Courier Eco Latino Turns Community Ties into New Revenue Streams
The Courier Eco Latino, a small, bilingual newspaper in Columbus, GA, became a one-man, online-only operation during the pandemic. Yet President/Publisher Wane Hailes made the most of the crisis, launching a streaming channel called CEL TV on YouTube and collaborating with regional heavyweight Davis Broadcasting on political forums and events.
With hands-on support from The Pivot Fund, Courier Eco Latino hired an editor-in-chief and created a user-friendly obituary platform that serves Columbus families, projected to generate $60,000 in revenue annually. Hailes stepped up its partnership with Davis by hosting a twice-weekly newscast on the radio network.
Pivot’s initial grant went to Courier Eco Latino and Davis Broadcasting as partners, but the Courier continued as a solo grantee in years two and three.
$100k+
in new revenue generated by newly hired digital advertising director in his first six months
$60-90k
annual revenue projected to be generated from new obituary platform
As a grantee of the Pivot Fund, our business has experienced significant transformation that has positioned us for sustainable growth well into the future.
Wane Hailes, President and Publisher of Courier Eco Latino