directly with STL Bucket List's local discovery and Sauce Magazine food content.
• Block Club Chicago: Nonprofit, digitally native, hyperlocal news outlet covering Chicago neighborhoods with a strong community engagement model and newsletter-driven audience. Closely comparable to STL Bucket List's hyperlocal digital media approach, multi-platform distribution, and community-led growth motion, with the key difference of non-profit vs. for-profit structure.
• Technically Media: Operator of city-branded digital media properties (Technical.ly, Generocity) covering local tech, business, and community stories across multiple U.S. metros. Comparable in operating multiple locally focused digital media brands with events, newsletters, and sponsorship monetization — a similar multi-brand local media roll-up approach.

Regional players

• Broadsheet: Australian independent digital media brand covering local restaurants, events, and culture across Australian cities with a curated, hyperlocal editorial voice. Comparable in format and community-led local discovery model, but operates in a different geography (Australia) with no direct overlap with STL Bucket List's U.S. market.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/stlbucketlist
• Facebookfacebook.com/stlbucketlist
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/stl-bucket-list

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about STL Bucket List