Stringer — for journalists.
Everything you need to write about Stringer in one page. Quotes are pre-approved — use freely. Need anything else? Email max@joinstringer.com.
The 3-line summary
Stringer is a new publication that pays current interns at top companies to write first-person, week-by-week journals about what their roles are actually like. Founded by Max Gilletz, a Concordia student, and launching Tuesday, July 21, 2026. Founding writers receive phantom equity in the company plus 75% of subscription revenue from subscribers they refer.
Why this matters (the angles)
- Glassdoor angle. Glassdoor sold to Recruit Holdings for $1.2B in 2018 on data sanitized by the companies it reviews. Stringer chose subscription revenue over ad revenue specifically so content can stay raw.
- Substack-vertical angle. Substack hit $45M ARR / $1.1B valuation in mid-2025 on named, paid writers. The vertical no one owns is the intersection — first-person intern journals, paywalled, with the writer's name on it.
- Gen Z labor angle. Handshake reports a 15% drop in internship postings between Jan 2023 and Jan 2025; tech postings dropped 30%+. Applications surged. Students are desperate for real signal.
- Creator-founder angle. Solo founder using personal IG/TikTok audience as both supply (writer recruiting) and demand (reader acquisition) seed channel.
- Bootstrapped angle. Built from Montréal, no VC pre-launch, founding writers get phantom equity instead of cash stipends.
Pre-approved quotes
"Glassdoor's paying customers are the same companies being reviewed. They have to sanitize. Stringer chose subscription revenue specifically so content can stay raw."— Max Gilletz, Founder
"I didn't do one of these internships myself. But a lot of my friends did, and the gap between what they told me over coffee and what's on Glassdoor is the entire reason this exists."— Max Gilletz, Founder
"Founding writers don't get a salary — they get phantom equity in Stringer plus 75% of every subscriber they refer. The pitch is: be a co-owner, not a freelancer."— Max Gilletz, Founder
Key facts
- Company
- Stringer Media Inc. (Delaware C-Corporation, post-incorporation)
- Founded
- April 2026
- Launch date
- Tuesday, July 21, 2026
- Founder
- Max Gilletz, Concordia University student, Montréal
- Headquarters
- Montréal, Québec
- Domain
- joinstringer.com
- Funding
- Bootstrap (no outside capital pre-launch)
- Reader pricing
- $9/month or $79/year (planned). Founding Reader rate $69/year permanent for first 1,000 waitlist signups.
- Writer comp
- Founding cohort (capped at 7): 0.25% phantom equity + 75% subscription revenue from subscribers they refer + $10/paid-sub bonus. No upfront cash.
About Max Gilletz
Max Gilletz is a Concordia University student in Montréal, founder of Stringer Media Inc. Before Stringer, Max built PULSE (a fitness-focused dating app, currently paused) and runs studio.maxgilletz.com, a Montréal-based design studio. He's been creating career and lifestyle content under @maxgilletz on Instagram and TikTok for ~20 months.
Max didn't do these internships himself — but a lot of his friends have, and the gap between what they tell him over coffee and what's published on Glassdoor is what convinced him this had to exist.
Sources for the stats above
Logo + brand assets
Logo files (SVG + PNG) and founder photo coming once design pass + photo shoot complete. Email max@joinstringer.com for advance access.
Direct line
Max Gilletz · Founder, Stringer · max@joinstringer.com
Available for interviews, on-record commentary, or background. Fastest channel: email.