Next Generation Media 2021

In a nutshell: MPowered Women is a community hub of expert information, support and inspiration, giving women the resources and knowledge they need to "power through the menopause."

Why it’s an NGM: Drawing on decades of experience in media, marketing, and e-commerce, the co-founders epitomise Next-Gen Media. Personal experience showed there was nothing out there for the 50% of the population that will experience menopause (talk about an underserved audience!), so the founders decided to start something up. With a fast-growing community and a business model based on DTC revenues and brand partnerships, MPowered Women is building a totally new media business model fit for a post-advertising world.

Channels: Website - 15k+ MAUs (GA) / Newsletter / Instagram (10k) / Twitter / Facebook

In a nutshell: The people's voice of Greater Manchester.

Why it’s an NGM: A counterpoint to the decline in local news media' hyperlocal' social publisher The Manc has grown its audience by focusing on the City of Manchester's tight-knit community. The Manc aims to be less reliant on viral video than other social publishers. And as a result The Manc's social interaction and engagement has surpassed that of the Manchester Evening News.

Channels: Website (204k MAU) / Facebook (669k) / Instagram (163k) Twitter (185k)

In a nutshell: LoveCrafts is a global e-commerce and community destination for crafters..

Why it’s an NGM: LoveCrafts is a startup that builds social marketplaces for the passionate crafts sector. It is an excellent example of community-powered commerce that has proved to be a global success and recently raised significant funding to scale internationally, growing its US footprint.

Channels: Website (3.4m MAU ) / newsletter / Facebook (33k) / Instagram (107k) / Pinterest (371k) / YouTube (53.5k subscribers)

In a nutshell: MOB Kitchen is an online cooking and content platform.

Why it’s an NGM: Mob Kitchen has successfully built its community of Millennial and Gen-Z food lovers by combining cultural touchpoints and platforms across social, book publishing, music soundtracks and real-life experiences at festivals and events.

Channels: Website (261.7k) / newsletter / Instagram (667k) Facebook (259k) / Twitter (18.6k) / Youtube 13.6k / TikTok (617k) / Spotify (3.7k) / Reddit (67.4k)

In a nutshell: A startup community and media business helping legal professionals to learn, achieve and share.

Why it’s an NGM: What started as a media/learning and development resource for the legal profession, especially in-house general counsel, Crafty Counsel has developed into a community proposition spanning exclusive content, events, virtual meetups, learning resources. Crafty Counsel is a serious disruptor to established legal media/community sites. It is where in-house lawyers/general counsel, and others, exchange ideas to change the client experience of law.

Channels: Website / newsletter / Linkedin (5k) / Twitter (2k) Instagram (1k)

In a nutshell: Thred Media is a multi-award-winning media, publishing, consulting and production company aimed at Generation Z. "Shaped by youth culture, powered by social change."

Why it’s an NGM: Perhaps the most Next Gen of all on this list, Thred Media’s mission is to "create a place where young people can share trending topics while engaging in dialogue about the issues that are relevant to their generation." Thred Media is their commercial arm, aiming to connect brands with "the most genuine, credible and cutting-edge Gen Z talents globally to help develop their brand and become an active part of youth culture today... (by producing) content that reflects the interests and true-life experiences of young people and drives the conversation among them".

Channels: Website (23k) / newsletter / Instagram (89.7k) Facebook (21k) / Twitter (1.8k) / Youtube (619k+ views) / Discord / Snapchat.
@thredmag

In a nutshell: SEASON Zine is a unique mix of football fanzine and fashion magazine.

Why it’s an NGM: Launched to counter the male, pale and sometimes stale state of modern football culture and to explore the evolving interplay between fashion, football and personal style, SEASON is both a community and a creative platform. SEASON tells football and fashion stories (always one, sometimes both) that showcase, celebrate and empower female fans, whether they play or not. All the while covering important issues, dispelling stereotypes, emphasising inclusivity and collaborating with exciting creative talent.

