Cowlitz Black Bears
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersRidgefield, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Cowlitz Black Bears does
The Cowlitz Black Bears is a privately operated collegiate summer baseball franchise and a member of the West Coast League (WCL), a wood-bat developmental league. Founded in 2010 and headquartered at David Story Field in Longview, Washington, the organization plays a regular season schedule from May through August within the WCL South Division. The team fields rosters sourced primarily from NCAA Division I programs (the 2025 roster draws from 12 Division I programs) and operates a standard community sports entertainment product centered on live baseball games, with no proprietary technology stack beyond off-the-shelf commercial platforms.
The franchise generates revenue across four primary streams: ticket sales (single-game, season, and group packages) distributed through the TicketReturn platform; concessions and in-venue food and beverage sales augmented by FanFood mobile ordering technology; corporate sponsorships and advertising with local and regional businesses (including the Cowlitz Indian Tribe, Pacific Tech Construction, Western Fabrication Center, Bud Clary Auto Group, State Farm, Odom Corporation, and Fibre Federal Credit Union); and merchandise sales via a Square-hosted online storefront. Ticketing operates on a tiered model — general admission at standard pricing with $3 promotional Tuesdays, reserved seating, season ticket subscriptions billed annually, and kids-in-free promotions on designated Sundays — while sponsorship inventory spans stadium signage, uniform placement, game-night presenting sponsorships, and promotional giveaways such as stein glasses and drone/fireworks shows.
The organization's customer base consists of local families and Cowlitz County residents seeking affordable community entertainment, baseball enthusiasts tracking collegiate talent with professional potential, and Pacific Northwest businesses seeking regional sponsorship and advertising channels. Promotional programming ($3 Tuesdays, Kids-in-Free Sundays, fireworks, drone shows, youth baseball camps) supports community engagement and ticket demand. The franchise reaches fans through a multi-channel footprint: an official website, social media (X, Facebook, Instagram), email newsletters via Constant Contact, local radio broadcasts on KUKN/KLOG, live streaming via YouTube, and a radio stream. The current operating leadership is Manager Dan Spencer, who took the role for the 2025 season, with Evan Patocka as play-by-play broadcaster.
Cowlitz Black Bears firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cowlitz Black Bears
- Legal name
- Cowlitz Black Bears
- Website
- https://cowlitzblackbears.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cowlitz Black Bears industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Sports Entertainment
- NAICS
- Sporting Goods Retailers (45911)
- SIC
- Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Baseball & Softball Leagues (MPAKAAAC)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Team & League Branded Merchandise Retail (Non-Apparel) (CRAMAOAF)
Keywords
Where Cowlitz Black Bears is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Ridgefield
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cowlitz Black Bears business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain
Revenue model
- Ticket Sales: Revenue from single-game tickets, season tickets, and group bookings at David Story Field. The team offers various ticket tiers including general admission, reserved seating, and special promotional pricing.
- Concessions and Food Service: In-venue food and beverage sales including hot dogs, nachos, domestic canned beer, and bottled soda. Partnership with FanFood mobile ordering technology for enhanced concessions experience.
- Sponsorships and Advertising: Corporate sponsorship deals with local and regional businesses displayed on team website, stadium signage, uniforms, and promotional materials. Includes logo placements and partnership activations.
- Merchandise Sales: Online store (cowlitzblackbears.square.site) selling team merchandise and memorabilia.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | General Admission tickets available at standard pricing with promotional $3 pricing on select Tuesdays |
| Subscription | Annual | Season tickets provide guaranteed seating and access to exclusive promotions |
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
Cowlitz Black Bears product offering
Product offeringCore offering
The Cowlitz Black Bears operate a collegiate summer baseball team competing in the West Coast League wood-bat league at David Story Field in Longview, Washington. The team sells single-game and season tickets, in-venue concessions, team merchandise, and promotional event experiences to local fans and families during a May–August summer season.
Product overview
The Cowlitz Black Bears is a collegiate summer baseball team in the West Coast League offering live baseball entertainment at David Story Field in Longview, WA. The product portfolio centers around single-game and season ticket admissions to games, supplemented by FanFood mobile ordering for concessions, live streaming via YouTube and radio broadcasts, promotional events with themed nights and giveaways, and merchandise sales through their online store. The organization competes in the WCL South Division and plays a regular season schedule from May through August.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Collegiate Summer Baseball Games Live collegiate summer baseball games played at David Story Field in Longview, Washington, featuring top college players from Division I programs competing in the West Coast League wood-bat league. Aimed at local families, baseball fans, and talent scouts.
- Single Game Tickets Individual game admission tickets sold for specific games, with promotional pricing tiers such as $3 Tuesdays, Kids in Free Sundays, and throwback pricing nights. Sold via TicketReturn platform and at the David Story Field box office.
- Season Tickets Annual season ticket packages providing guaranteed seats and access to exclusive promotions and events throughout the summer season. Sold directly through the team's TicketReturn platform.
- FanFood Mobile Concessions Ordering In-venue food and beverage mobile ordering service enabling fans to order concessions (hot dogs, nachos, beer, soda) for pickup at David Story Field, enhancing fan safety and convenience.
- Team Merchandise Official Cowlitz Black Bears branded merchandise and memorabilia sold online through the team's Square storefront, available to fans and supporters.
