By Tyler Allen Explorebigsky.com Staff Writer/Distribution Director
Produced in Big Sky, the Weekly has been increasing its scope and readership since the Outlaw Partners purchased it in 2010. Since our content includes feature stories, profiles, events, and notable businesses throughout the Greater Yellowstone, reaching our readership with every issue takes a coordinated effort.
Our designer sends the final proof of the Weekly to River’s Edge Printing in Great Falls on the Wednesday before publication. From there, hundreds of copies are mailed around the country, and thousands more are shipped to a FedEx transfer station in Belgrade early Friday morning.
A dexterous forklift operator moves the shrink-wrapped pallets to the loading dock, where I cut them open to reveal the final product of weeks of chasing stories, attending meetings, writing, editing and design.
Behind the wheel of a gold-colored van, with coffee as ammunition, I begin the distribution blitzkrieg.
As an auxiliary Outlaw vehicle takes an initial load of papers to our devoted readership in Big Sky, I hit Belgrade, and then roll to Bozeman, where I meet our Livingston and Gardiner distributors, Paul and his dog Pecos. We load hundreds of papers into his “red limousine,” a late- ‘90s, Saab 900 hatchback, and we part ways.
From there, I drop papers at many of our major Bozeman distribution points, including the public library, the hospital, numerous coffee shops along Main Street and grocery stores on Huffine and 19th.
Next is Four Corners, with a stop to see Steve and Mary Lou at the Ditch for a shot in the dark (coffee with a shot of espresso) and the occasional breakfast sandwich. Arriving in Big Sky, I deliver the Weekly to Ophir School, to restaurants and fly shops along Highway 191, and to businesses throughout the Meadow Village and Town Center. When the lifts are turning, hundreds of copies go to the base lodges and resort hotels.
Since January 2013, we’ve launched a major distribution expansion in Bozeman as our content continually expands.
As the largest city in the Greater Yellowstone region, Bozeman is a conduit for travelers, particularly at the Bozeman Yellowstone International Airport, who scoop up hundreds of copies of each issue.
We now distribute the Weekly from more than 100 locations in Bozeman, including 33 new spots since Jan. 1, 2013. From Main Street to 19th Ave, to the south side of town, we’re excited to find readers picking up our publication at doctors’ offices, new restaurants, and stalwart shops throughout the valley.
And wherever you find yourself opening these pages – be it in Big Sky, Bozeman, West Yellowstone or San Francisco – we appreciate your support of print media. As long as we have readers like you, we’ll continue these efforts to get the Weekly into your hands.
