islands' weekly

What islands' weekly does

Islands' Weekly is a privately held community newspaper, founded in 1982 and operating under the Carpenter Media Group, that serves the San Juan Islands of Washington state — specifically Lopez, San Juan, Orcas, and Shaw islands in San Juan County. The publication functions as the primary local news outlet for these geographically isolated island communities, covering local government (County Council, budget process), high school and club sports, arts and events, opinion and letters, obituaries, and local business news. Its headquarters is in Eastsound, WA.

The product portfolio centers on the islandsweekly.com website — built on a standard WordPress content management system — supplemented by digital eEditions (digital replicas of the print edition), email newsletters, the Island Digest Podcast distributed via Apple Podcasts, an iPublish Marketplace integration for classifieds and legal notices, and a suite of community submission forms covering story ideas, press releases, photos, sports results, engagement/wedding/birth announcements, obituaries, business news, and letters to the editor. Distribution spans print home delivery, free digital access on the website, paid eEdition subscriptions, email newsletters, and audio via podcast.

Revenue is generated across six streams: recurring print and digital subscriptions (with monthly billing cadence), classified advertising through the iPublish Marketplace (employment, transportation, general), state-mandated legal notices, paid obituary placements, sponsored native content, and community event/sweepstakes promotions. Specific pricing tiers are not publicly disclosed, and rates vary by service type and duration. The customer base is segmented horizontally across island residents as primary readers/subscribers, community members contributing life-event content, and local businesses/organizations as advertisers. No public funding, capital raise, M&A, or headcount disclosures are present in the available source material.

Name

islands' weekly

Legal name

Islands' Weekly

Website

https://islandsweekly.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1982

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Islands' Weekly is a privately held, community newspaper (est. 1982, under Carpenter Media Group) serving the San Juan Islands of Washington state with local news, sports, obituaries, opinion, classifieds, and digital eEditions via a WordPress-based website and podcast.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Community Newspaper

NAICS

Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper Publishers (51311)

SIC

Newspapers: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2711)

akta.pro primary industry

Local & Regional Newspapers (Print & Digital) (MPAJADAB)

Keywords

• Community newspaper
• Local news publishing
• Digital subscriptions
• Classified advertising
• Obituary services

Headquarters

HQ city

Eastsound

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Home delivery subscriptions for the print edition and digital access to the newspaper's content and e-editions
2. Classified Advertising: Employment, transportation, and general classified advertisements placed through iPublish Marketplace platform
3. Legal Notices: Paid legal notice publications as required by Washington state law
4. Obituary Services: Paid obituary placements for deceased community members
5. Sponsored Content: Native advertising content from sponsors presented in designated sections
6. Event Promotions: Promotion of community events, sweepstakes, and special sections

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Islands' Weekly publishes a weekly local community newspaper covering news, sports, life, opinion, obituaries, and business for the San Juan Islands of Washington state (Lopez Island, San Juan Island, Orcas Island, and Shaw Island). It distributes content through a website, print home delivery, digital e-editions, email newsletters, and the Island Digest Podcast, and sells subscriptions alongside classified advertising, legal notices, obituaries, and sponsored content.

Product overview

Islands' Weekly is a local community newspaper serving San Juan County, Washington across Lopez, Orcas, and San Juan Islands. The publication operates a digital news website as its core product, supplemented by eEditions (digital newspaper archives), Newsletters (email subscriptions), the Island Digest Podcast, Classifieds marketplace, and various community submission forms for reader-contributed content. The product portfolio centers on local journalism and community information delivery.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Island Digest Podcast: A podcast covering news from San Juan County, Washington.

Products and services

• Islands' Weekly Online Newspaper Local community newspaper website serving San Juan County, Washington, covering news, sports, life, opinion, obituaries, and business across Lopez, Orcas, San Juan, and Shaw Islands. Target audience: island residents seeking local news and civic information.
• eEditions Digital editions of the print newspaper available online for subscribers to access archived and current issues in digital format, including special sections. Target audience: print subscribers and digital readers.
• Email Newsletters Email newsletter subscriptions delivering curated local news, updates, and community highlights to subscribers. Target audience: island residents and community members.
• Island Digest Podcast A podcast providing news coverage and community stories specific to San Juan County, Washington, available on Apple Podcasts. Target audience: podcast listeners interested in San Juan County news.
• Classifieds Marketplace Online marketplace for local classified advertisements including employment, vehicles, transportation, and legal notices. Target audience: San Juan Islands residents and local businesses placing or responding to ads.
• Paid Obituary Placements Paid obituary placements for deceased community members published in the newspaper's Obituaries section, with an online submission form. Target audience: families and friends honoring deceased community members.
• Legal Notice Publication Paid legal notice publications required by Washington state law, integrated with Washington Public Notices and accessible through the iPublish platform. Target audience: attorneys, government agencies, and individuals required to publish legal notices.

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

One partnership is on record.

• Carpenter Media GroupcoreOthersParent company and publisher of Islands' Weekly. Manages corporate operations including privacy policy and terms of service. Provides centralized publishing infrastructure and advertising platforms for regional community newspapers.

Recent moves5 records

Broad incumbents

• Lee Enterprises: Large U.S. newspaper company operating a portfolio of community and regional daily newspapers across multiple states. Comparable as a peer at the operating-model level (subscription, advertising, legal notices) but operates at vastly larger scale and is publicly traded.
• Gannett: Largest U.S. newspaper publisher, operating USA TODAY and hundreds of local community publications including regional Washington titles. Comparable on core business model (subscriptions, advertising, classifieds) but operates as a national conglomerate.

Direct peers

• Bainbridge Island Review: Community newspaper serving Bainbridge Island, Washington. Comparable on island-community scale, print-plus-digital distribution model, local advertising base, and reliance on community announcements and obituaries.
• Islands Sounder: Another community newspaper covering the San Juan Islands (San Juan, Orcas, Lopez), closely overlapping Islands' Weekly's core geography and likely also operating under Carpenter Media Group. Directly comparable on product mix (local news, sports, obituaries, classifieds) and customer base.
• Vashon-Maury Island Beachcomber: Community newspaper serving Vashon and Maury Islands in Puget Sound. Comparable as a Washington-state island community paper with similar revenue mix (subscriptions, local advertising, legal notices) and ferry-dependent distribution.

Regional players

• Skagit Valley Herald: Regional daily newspaper serving Skagit County, Washington. Comparable in subscription/advertising revenue model, community journalism focus, and Pacific Northwest operating environment, though at a larger geographic scale.
• Peninsula Daily News: Regional newspaper serving Washington's Olympic Peninsula. Comparable on community-news business model, classifieds, legal notices, and print-plus-digital distribution, though with broader geography than Islands' Weekly.
• Bellingham Herald: Regional daily newspaper serving Bellingham and Whatcom County in northwest Washington. Comparable on local journalism, classifieds, and digital subscription model, though operating at significantly larger scale and owned by a national chain.
• South Whidbey Record: Community newspaper covering south Whidbey Island in Washington state. Comparable in scale and business model (local news, classifieds, legal notices, print and digital editions) within a similar island-coastal demographic profile.
• Anacortes American: Small community weekly newspaper serving Anacortes and the surrounding area in Skagit County, Washington. Comparable on community-paper scale, geographic isolation characteristics, and reliance on local advertising and subscriptions.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lopez-island-academy

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 islands' weekly