Channels: Website / newsletter/ Instagram (14.4k) Facebook (1k) / Twitter (1.7k) / Podcast

In a nutshell: Go Jauntly invites you into a world of outdoor adventure. Find local walks created by the people who love and know them, discover the greenest walking routes, create your own routes and share them with your friends, family and the growing Go Jauntly community.

Why it’s an NGM: Go Jauntly launched in 2017 but took off during the 2020 lockdown when walking became the primary form of exercise. This community-led platform allows you to find walking routes from expertly curated guides to user-created walks, create your own, adding content about the course. But it's not just a walking app. Go Jauntly has added walk & talk podcast content. They use AI to plot the 'greenest' walking routes wherever you happen to be. They have developed a 'green prescription that brings together walking, wellbeing and enhanced nature connectedness -using 'doses of nature' to improve wellness and mental health. The app is free to download, with revenue coming from content partnerships with local authorities, transport and public health NGOs promoting walking, via premium subscriptions for businesses seeking to support their employees' wellness, from digitising existing paper-based walking maps by offering anonymised pedestrian data, and the design and build of location-based apps and services.

Channels: App - IoS and Androind

In a nutshell: The world’s most uplifting news magazine. 

Why it’s an NGM: While most news is about what’s going wrong, Positive News focuses on what’s going right. Online and as a print magazine, it offers rigorous journalism about progress that’s happening in the world. Having raised investment from readers through a community shares crowdfunding campaign, Positive News is accountable to its reader-owners, who get to elect its board, and its profits are reinvested in its journalism. Its revenue is centred on magazine subscriptions and online membership, as well as branded content which is exclusively for purpose-driven companies.

Channels: Website (150k) / Facebook (273k) / Twitter: (63k) / Instagram (34k) / LinkedIn (3k) / Email (40k subs) / Magazine (10k subs) / Print Circulation (15k) / Reader Investors (1.5k)

In a nutshell: Bywire is the first network in the world to publish content (not just the timestamp and/or hash of the content) directly to the blockchain with all content time & author stamped for accountability.

Why it’s an NGM: Bywire is a contender for the most Next-Gen of all the Next-Gen media on this list. With a Decentralised Autonomous Organisation (DAO) structure, a community-based network of independent publishers, a business built on the blockchain, income based on crypto tokens and a private, democratic ad network (plus AI-enabled personalisation of content), what could be more Next-Gen? Content on the platform comes from independent reporters and publishers with all content - and edits - published to the blockchain, ensuring that source and any updates are transparent. ByWire has assured all user data is encrypted and anonymised. Income is generated from fees on trading of ByWire's Wirebiit crypto token and value growth. The Wirebit token is a utility token, which ByWire's audience members earn in return for consuming content, and which they can use to 'tip' the creators whose content they value. 

Channels: 'Estimated monthly website audience of 50k (Source: Sifted) / Newsletter / Facebook (68k) / Twitter (13k) / Instagram / Telegram / Reddit

In a nutshell: Shoot is a gardening resource and app providing community members with tools including a plant identifier, personalised garden plan and plant database to create and manage their own or their client's gardens without the need for heavy reference books.

Why it’s an NGM: Shoot benefits from a business model that is both direct to consumer and business to business. Gardening amateurs and professional designers can subscribe to access Shoot's vast knowledge base and design tools. The platform also benefits from the community-generated content and peer to peer community management, enabling the site to offer fresh new content constantly.

Channels: Website (477k)/ Twitter (35.5K)/ Facebook (3.8K) / Pinterest (39k)

In a nutshell: Through a quarterly print magazine, daily updated website, weekly newsletter and experiential events, Suitcase hope to change the way you travel, with the ultimate aim of bridging cultures and connecting people.

Why it’s an NGM: With a strapline "The Culture of Travel' a community-focused approach and a mission to 'change the way you travel', Suitcase defines the next generation of travel media (see also Trippin from VIDA's 2020 NGM list) and on the B2B side, Skift. Perhaps surprisingly, Suitcase had its best-ever year in magazine sales during lockdown when physical travel became harder or impossible. Like many next-gen media businesses, the pandemic saw a drop in advertising income and has led Suitcase to develop its e-commerce offering, inspired by Food52's success with dropshipping. 

