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Substack
Platform for writers & podcasters
- 501-1000 employees
- B2C
- Publishing
- Digital Media
- The East Cut, San Francisco, CA
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Company mission
To give thinkers, writers, and creatives the opportunity to pursue their curiosity and make money at the same time.
Few candidates hear
back within 2 weeks
62% employee growth in 12 months
Our take
Substack provides an online platform for journalists and writers to manage subscription-based newsletters. Substack has attracted a range of writers and publishers who wish to connect with their audiences while being removed from social media and other ad-based models.
For an industry that has seen a steady decline in its fortunes since the rise of digital, Substack offers journalism an alternative to the advertising-driven clickbait-focused model that has dominated the last decade. Substack has amassed more than 35 million subscribers.
The subscription newsletter space is a competitive market, but Substack claims to provide greater freedom to writers than its competitors. Writers produce their newsletters on the site for free, charging an optional subscription fee (minimum of $5/month) of which Substack takes 10%. The company continues to seek out ways to diversify its offerings.
Steph
Company Specialist at Welcome to the Jungle
Benefits
- Company holidays and Winter shutdown - In addition to flexible time off, we honor 12 paid holidays annually on average. And we close the office between Christmas Eve and New Year's day to recharge each year
- Remote work support - All employees receive a generous allowance to customize their home offices
- Comprehensive health care - Substack covers 100% of premiums for employees and their dependents, and fully funds HRA plans
- Parental leave - We want employees to be fully present for the new members of their family, so we offer generous parental leave
- Flexible vacation and paid time off - You’re the best person to decide when you need a day—or a week—off to travel or decompress. Our flexible vacation policy puts you in control
- Phone & internet stipends - Many of our employees work from home or on the go. So we offer full time employees a monthly stipend to cover for phone and internet costs
Company values
- What you read matters - So we hire people who care deeply about reading and writing
- Subscriptions are better than ads - The business model matters – subscriptions put readers and writers in charge, and they create an incentive system that fosters great work
- We work in service of writers - Our teams build both for and with writers, providing Substack writers with the best terms, services, tools, and programs on offer
- We believe in the free press and in free speech - We do not believe these things can be decoupled. You can read more about our views on content moderation on our blog
Funding (last 2 of 6 rounds)
Nov 2024
$10m
ANGEL
Apr 2023
$7.8m
LATE VC
Total funding: $100.3m
This company has top investors
Leadership
Chris Best
(CEO)After several software internships, they co-founded Kik Interactive in 2009, serving as CTO until 2017. At this stage, they founded Substack, and have served as CEO ever since.
Hamish McKenzie
(Chief Writing Officer)Previously a journalist for several publications include The Independent and Time Out. Lead Writer for Tesla and Editorial Advisor to Kik Interactive.
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