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Independent weekly claims half-year readership boost

Tom SinclairAn independent newspaper has claimed an increase in readership during the first half of the year.

The Pembrokeshire Herald says sales of the newspaper increased by 4.6pc when compared to August to December 2014, giving it an estimated readership of 17,700 per week at present.

The figures are yet to be independently audited and were provided to the Herald by accountant Menzies.

The Herald first published in July 2013 with the aim of filling a “gap in the market” for news and sport across its patch.

Earlier this year its publisher Megagroup launched its sister Carmarthenshire and Llanelli Herald titles, which the company says are selling a combined total of 3,300 copies a week at present.

Editor Tom Sinclair, pictured above left, has welcomed the new figures.

He said: “We are still very much the new kid on the block, but I am pleased that we are gaining readers at a time when newspaper readership is in general decline.

“We put this down to our paper taking a more vocal role in community matters, and including stories and content that other papers may choose to avoid.

“This has, I believe, allowed us to gain and retain a good customer base. Our readers are the people who really care about our county.”

He added: “The challenge now is to establish ourselves with our new products in Carmarthenshire.

“The Llanelli and Carmarthenshire Herald titles have been doing well, gaining ground in a very short time with our competitors in that area making a big effort to ensure we do not get a foothold.
“But, against all the odds we have made new progress. We have a long way to go however, before these two new titles are at the sales level of our flagship publication.”

4 comments

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  • July 27, 2015 at 10:02 am
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    Indies must be the way forward for print. Too many got swallowed and ruined by the likes of JP NQ et al.

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  • July 27, 2015 at 11:11 am
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    Exactly, olderhack, just as people are increasingly turning to small independent retailers, micro-breweries and the like. There is still money in local news, and outfits like the one described here can turn a nice little profit without hierarchies of useless, overpaid suits to “reward”.

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  • July 27, 2015 at 12:31 pm
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    I was on holiday there in spring and thoroughly enjoyed the Herald. Keep it up, folks.

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  • July 28, 2015 at 1:03 am
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    Bobby Fandango no like this “herald” *spits on floor*

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