YORKSHIRE-based outdoor advertising business CP Media has been awarded the media contract for ferry service operator CalMac Ferries.

The firm said it will roll out a major upgrade of media sites across all 33 CalMac ferries, ranging from traditional print to the latest digital screens.

These will "showcase the region’s rich variety of businesses to tourists and members of the local communities that regularly use and depend on the service", the agency said.

CP Media has two offices in Yorkshire and more than 40 employees.

It provides "bespoke advertising and sponsorship services that enable local authorities and transport providers to capitalise on their assets".

It comes as CalMac, the UK's largest ferry operator transporting more than five million passengers a year to the Clyde, West Coast and Hebridean Islands, struggles against issues with its ageing fleet, cancellations and delays in replacement vessels.

Robbie Drummond, managing director of CalMac, said: “The ferry service provides an everyday lifeline service to West Coast communities and is a vital part of the tourism industry in Scotland.

"This strategic partnership will support our revenues and enable continued investment in these hugely important services for the area's community and economy.”

Mike Brennan, chief executive at CP Media, said: “This contract represents a key win, further extending our media coverage across Scotland, which includes outdoor sites in Edinburgh, Dundee and all the Scottish Highlands and Islands airports.

"This important contract also enhances our national media coverage of 10,000 outdoor advertising sites across the UK on roadsides, stadiums, retail environments and at 23 regional UK airports.”

CP Media was named number 78 in the UK in the top founder-led private businesses of 2022, awarded by FEBE Growth 100. The group reported a 40% increase in revenue for the 2021 financial year.

A CP Media spokesperson said it was unable to disclose the value of the contract. A CalMac spokesperson said the contract value is "commercially sensitive information".


Scottish Enterprise reaps record returns on small firms

ECONOMIC development agency Scottish Enterprise generated a record amount of income from its investments in early-stage companies during the year to April, but the value and volume of new deals fell following the withdrawal of Covid support funding.

The agency, which has been investing alongside the private sector in young firms since 2003, generated £106.6 million from the sale of stakes in companies such as Edinburgh-based Current Health and Smarter Grid Solutions, a spin-out from the University of Strathclyde.


Scottish law firm boosts its rural practice​

SHEPHERD and Wedderburn has boosted the ranks of its rural team with the addition of six lawyers.

The new recruits are spearheaded by two specialists in agricultural law, Petra Grunenberg and Ellen Eunson.


​​​​Sign up for free: You can now get the briefing sent direct to your email inbox twice-daily, and Business Week for the seven-day round-up on Sunday 👇

 

The Herald: