What Cita: does

Cita Press is a Brooklyn-based non-profit independent feminist press founded in 2018 that publishes open-access editions of books written by women. Its catalog of more than twenty titles spans fiction, short stories, novellas, poetry, nonfiction, essays, manifestos, and autobiographies from the early modern period through the contemporary era, with thematic coverage including motherhood, LGBTQ+ identity, politics, race, religion, mental health, science and technology, and banned books. Each edition is curated with scholarly forewords, reading companions, and original design work, and is released under a Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 license so that the digital versions can be read online or downloaded free as ePub or PDF files.

The press distributes content through a self-serve website (citapress.org) for digital downloads, and sells print editions via its own Square storefront as well as print-on-demand partners BookBaby and Lulu. Revenue is generated primarily through small-unit print book sales, donations and memberships collected via Zeffy, and a Substack newsletter subscription; the organization also runs a parallel initiative called cita:studio. Customer segments center on general readers interested in feminist literature and on academics and educators seeking accessible primary sources, with global digital reach and no enterprise customer concentration.

The publishing operation is supported by a small core team of twelve employees and a network of translators, guest editors, designers, and sponsors — including a flagship co-publication partnership with the Sitting Room Library in Penngrove, California for the Virginia Woolf selected writings edition. Cita Press carries no disclosed funding rounds, no proprietary technology beyond standard web and e-commerce tooling, and no AI or machine learning capabilities.

Name

Cita:

Website

https://citapress.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cita Press is a Brooklyn-based non-profit feminist indie press that publishes open-access books by women, distributing titles free in digital form and via print-on-demand, serving readers, academics, and educators globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Independent Book Publishing

NAICS

Book Publishers (513130), Book Publishers (51313)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Trade Book Print-on-Demand (Fiction & Nonfiction) (MPAJANAA)

Keywords

• Open access publishing
• Feminist literature
• Women writers
• Indie press
• Creative commons books

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. Print book sales: Physical copies of books are sold through their Square storefront (cita-press.square.site) for readers who prefer printed editions.
2. Donations and memberships: Accepts donations through Zeffy platform and encourages memberships to support operations.
3. Newsletter subscriptions: Subscribers can sign up for their Substack newsletter (citapress.substack.com).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Cita Press is a Brooklyn-based feminist indie press that publishes open access books written by women, spanning fiction, nonfiction, poetry, essays, manifestos, and autobiography from the 19th century to the contemporary period. The press releases all of its 20+ titles under a Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 license, providing free digital editions in ePub and PDF formats while offering print copies for purchase through its Square storefront, BookBaby, and Lulu. It operates a sub-brand, cita:studio, and sustains the catalog through donations collected via Zeffy and reader engagement via a Substack newsletter.

Product overview

Cita Press is a feminist indie press that publishes open access books written by women. The company offers a catalog of carefully designed books available free in web formats (ePub, PDF) and for purchase in print. Their catalog spans multiple time periods (19th century through Contemporary), genres (Fiction, Short Stories, Novella, Poetry, Nonfiction, Essay, Manifesto, Autobiography), and themes (Motherhood, LGBTQ+, Politics, Religion, Sex & Romance, Suspense/Gothic, Race, Science & Technology). Books are released under Creative Commons BY-SA 4.0 license, making them freely accessible while allowing redistribution and derivative works. The company operates cita:studio as an additional initiative.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Cita Press open access book catalog Digital catalog of books by women writers released under Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0, available free in ePub and PDF; covers fiction, nonfiction, poetry, essays, manifestos, and autobiography spanning the 19th century to contemporary periods. Targeted at general readers, students, and educators interested in feminist literature.
• Print editions of Cita Press titles Physical print copies of catalog titles sold through the press's Square storefront and print-on-demand partners BookBaby and Lulu; intended for readers who prefer print and for retail and library distribution.
• Cita Press newsletter (Substack) Editorial newsletter distributed via Substack providing catalog updates, author features, and feminist literary commentary; targeted at readers, supporters, and members of the press's community.
• cita:studio Sub-brand of Cita Press extending the press's publishing mission into additional creative and editorial projects; serves the same audience of readers and feminist literary supporters.

Quantifiable outcome

• All publications freely available online without paywalls

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

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Sitting Room LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSitting Room Library in Penngrove, California partnered with Cita Press to sponsor and co-create 'A Luminous Halo: Selected Writings by Virginia Woolf'. The library is home to the 'Woolf Wall,' extensive archives related to Woolf and other women writers, and thousands of books dedicated to literature and art by women.
• ZeffyminorOthersDonation platform used for membership and support contributions to Cita Press operations.
• SubstackminorOthersNewsletter platform hosting Cita Press email communications and subscriptions (citapress.substack.com).
• SquarecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorE-commerce platform powering the Cita Press online shop (cita-press.square.site) for selling print copies of publications.
• BookBabyminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrint-on-demand service used for fulfillment of print copies for titles like Cypherpunk Women.
• Sharon BardminorGTM or Marketing PartnerWriter who provided generous sponsorship enabling the publication of 'Dolores: Scenes from a Woman's Life' by Soledad Acosta de Samper.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Internet Archive (Open Library): Large-scale digital lending library offering free access to millions of books including many feminist/historical works. Adjacent/comparable as a major open-access distribution channel competing for the same audience of readers seeking free historical literature.
• Project Gutenberg: The largest open-access digital library of public-domain works. Adjacent/comparable as the dominant free-distribution channel for historical literature that Cita also serves, though without Cita's editorial curation or feminist focus.

Direct peers

• Standard Ebooks: Volunteer-driven project producing high-quality, carefully typeset open-access ebooks of public-domain works. Directly comparable on the open-access ebook production model and design standards.
• Graywolf Press: Independent nonprofit literary publisher of fiction, nonfiction, and poetry with a strong track record of publishing women writers. Comparable as a mission-driven indie press with similar catalog scope.
• Persephone Books: UK-based independent press that reprints neglected fiction and non-fiction by mid-twentieth-century (mostly women) writers. Closely analogous model of recovering historically overlooked women's writing with high-quality design and a curated catalog.
• Restless Books: Independent publisher specializing in international literature, including many women writers in translation. Comparable as an indie press curating diverse, globally-focused literary works with design-forward editions.
• Virago Press: Pioneering feminist press (founded 1973) known for republishing women's classics and supporting women writers. Directly comparable as an indie feminist publisher with a similar mission and audience.
• The Feminist Press at CUNY: The oldest feminist publisher in the US, affiliated with The City University of New York. Directly comparable as a non-profit/educational indie press publishing women writers, including recovered historical voices, with similar mission alignment.
• NYRB Classics: Imprint of New York Review Books that reissues unjustly neglected works of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, with a strong list of women writers. Similar curation, design-quality, and indie-press economics.
• Archipelago Books: Independent nonprofit publisher of literary translation. Comparable as a nonprofit indie press with a curated catalog of recovered/underrepresented voices and high design standards.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/citapress
• GitHubgithub.com/citapress/citapress
• Facebookfacebook.com/citapress
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/citapress

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Cita: