NEWS RELEASE

AUGUST 12, 2011

First Minister announces boost for Perthshire Business Tourism

A consortium of Perthshire businesses, including Scone Palace, St Johnstone FC and Perth Racecourse, has been awarded £18,500 by VisitScotland to help market the region as a top destination for conferences and exhibitions, First Minister Alex Salmond announced today (Friday).

The Perthshire Business Tourism Group, which comprises 13 businesses, was given the cash boost from the VisitScotland Growth Fund.

The national tourism organisation has match-funded the £37,000 project, which also includes a £4,500 contribution from Perth and Kinross Council, to pay for marketing activity such as arranging press trips, utilising social media and producing a promotional video.

Mr Salmond made the announcement at Perth Racecourse, one of the partners in the Perthshire Business Tourism Group.

Mr Salmond said: “Perthshire has beautiful scenery that attracts many thousands of tourists each year, driving the local economy and helping businesses thrive.

“As well as leisure tourism, Perthshire is an ideal location for business tourists, with some fantastic venues that can host conferences, seminarsand other events. Today's announcement will help local firms take greater advantage of this lucrative market,driving further growth and bringing even more jobs to the area.”

Sam Morshead, Chairman of the Perthshire Business Tourism Group and General Manager of Perth Racecourse, said: “Receiving the funding from the VisitScotland Growth Fund is fantastic news for the Perthshire Business Tourism Group in terms of promoting year-round business tourism in the area.

“Thanks to VisitScotland’s funding, we can now move forward with our aim to position and raise the profile of Perthshire as a business destination. There is no doubt that Perthshire is capable of competing with Glasgow and Edinburgh and other Scottish destinations. The VisitScotland Growth Fund award, combined with funds from Perth and Kinross Council and the support from VisitScotland’s team, will allow us to move forward andimplement an exciting marketing and PR campaign.”

Mr Cantlay added: “Business tourism is worth more than £800 million to the Scottish economy and it is great to see these Perthshire businesses getting together to promote their region. Perthshire has a lot to offer the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) market and this VisitScotland Growth Fund award and the efforts of the Perthshire Business Tourism Group will further enhance its reputation as a business tourism destination.”

The VisitScotland Growth Fund allows businesses to apply for a total of
£1 million of funding over the next three years to help market their product to its maximum potential.

It builds on the success of the European Union-supported Growth Fund, which saw VisitScotland, along with the EU, hand out a million pounds to local marketing groups throughout the country.

The VisitScotland Growth Fund is open to Destination Organisations (DOs) and industry groups. It can support groups with up to 50 per cent (from £5,000 to £65,000) of their marketing costs to develop and deliver new marketing activity, to help them reach new target markets, increase visitor numbers and create the environment for visitors to do more, spend more and stay longer.

ENDS

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For further information contact:

Tom Maxwell
Corporate Press Officer
Tel: 0131 472 2409

Out of hours pager number: 07699 766986

The Perthshire Business Partnership Group includes:

Perth Racecourse

Perth Concert Hall

Gleneagles

Scone Palace

St Johnstone Football Club

Crieff Hydro

BlueSky Experiences

Dunkeld Hilton

Blair Castle and Atholl Estates

Atholl Palace Hotel

Murrayshall Hotel and Conference Centre

Famous Grouse Experience

The Green Hotel Golf and Leisure Resort

Notes to Editors

  • VisitScotland is Scotland’s national tourism organisation. Its core purpose is to maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland.
  • The organisation has three key roles:

1.To market Scotland to all parts of the world to attract visitors

2.To provide information – and inspiration – to visitors and potential visitors so they get the best out of a visit to Scotland

3.To provide quality assurance to visitors and quality advice to the industry and partners to help the industry meet and strive to exceed customer expectations

  • VisitScotland works together with tourism businesses to make tourism a success for everyone and ensure the industry continues to grow.
  • The organisation employs 700 people and has offices and tourist information centres across Scotland.
  • Tourism employs 270,000 people in Scotland in 20,000 diverse businesses. Almost 16 million tourists take overnight trips to Scotland. The industry generates
    £11 billion revenue annually (including day visits). Tourism supports around 10 per cent of employment in Scotland
  • For VisitScotland’s press releases go to tourism statistics and frequently asked questions go to holiday information on Scotland go to information about business tourism in Scotland go to more information on VisitScotland’s annual review please go to