With the increasing prevalence of paid newsletters, Snigdha Sur, the creator of the South Asia-focused media venture The Juggernaut, has deliberately chosen to forgo this model. Sur initially launched The Juggernaut in October 2017 as a complimentary newsletter known as InkMango. Her motivation stemmed from a search for news pertaining to the South Asian diaspora, discovering a lack of original reporting, repetitive aggregation of existing content, and a failure of mainstream news sources to address significant questions.

After InkMango reached a readership of 700 subscribers, Sur recognized an opportunity to establish a comprehensive media organization, extending beyond the scope of a simple newsletter.

Following a year of development and completion of the Y Combinator program, The Juggernaut has collaborated with over 100 contributors, encompassing both journalists and illustrators, to deliver insightful analysis of South Asian news. Recent articles featured on The Juggernaut include: “The Evolution of Padma Lakshmi”; “How Ancestry Test Results Became Browner”; and “How the Death of a Bollywood Actor Became a Political Proxy War.” This network-based strategy, rather than focusing solely on a newsletter, has proven effective thus far, with Sur reporting “thousands of subscribers.” Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the publication experienced a monthly net subscriber growth rate of 20% to 30%, she stated.

Building on this expansion, The Juggernaut announced today that it has secured $2 million in seed funding, led by Precursor Ventures. These funds will be allocated to hiring editors and a dedicated growth engineer, as well as to initiate new editorial projects. Additional investors in this round include Unpopular Ventures, Backstage Capital, New Media Ventures and Old Town Media. Angel investors consist of former Andreessen Horowitz general partner Balaji Srinivasan; Kabam co-founder, Holly Liu; and co-founder of the sports publication The Athletic, Adam Hansmann.

Currently, The Juggernaut offers an annual subscription for $3.99 per month, a monthly subscription at $9.99, and a lifetime subscription for $249.99. A seven-day free trial is also available, boasting a conversion rate to paid subscriptions exceeding 80%. Furthermore, a complimentary newsletter is offered to attract potential customers at the initial stage of engagement.

The Juggernaut is among a growing number of media companies prioritizing direct revenue generation through subscriptions over traditional advertising, mirroring the approaches of organizations like The Information, The Athletic, and Extra Crunch. The objective is to demonstrate that subscription-based models can be more sustainable and profitable than advertising, which remains the dominant revenue stream in the media landscape.

However, Sur is intentionally maintaining a conservative approach to expenditures in the early stages. The team presently comprises only three full-time members: Sur herself, culture editor Imaan Sheikh, and writer Michaela Stone Cross.

“It’s common for media companies to overextend with hiring and promises, only to fall short on profitability or returns,” she explained. Consequently, The Juggernaut primarily collaborates with “freelancers who likely wouldn’t seek employment with a conventional publication,” according to Sur. While the publication intends to eventually employ full-time staff writers, utilizing contributors helps to manage costs.

Beyond careful financial planning, The Juggernaut aims to expand its subscriber base by producing stories that demand in-depth, imaginative thought. The publication deliberately avoids covering readily available breaking news, which could increase traffic, or any content lacking a direct connection to South Asia.

Sur’s personal experiences inform the stories she aims to tell. Having been born in Chhattisgarh, India, and raised in the Bronx and Queens in New York City, with time spent living and working in Mumbai, India, her goal for The Juggernaut is to create a platform not only for South Asians, but for “anyone who possesses a sense of curiosity and appreciation” for South Asian culture.

“We avoid unnecessary translation of terms, we don’t aim to simplify content, and we aren’t writing for a teenage audience,” she stated. “Our intention is to write for intelligent, inquisitive individuals, assuming a certain level of existing knowledge.”