If an award were to be presented for the best tourist guide to a small town, then Rye's would certainly be a contender. The town produces a guide bigger and better than all its neighbours: 68 pages of relevant information and a guide to local businesses, attractions and hostelries.
The Rye Bay Marketing group is currently producing the 2015 edition and is actively soliciting for advertisers and sponsors to cover the huge production and distribution costs involved. 130,000 copies of the glossy guide are produced and distributed over a radius covering the equivalent of a 3½ hour drive from Rye - which includes locations in Holland and France.
John Smith, the lead figure on the project, is having to work harder on production of the publication since Sainsbury's severed all its ties with Rye. He said: “It's never easy convincing people to part with their money and this year is as tough as any I've experienced, but most people can see the logic of being in a publication which is so widely read throughout the entire year and delivers the most effective ratio of money spent versus exposure.”
He continued: “I'm getting a little apprehensive that some people are leaving it a bit late to decide on their ad for 2015. Given the option, we would prefer to go to print well before Christmas, so I would like to hear from existing and future advertisers reasonably quickly. The profit from the guide also pays for the Rye area to be in the Sussex Top Attractions publication, which has a print run of a million.”
Anybody wishing to be in the 2015 Rye Bay Guide should contact Derick Holman at Past & Present, 2 High Street, Rye, or telephone him on 01797 223096.