- Live Game Streaming and Radio Broadcasts Live video streaming of games via the team's YouTube channel and audio broadcasting through radio stream, allowing fans unable to attend in person to follow games remotely.
Quantifiable outcome
- 90+ WCL alumni selected in 2019 MLB Draft
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Cowlitz Black Bears
Customer profileSegments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Cowlitz Black Bears technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration2 records
Cowlitz Black Bears partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- State Farm InsuranceminorCorporate sponsor with logo displayed on team website, providing financial support in exchange for brand visibility.
- Cowlitz Indian TribecoreMajor sponsor presenting opening night game against Portland Pickles. Significant tribal partnership providing sponsorship support.
- Odom CorporationminorCorporate sponsor providing promotional support including stein glass giveaway at games.
- Pacific Tech ConstructioncoreSponsor of drone show and fireworks events at David Story Field. Major event sponsorship.
- Western Fabrication CentercoreSponsor of drone show and fireworks events. Co-presenter of major promotional nights.
- Fibre Federal Credit UnionminorFinancial partner offering $5 discount on admission for Fibre FCU cardholders during Fibre Friday promotions.
- Bud Clary Auto GroupcoreMulti dealership auto group sponsor (Subaru, Hyundai, Ford, Chevrolet) with multiple branded entries on website.
- Kelso/Longview Chamber of CommerceminorLocal chamber partnership supporting regional business community engagement with the team.
- Lower Columbia CollegeminorLocal educational institution partner, source of local talent for the team roster.
- YouTube (@CowlitzBlackBears)minorOfficial YouTube channel for live game streaming and archived content.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Cowlitz Black Bears competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Bend Elks: Fellow West Coast League member and South Division rival of the Cowlitz Black Bears, playing a similar collegiate summer wood-bat schedule at Vince Genna Stadium in Bend, Oregon, with comparable ticketing, sponsorship, and community-entertainment model.
- Ridgefield Raptors: West Coast League rival competing in the same South Division and engaged in the annual 'Columbia River Cup' series with Cowlitz, sharing identical ticket/sponsorship/concessions business model at a nearby Pacific Northwest ballpark.
- Yakima Valley Pippins: WCL counterpart and divisional opponent with the same collegiate summer baseball format, playing at Yakima County Stadium with parallel ticketing, sponsorship, and broadcast operations.
- Portland Pickles: WCL member and recurring Cowlitz opponent, operating a comparable entertainment-first collegiate summer baseball franchise in the Portland metro with similar fan-engagement and merchandise revenue streams.
- Wenatchee AppleSox: Long-running WCL franchise in Wenatchee, WA, sharing identical league structure, ticket pricing tiers, and small-market Pacific Northwest sponsorship ecosystem as the Black Bears.
- Corvallis Knights: WCL member with a similarly established college-summer brand and comparable operational footprint, competing for Division I talent and regional sponsorship dollars in the Pacific Northwest.
- Bellingham Bells: WCL North Division team playing the same collegiate summer wood-bat schedule with parallel ticket, concession, and community-camp programming in the Pacific Northwest.
- Victoria HarbourCats: WCL member based in Victoria, BC, operating the same collegiate summer baseball league structure and similar family-entertainment positioning for a comparable-sized Pacific Northwest market.
- Kelowna Falcons: WCL franchise in Kelowna, BC with the same league operating model and overlapping regional sponsor base, providing a directly comparable collegiate summer baseball product.
Broad incumbents
- Cape Cod League: The most prestigious collegiate summer baseball league in North America, serving a similar developmental talent and family-entertainment role at a larger scale and providing the closest category-level benchmark for the Cowlitz Black Bears' WCL franchise.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cowlitz Black Bears social profiles
Digital presenceCowlitz Black Bears financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cowlitz Black Bears leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Cowlitz Black Bears funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cowlitz Black Bears M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cowlitz Black Bears
What does Cowlitz Black Bears do?
The Cowlitz Black Bears operate a collegiate summer baseball team competing in the West Coast League wood-bat league at David Story Field in Longview, Washington. The team sells single-game and season tickets, in-venue concessions, team merchandise, and promotional event experiences to local fans and families during a May–August summer season.
Is Cowlitz Black Bears a public or private company?
Cowlitz Black Bears is a private company. It is classified as unknown and is currently operating.
When was Cowlitz Black Bears founded?
Cowlitz Black Bears was founded in 2010. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Cowlitz Black Bears based?
Cowlitz Black Bears is headquartered in Ridgefield, United States, in the North America region.
How does Cowlitz Black Bears make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Ticket Sales are the primary driver. The others are concessions and Food Service, sponsorships and Advertising and merchandise Sales.
Who are Cowlitz Black Bears's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Bend Elks, Ridgefield Raptors, Yakima Valley Pippins, Portland Pickles, Wenatchee AppleSox, Corvallis Knights, Bellingham Bells, Victoria HarbourCats and Kelowna Falcons. Cape Cod League is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does Cowlitz Black Bears have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cowlitz Black Bears.
What industry is Cowlitz Black Bears in?
Cowlitz Black Bears's product category is Sports Entertainment. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAKAAAC, Baseball & Softball Leagues, with a secondary code of CRAMAOAF, Team & League Branded Merchandise Retail (Non-Apparel). Its NAICS code is 45911 and its SIC code is 7997.