Strategic consulting for media companies, content-driven brands, and early-stage founders, from revenue architecture and brand reinvention to team building, operational growth, and investor readiness.
We focus on the specific challenge at hand — whether that's revenue, product, people, or all three.
Michael is a national award-winning media executive who has spent more than two decades doing two things at once: building beautiful content and making it profitable. He's founded, transformed, and scaled media brands at every stage — from scrappy independent startups to national publishing groups backed by private equity to non-profits.
As President of the Magazine Division at Sonoma Media Investments, he rebuilt the business from the ground up — editorial, design, sales, events, and digital — quadrupling revenue in year one and doubling it again, as well as winning multiple national editorial awards. As Chief Revenue Officer at City Cast (Graham Holdings), he built a 20-person national sales team and drove the company into the mid-seven figures. As CEO and founder of Berkshire Living, he created a nationally recognized, award-winning regional media brand from nothing.
Michael has been rated a "Maverick" by the Predictive Index — innovative, influential, daring, and direct. He doesn't consult from a slide deck. He rolls up his sleeves and gets it done.
Velvet Hammer works with media companies, regional publishers, digital news outlets, and content-driven brands that are ready to grow — whether that means reinventing a legacy product, building a revenue team from scratch, or launching something entirely new.
Every engagement starts with a conversation. Tell us where you are and where you want to go.
