Establishing a new media business from nothing, today, is a tough gig.

 

Traditional news titles are seeing a decline in readership and advertising spend.

 

However, new readership data from Perthshire Business News show clear signs of optimism.

 

Steady growth

 

Six months on from ground zero, Perthshire Business News has recorded steady growth.

 

30-day stats to December 2025 showed an 88% traffic rise from the previous two months. Nearly 7000 different readers accessed the website with over 24 000 separate web events. The top story from Nov-Dec had an 89% higher click rate than the previous two months combined.

 

 

Origins

 

In late June 2025, Heartland Media and PR founder Kenneth Stephen formed a collaboration with Web Smart Media owner Marius Bezuidenhout to launch Perthshire Business News – a separate off-shoot from their main companies.

 

The fully digital, non-paywall, hyperlocal news service offered readers the opportunity to discover Perthshire’s innovative businesses whilst connecting those businesses to potential new customers.

 

Despite the founding collaborators living and working in Perthshire and the content focusing exclusively on the region, early results showed the highest readership to be in Edinburgh – and London!

 

Journey

 

“We knew at the outset – and looking at the data - that there was a lot of interest in Perthshire and Highland Perthshire, in particular.

 

“It is a destination attracting domestic and international visitors who are engaged and want to learn more about the area and the many great businesses based and operating here.

 

“The traffic stats to date, therefore, are in line with our expectations,” said Kenneth Stephen (below), who founded Heartland Media and PR in 2006.

 

 

“We want to continue to grow in 2026. We offer readers value in stories that they want to read – which is coming through in the data- and that, in turn, means value for the businesses who have been supportive of what we do.

 

“There will be many opportunities in the months ahead for more businesses to come on board and benefit from that relationship.”

 

In December, Perthshire Business News were official supports of Perth Silent Auction, an annual event which raises vital funds for deserving Perthshire charities.

 

To learn more about Perthshire Business News, visit: https://www.perthshire.net