Today we’d like to introduce you to Allison Altobelli.
Hi Allison, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
My Story: Faith, Second Chances, and Finding My Purpose
My Background in the Newspaper Industry
I spent more than 20 years building my career in the newspaper industry, and I really cut my teeth at The Washington Post, where I spent almost eight years. From there, I continued developing my skills at The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. My final stop in the newspaper industry was as Vice President of Sales and Marketing at The Press of Atlantic City, right here in New Jersey.
I loved the newspaper business. I loved storytelling, connecting with communities, building relationships, and being part of something that mattered to people’s everyday lives. I didn’t realize it at the time, but everything I learned throughout my career would eventually prepare me for what I do today.
A Love Story That Started in Stone Harbor
On the personal side, my husband, Gene, and I met in college. We were both gymnasts at Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts.
The way we met is actually pretty funny. We were at a party, and I overheard him say “Stone Harbor, New Jersey” from across the room. I immediately went over to introduce myself because I had spent every summer of my childhood vacationing in Stone Harbor with my aunt and uncle.
As it turned out, Gene had also spent every summer in Stone Harbor visiting his grandmother. Even more incredibly, our families knew each other!
We fell in love and got married in 2009.
Hitting Rock Bottom
As my career began to skyrocket, unfortunately, so did my drinking.
Gene and I didn’t have children at the time, and heavy drinking had become a normal part of our social life. Somewhere along the way, my drinking transitioned from something social and frivolous into dependency. I honestly couldn’t tell you exactly when that happened.
What I do know is that I became deeply depressed and was eventually overcome by suicidal thoughts.
At the time, I convinced myself that my unhappiness was somehow my husband’s fault.
We were living in Philadelphia, and I was working at The Philadelphia Inquirer. When I received an offer for a major career opportunity at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, I saw it as my chance to start over.
So I left him.
I moved to Atlanta thinking that a new city, a new job, and a fresh start would somehow fix everything.
But I continued drinking myself into oblivion, and I was sadder than ever.
Eventually, I realized that Gene wasn’t the problem. The problem was within me.
The Day God Changed My Life
About a year after I left Gene, I was visiting friends in New York City.
One morning, I woke up on a friend’s couch, terribly hungover and feeling absolutely awful.
I remember the sunlight coming through the window on my right side. And then something happened that I still struggle to explain.
The only way I know how to describe it is that I felt the hand of God touch my left shoulder, and I heard Him whisper into my ear:
“You’re not going to drink anymore.”
That was May 14, 2017.
And I just stopped drinking.
I can’t explain it any other way. I still wanted to drink, but it was as though my body physically wouldn’t let me.
I haven’t had a drink since.
Looking back, I believe I finally understand why God sent me to Atlanta. I needed to find myself, and more importantly, I needed to find my relationship with Him.
Finding Our Way Back to Each Other
Even after getting sober, I still loved Gene.
But he was understandably very angry with me. He didn’t want to speak to me, and eventually we got divorced.
I continued reaching out periodically, and every time I prayed, I asked God when Gene would speak to me again.
And every time, I felt God telling me the same thing:
“He will speak to you when he is ready.”
When we were married, we had purchased a house in Wildwood, New Jersey. After our divorce, we decided to keep it as a rental property because selling it would have been too expensive.
In February 2020, I was flying back to the Jersey Shore to take care of some things at the house, and I reached out to Gene to ask if he would meet me for dinner.
To my surprise, he agreed.
Over dinner in South Jersey, I poured my heart out. I told him I was sober. I told him I was still in love with him. I apologized profusely, cried, and asked if he would ever consider giving us another chance, just one day at a time.
He was reluctant. He was still angry, and I certainly couldn’t blame him.
But he still loved me, too.
And he agreed that we could take things one day at a time.
Falling in Love Again During a Pandemic
At the time, I was still living in Atlanta and running a small newspaper operation in Alpharetta, Georgia, for another company.
Gene and I had planned to fly back and forth to visit each other, but just a few weeks after that dinner, the COVID-19 pandemic hit.
Suddenly, we couldn’t travel.
Instead, we started communicating through an app called Marco Polo, which allowed us to send video messages back and forth.
We talked all day long. We shared our lives, our thoughts, our feelings, and everything we had missed during our years apart.
In some ways, the pandemic gave us something we might not otherwise have had: the opportunity to really get to know each other again without any distractions.
By the time we were finally able to see each other in person in May 2020, we were already back in love.
I was able to shut down the business I was running in Georgia by the end of July, and by September 2020, I had moved back into our house in Wildwood.
By October 1, I was pregnant with our first daughter.
And on October 23, 2020, Gene and I got remarried at Wildwood Town Hall.
It still amazes me how quickly God put everything back together once the time was right.
Leaving Corporate America and Taking a Leap of Faith
After moving back to New Jersey, I reconnected with people I knew in the newspaper industry and reached out to the company that owned The Press of Atlantic City.
They hired me, and within two years, I was promoted to Vice President of Sales and Marketing.
On paper, everything looked wonderful. I had a successful executive career, a husband I loved, and a beautiful daughter, Vivian.
But professionally, I was miserable.
Private equity had fundamentally changed the newspaper industry, and so much of what I had loved about the business was disappearing.
I had spent my entire career believing in the importance of telling local stories and connecting communities. Now, instead of focusing on journalism and community engagement, much of my job involved reducing expenses and laying people off.
It had taken all the joy out of the work for me.
By early 2023, Gene and I were hoping to have a second baby, but the stress of my job was overwhelming.
Gene was my biggest supporter. He encouraged me to quit and reassured me that I would find something else.
So I did.
In August 2023, I stumbled across an organization called Best Version Media, which operates a business model similar to a franchise for hyperlocal community magazines.
I went to Gene and said something along the lines of, “Hey, do you want to put trying for another baby on hold and start a business instead?”
And he said, “Hell yeah!”
I remember thinking, “What?! This is so irresponsible!”
But something about it just felt right.
Every door seemed to be opening, and I truly believed this was where God wanted us to go.
So we signed on to launch a community magazine serving Medford and Medford Lakes, New Jersey.
I attended my training during the third week of August 2023.
And the very next Monday, I found out I was pregnant with our second baby!
I remember looking at Gene and saying, “Well, we have nine months to get this business off the ground!”
Building Our Business While Building Our Family
Those first several months were a whirlwind.
I was pregnant, nauseous, exhausted, and taking approximately 15 client meetings every week.
But we worked incredibly hard, and things began coming together beautifully.
In December 2023, we published our very first edition of Medford Living.
By the time our second daughter, April Rose, arrived in April 2024, we had grown the magazine to 32 pages with approximately 40 advertising clients.
Not long afterward, Best Version Media presented us with another opportunity. The publisher of Moorestown Living was retiring, and we were offered the chance to take over the publication.
We officially took over Moorestown Living in November 2024.
Today, we own and operate both magazines, and we’ve built our business around a philosophy that means everything to us:
For Humans. By Humans. About Humans.
Our magazines are built on four foundational principles:
They have to arrive in the mailbox. People still love reading print, but they aren’t necessarily going out of their way to pick up free publications from convenience stores or magazine racks. We deliver our magazines directly to residents’ homes.
They have to be free. People enjoy reading print, but many aren’t interested in paying for a news subscription. Our advertising partners make it possible for residents to enjoy the magazines at no cost.
They have to be hyperlocal. Medford Living is about Medford and Medford Lakes. Moorestown Living is about Moorestown. We don’t fill our pages with generic regional content. Everything is relevant to the people who live in those communities.
They have to look like Instagram in print. We live in a visual world. People have become accustomed to consuming information through photos, videos, and short-form content. Our magazines are beautifully designed, visually engaging, and filled with photos of real people, local families, businesses, and community events.
At the heart of everything we do is the belief that people still want to feel connected to the communities where they live.
Introducing MAVEN South Jersey
In February 2026, Gene left his full-time job to join me in running our businesses.
That same month, we launched the third arm of our business, MAVEN South Jersey.
MAVEN is a business matchmaking organization that I like to describe as the anti-networking organization.
Through our magazines, I’ve developed personal relationships with more than 650 local businesses throughout Burlington and Camden counties.
I realized that one of the most valuable things I could offer other business owners was access to those relationships and the ability to connect them with the right people.
Traditional networking events can be time-consuming, especially for business owners who are also raising young children, like us. And even when you attend an event, there’s no guarantee you’ll meet someone who is a good fit for your business.
MAVEN eliminates that guesswork.
Our members tell us what kinds of businesses and professionals they’d like to meet, and I personally curate one-on-one introductions based on their goals, personalities, industries, and opportunities for collaboration or referrals.
They can skip the networking events and go straight to building meaningful relationships.
We launched in February 2026, and just eight months later, we’ve grown to more than 80 members.
It’s been incredibly rewarding to watch these connections turn into friendships, referrals, collaborations, and real business opportunities.
A Life Beyond Anything I Could Have Imagined
When I look at my life today, I am sometimes completely overwhelmed with gratitude.
Gene and I get to work together, raise our two beautiful daughters, and build businesses that genuinely make a difference in our community.
We love what we do, and we don’t take any of it for granted.
God gave us a second chance at our marriage, our family, and our lives.
I wake up every morning with an attitude of gratitude because I know how easily my story could have ended differently.
I don’t know exactly why God saved me on May 14, 2017, but I know that He did.
And I believe it’s my responsibility to make the most of the life He’s given me.
For me, that means bringing as much light into the world as I possibly can, operating our businesses with integrity, helping other people succeed, and being the best wife and mother I can be.
It means creating a life where Gene and I can spend as much time as possible with Vivian and April, because at the end of the day, that’s what matters most.
What amazes me is that less than ten years ago, I was at the lowest point of my life. I was struggling with addiction, depression, and hopelessness, and I couldn’t imagine a future where I would ever feel truly happy again.
Today, my life is filled with more love, purpose, joy, and fulfillment than I ever dreamed possible.
