Freelancer Magazine

What Freelancer Magazine does

Freelancer Magazine is a subscription media and community business operated by Thoughtfully Media Ltd, a UK private limited company founded in 2021 and headquartered in London with 14 employees. The company publishes a quarterly print and digital magazine for independent professionals and wraps it in a three-tier membership club (Community at £14/month, Thrive at £26/month, Growth at £50/month), each tier adding virtual coworking, jobs emails, directory listings, group coaching, and access to a founder Rolodex on top of the previous one. Print magazines are shipped globally with tiered shipping fees, and digital editions are delivered through a Subbly-powered subscription portal; courses are hosted on Teachery and email communications run through Mailchimp, with billing handled by Stripe and PayPal.

The company's commercial model is recurring subscription revenue with a minimum three-month commitment, supplemented by advertising (with member discounts), an annual printed Find a Freelancer Directory, events, and a free weekly newsletter called The Dunker reaching 5,000+ subscribers. Customers are individual B2B and creative freelancers and aspiring freelancers, primarily in the UK and Europe, acquired through community-led growth, content marketing, earned media coverage (The Guardian, BBC Radio 6 Music, informi, Brand You Magazine), and remarketing via Facebook and Google Ads. There is no proprietary technology platform, no AI capabilities, no external funding, and no enterprise customer concentration; the business is founder-led by Sophie Cross and operationally reliant on a curated stack of third-party SaaS providers.

Name

Freelancer Magazine

Legal name

Thoughtfully Media Ltd

Website

https://freelancermagazine.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Trade Magazine

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (513120), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

Magazine & Newspaper Subscriptions / Delivery Retail (CRALAAAH)

Keywords

• Freelance trade magazine
• Subscription community club
• Print digital publication
• Professional freelancer resources
• Membership directory services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Club Membership Subscriptions: Recurring subscription revenue from three-tier membership club (Community, Thrive, Growth). Minimum 3-month commitment with monthly or quarterly billing. Print magazines shipped globally with shipping costs added. Subscription payments processed via Stripe and PayPal.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Freelancer Magazine publishes a print and digital trade magazine for freelancers worldwide and bundles it with a tiered subscription club (Community, Thrive, Growth) offering virtual coworking, a Find a Freelancer Directory, weekly jobs emails, monthly group coaching, and event promotion. The company sells memberships direct-to-consumer via its own website, processes payments through Stripe and PayPal, and supports the community with weekly email newsletters, online courses, and member events.

Product overview

Freelancer Magazine operates a tiered membership model offering a single core magazine product (print and digital) supplemented by the Freelancer Magazine Club, which provides three subscription tiers: Community (£14/month), Thrive (£26/month), and Growth (£50/month). The tiers build progressively, each adding more services on top of the previous tier. Additional offerings include Courses for Freelancers hosted on Teachery.co, Events for Freelancers, and The Dunker Newsletter reaching over 5,000 subscribers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Freelancer Magazine Club: Subscription membership tiers (Community, Thrive, Growth) offering virtual coworking, directory listings, quarterly magazines, coaching, and networking for freelancers
• The Dunker Newsletter
• Find a Freelancer Directory

Products and services

• Freelancer Magazine A print and digital trade magazine for freelancers, published daily on weekdays and shipped worldwide, featuring expert columns, business planning sheets, and stories from successful freelancers.
• Freelancer Magazine Club A three-tier subscription membership club for freelancers (Community £14/month, Thrive £26/month, Growth £50/month) with a minimum three-month commitment, bundling the magazine with virtual coworking, a Find a Freelancer Directory, weekly jobs emails, event promotion, monthly group coaching, and access to a founder Rolodex.
• Courses for Freelancers Educational online courses for freelancers covering topics such as learning about freelancing, getting clients, and business growth strategies, delivered through the Teachery platform.
• Events for Freelancers Community events for freelancers including virtual coworking sessions three mornings a week and networking opportunities, available to club members.
• The Dunker Newsletter Free weekly email newsletter delivering freelance business tips, tools, and inspiration, distributed via Mailchimp to 5,000+ subscribers.

Named customers3 records

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

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, moderate and minor.

• SubblycoreTechnology or IntegrationSubbly is used as the subscription management platform for Freelancer Magazine, handling customer accounts, billing, subscription changes, and cancellations. Customers manage their subscriptions through Subbly's platform at subbly.co.
• TeacherycoreTechnology or IntegrationTeachery is used as the course platform for Freelancer Magazine's courses for freelancers. Existing students were migrated to Teachery with new login details provided.
• MailchimpcoreTechnology or IntegrationEmail marketing platform used to send newsletters, marketing materials, and promotional content to subscribers. Powers The Dunker newsletter and other email communications.
• StripecoreTechnology or IntegrationPayment processing platform used to handle subscription payments. Customers can pay via credit/debit cards through Stripe's secure payment processing.
• PayPalcoreTechnology or IntegrationAlternative payment processing platform available for customers who prefer PayPal over card payments for subscription purchases.
• FacebookmoderateGTM or Marketing PartnerFacebook is used as a social media marketing channel. Freelancer Magazine operates a public Facebook fan page (facebook.com/freelancermagazine) and uses Facebook remarketing for advertising. Company and Facebook are Joint Controllers for Facebook Insights data under GDPR.
• Inline InternationalminorOthersThird-party logistics partner handling returns processing for Freelancer Magazine physical products at their Sevenoaks facility.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Contently: Freelance talent platform and content marketing network for creative professionals. Comparable as a niche platform serving freelance creatives with a combination of community and commercial offerings.
• Bonsai: All-in-one freelancer business platform with contracts, invoicing, and tax tools. Comparable as a product serving the freelancer operations use case with a subscription model.

Direct peers

• IPSE (Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed): UK trade body for freelancers and self-employed professionals offering paid membership, content, and advocacy. Comparable to Freelancer Magazine as a subscription-based membership organization targeting UK freelancers.
• Side Hustle Nation: Newsletter and community for solo entrepreneurs and side hustlers. Comparable as a content-led subscription product for the independent professional audience.
• Working Not Working: Invite-only community for creative freelancers, with curated talent listings and jobs. Comparable as a paid community + directory model targeted at independent creative professionals.
• The Newsette: Curated newsletter + paid membership community model for young professional women. Comparable as a subscription-led media + community product monetized through tiered membership.

Broad incumbents

• Brit + Co: Digital media and community platform for creative women featuring courses, content, and commerce. Comparable as a content + community + courses monetization model aimed at creative professionals.
• HoneyBook: Business management platform for independent creative businesses including freelancers. Comparable as a vertical SaaS + community product serving the freelance economy.
• Freelancer.com: Global freelance marketplace connecting freelancers with clients. Comparable given the audience overlap with Freelancer Magazine, though operating a marketplace rather than a content/community model.
• Upwork: Largest freelance marketplace serving both freelancers and clients. Comparable as a broad incumbent in the freelance economy serving the same target audience.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/freelancermagazine
• Facebookfacebook.com/freelancermagazine
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/freelancer-magazine

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 Freelancer Magazine