Chris Ferrell founded SouthComm, Inc., in the fall of 2007 as a company purposed to acquire and develop niche media properties. SouthComm now operates six weekly publications in five cities in the Southeast and Midwest. The company also publishes monthly magazines in those local markets as part of its strategy to “unbundle the daily paper” and give advertisers vehicles for delivering targeted messages while serving readers who need local news and information. The company is the second largest chain of alt-weeklies in the country and also operates a chain of monthly medical newspapers and several local business and consumer magazines.
In addition to the family of local publications, SouthComm, Inc., also operates SouthComm Publishing and Target Marketing, a custom publishing and map company that serves the largest customer base of chambers of commerce in the country.
The most recent division of the company, SouthComm Digital, taps into Ferrell’s experience with Internet marketing in the late 90’s and early 2000’s when he served in a marketing capacity with CitySearch and Telalink before starting his own Internet marketing firm.
Prior to founding SouthComm, Inc., Ferrell, who holds a B.A. from Furman University and a M.Div. from Vanderbilt Divinity School, served as publisher of the Nashville Scene, Middle Tennessee's only alternative newsweekly.
In addition to his professional career, Ferrell has always been active in the community. In 1995 he was elected to the first of two terms served on Nashville’s Metropolitan Council. While a Councilman At-Large, he was best known for his work launching the city’s affordable housing initiative and for advocating for the expansion of Nashville’s anti-discrimination ordinance.
Ferrell maintains his involvement in community and volunteer efforts by serving as a board member of the Baptist Healing Trust. He is a member of Glendale Baptist Church and the Downtown Rotary Club.
Ferrell and his wife, Molly, have three children: sons, Jackson and Patrick, and daughter, Walden.