Channels: Print Magazine / Website (146k monthly users) / Newsletter / Facebook (83.5k) / Twitter (31k followers) / Instagram (257k)

In a nutshell: According to CrunchBase: Eastnine is “building a no bullshit fitness platform” with on-demand group training sessions, structured coaching and creative fitness content. A community-driven club connecting people worldwide, Eastnine is made by athletes for athletes of all abilities. 

Why it’s an NGM: By leveraging the remote/at-home fitness trend that was already taking off pre-pandemic thanks to the widespread adoption of connected devices, Eastnine is supporting and enabling the talent of the creator economy to monetise its expertise with its platform for PTs and coaches. It is growing a community via social, audio and video content by making fitness more attainable and enjoyable.

Channels: Website / App / Instagram (5k)

In a nutshell: Fresh Thinking on the climate emergency.

Why it’s one to watch: A new launch from one of the co-creators of Courier Magazine (which featured in the 2020 Next-Gen Media list) Field7 will "shine a light on the forces shaping spiraling temperatures and unearth the most interesting projects going on right now which could bring about its reversal." Field7 is very much a community play, seeking to "empower our community with simple tools and ideas and make an impact."

In a nutshell: Governments won't save the planet. People, enterprise and tech, might, though.

Why it’s one to watch: A 2021 launch from the people behind the Vegan Curious and Global Goals podcasts, Transition Earth is a new media platform that looks at how individuals, enterprises, technology, NGOs and startups are shaping a better world. Transition Earth targets an audience of investors, entrepreneurs, executives in NGOs and charities - and anyone who believes that people and businesses can impact society - to meet the UN Global Goals.

In a nutshell: A digital magazine featuring stories from new and established writers that are important because they resonate

Why it’s one to watch: In the words of the sulk team, "We don't care about big bylines or what connections you have. sulk champions voices from a wide array of journalists and commentators, and we will do our best to respond to every single pitch, even if it isn't for us. While we prioritise new writers and those with diverse backgrounds and experiences, anyone with something to say is welcome to pitch to us. We started sulk because we are all tired of the overwhelmingly exclusionary nature of journalism. It shouldn't be about who you know or whether you can afford to intern for free in London. It should be about your talent, your voice and the stories you can tell.

In a nutshell: AZEEMA is a platform for women women and non-binary folk within the Middle East, North Africa and South Asia diasporas and BEYOND

Why it’s one to watch: AZEEMA challenges and confronts issues surrounding representation and diversity of this underserved audience by creating a space that is inclusive and celebratory of it’s communities cultures. A truly multi platform brand that incorporate a print magazine, online platform, radio station, community and creative agency.

In a nutshell: A fiercely independent magazine with a unique creative community at its heart and a vision to create a shift in the cultural landscape. The Delicate Rébellion challenges the perception of women in mainstream media.

Why it’s one to watch: Driven by purpose and inspired by the founder's personal experience, The Delicate Rébellion started as a magazine created for - and together with - "designers, creatives and makers turning their passions into careers". It has grown into a thriving subscription community - The Collective - providing mentorship via workshops and events, a directory and an e-commerce platform to support members and promote their work. Multi-channel, multiple revenue streams, totally focused on community, with a clear, timely purpose and ambition to grow, The Delicate Rébellion and founder Hannah Taylor are undoubtedly ones to watch.

In a nutshell: A quarterly business and lifestyle glossy magazine for a freelance life less ordinary.

Why it’s one to watch: Launching a business with niche, targeted content for the freelancers of the creative economy feels like perfect timing when more and more people are choosing or having to embrace flexible working. Founder Sophie Cross draws on her own freelance career experience to deliver relevant, helpful content and grow community - literally in the case of the magazine's current issue, "The Community Edition."

In a nutshell: Pennies to Pounds is a financial literacy platform created to empower people to shape their future with knowledge.

Why it’s one to watch: Pennies To Pounds is a ‘Moneysavingexpert’ for Gen Z. A growing platform and community that has worked alongside many different brands and partners to curate and deliver a variety of events and multi platform content & resources centred around improving the communities understanding of the complex personal finance sector.