Modestas Mankus, the founder of Talks Media Group, has just launched Dusty Mag, a digital-first publication looking at the bits of art, culture, and design people usually skip over.
He’s best known for building Our Culture, a well-read arts and culture site, and Talks Grow, a content marketing agency for e-commerce brands. With Dusty Mag, he’s trying to find readers who want something a bit slower and more thoughtful in a world where most content vanishes from memory in about five seconds.
“There’s a lot of stuff online, but very little of it lasts,” Mankus told Forbes. “Dusty Mag is about making something people actually want to come back to — not just scroll past.”
Dusty Mag plans to cover everything from little-known subcultures to half-forgotten design trends, all put together with a strong eye for visuals. The focus is on stories you can actually sink into, with a balance that’s smart but not the sort of thing you’d need a dictionary to get through.
This is where Mankus thinks there’s a space in the market — somewhere between quick-hit pop culture blogs and the dense world of academic journals. “We want to be interesting without trying too hard, visual without feeling empty,” he says.
The plan isn’t just about posting articles. There will be seasonal print editions designed more like keepsakes than something you toss in the recycling. Brand partnerships, one-off merch drops, and events that tie into the magazine’s themes are already in the pipeline. There’s talk of teaming up with artists too, which could help the brand spill over into other corners of culture.
Mankus has done this sort of thing before. Our Culture built a big, loyal audience by staying consistent, and Talks Grow has become a go-to content partner for a bunch of e-commerce companies. Those two ventures give him a starting point most new publications can only dream about.