I went from a place where I couldn’t imagine wanting to live to a life that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world.
And I truly believe that every experience along the way, even the painful ones, helped lead me exactly where I was meant to be.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
My husband Gene and I own and operate three businesses in South Jersey: Medford Living Magazine, Moorestown Living Magazine, and MAVEN South Jersey. While each serves a different purpose, they’re all built around one fundamental belief: relationships matter, and strong communities are built through meaningful human connections.
Medford Living & Moorestown Living Magazines
Our two monthly community magazines celebrate the people, families, businesses, and organizations that make our towns special.
Medford Living launched in December 2023 and serves Medford and Medford Lakes, while we took over Moorestown Living in November 2024.
Unlike traditional newspapers or regional lifestyle publications, our magazines are entirely hyperlocal. Medford Living is about Medford. Moorestown Living is about Moorestown. We feature local families on our covers, spotlight small businesses, celebrate community organizations, recognize student athletes, and share the stories that make our neighborhoods feel like home.
Both magazines are mailed directly to thousands of local households every month, completely free to residents.
Our philosophy is simple: For Humans. By Humans. About Humans.
We believe people still love print, especially when the content is relevant to their lives. We’ve also recognized that today’s readers are incredibly visual, so our magazines are designed to feel like Instagram in print, with beautiful photography, engaging layouts, and authentic local storytelling.
From a business perspective, we specialize in helping local businesses build brand awareness, credibility, and trust through consistent exposure to the communities they serve. Our advertising partners aren’t just buying ad space. They’re aligning their brands with content that residents genuinely enjoy reading and receiving every month.
MAVEN South Jersey
In February 2026, we launched MAVEN South Jersey, a business matchmaking organization serving Burlington and Camden counties.
I like to call MAVEN the “anti-networking” organization.
After more than two decades in media and several years building our local magazines, I’ve developed personal relationships with more than 650 businesses throughout South Jersey. I realized that one of the most valuable things I could offer other business owners was the ability to connect them with the right people.
Traditional networking events require a lot of time, and you never really know who you’re going to meet. MAVEN takes a completely different approach.
Our members tell us what kinds of businesses and professionals they’d like to meet, and I personally curate one-on-one introductions based on their goals, personalities, and opportunities for referrals or collaboration.
We essentially take the guesswork out of networking. Instead of spending hours at events hoping to meet the right person, our members are introduced directly to people who could help them grow their businesses.
MAVEN has grown to more than 80 members since launching in February 2026, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to watch those introductions turn into friendships, partnerships, referrals, and new business opportunities.
What Sets Us Apart
I think what makes our businesses different is that everything we do is deeply personal.
We’re not a large, faceless media company. We’re a husband-and-wife team raising two young daughters while building businesses that serve the communities where we live.
We know our advertising partners. We know our MAVEN members. We know their businesses, their goals, and oftentimes their families.
And we genuinely care about their success.
We’re also very intentional about keeping the human element at the center of everything we do. In a world increasingly dominated by artificial intelligence, automation, and digital noise, we believe authentic relationships and real human storytelling are more valuable than ever.
What We’re Most Proud Of
Brand-wise, I’m most proud that we’ve built businesses with a shared identity and purpose.
Our magazines give local residents a reason to feel proud of where they live while giving businesses a platform to become recognized and trusted members of their communities.
MAVEN takes that mission one step further by helping business owners build meaningful professional relationships with one another.
We’re not interested in simply selling advertising or collecting membership fees. We want to create genuine value for the people who trust us with their businesses.
And I think the greatest compliment we receive is when someone tells us that a connection we made, a story we published, or an opportunity we created had a positive impact on their life or business.
Ultimately, we’re in the relationship business. The magazines and MAVEN are simply three different ways we bring people together.
Our goal is to continue growing while never losing sight of what got us here in the first place: integrity, authenticity, community, and a genuine desire to help others succeed.
We’d love to hear about how you think about risk taking?
Yes, everything about starting our own business was taking a risk on ourselves. Our society conditions us to be wage workers. They don’t want independent thinkers. Gene and I never really fit into that mold. Even though I was very blessed to have fulfilling career at a lot of prominent news organizations. It wasn’t like I wasn’t the one who caused problems. I questioned leadership decisions, I vocalized my opinions, and I presented alternative solutions when I didn’t agree with the path ahead. Unfortunately in Corporate America, Those opinions are not welcome. Employees are conditioned to submit and behave. I just don’t have that inside of me. Taking a risk to start our own business was huge, but at the same time I always knew we would be successful. Gene would often bring up that scene from Back to the Future. Marty says to Doc, “What if we don’t succeed?” And doc says “we MUST succeed!” That was always our mentality getting this off the ground. I also think that our background in gymnastics was it always about pushing ourselves as hard as we could. We never lost that. We’ve found again and now applied it to growing our business – and we do it together.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://mavensj.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mavensouthjersey/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mavensouthjersey/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mavensouthjersey/
- Other: https://medfordlivingmagazine.com/
