Latest news with #GlenrothesAwareness
The Courier
15-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Courier
The cat is out of the bag: Culprits admit to Fife stencil 'mystery'
The mystery of the Fife cats has been solved. For the past few weeks residents of the Kingdom have been baffled by dozens of images of felines that have appeared on signs and roadsides. The moggie art had users of the Fife Jammers and Glenrothes Awareness Facebook pages scratching their heads, with nearly 800 reactions and over 100 comments across both pages. As well as the street art, there was a poster campaign and newspaper adverts in The Courier. Now the culprits behind the scheme have stepped forward. The cats are a clever viral marketing campaign by local car dealership Your Ford Centre. They're promoting the new Ford Puma Gen-E. The fully electric version of Ford's incredibly popular small SUV . It has a 43kWh battery that gives the car a range of 233 miles – making it one of the most efficient EVs on the market Stuart Prentice and Filip Krawczyk are group marketing executives for Your Ford Centre and came up with the idea for a viral marketing campaign. The pair were inspired by the 'puddle lights' on the new Ford Puma Gen-E, which beams a puma image onto the pavement when you open the driver's door. They went to great lengths to keep their campaign secret. Stuart explained: 'We didn't tell any of the staff or management here so that there was no risk of it being leaked, and so they wouldn't share the likes of Fife Jammers posts – so there was no way of it being traced back to us. 'We created the website and email address for new cat on the block from personal computers and contacts again so it was harder to trace back to Your Ford Centre.' The pair stencilled more than 100 cats all over Fife over the course of a few days. 'The hardest part was actually getting the cats out there without being caught,' Stuart continued. 'Some were done during the day wearing high vis vests on so no-one really questioned what was happening if they did see us, but most were done in the dead of night. 'I was out several times at midnight and beyond to do them.' Filip said: 'It was hard to keep it a secret, but we have made it happen. It was even harder to keep a straight face while overhearing people talk about it, but what a great feeling to be behind one of the most secret campaigns in the UK automotive industry.'
The Courier
08-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Courier
Fifers baffled by mysterious cats appearing all over the Kingdom
Mystery surrounds the appearance of dozens of cats all across Fife. The Kingdom is no stranger to a big cat conundrum – everyone remembers the Beast of Balbirnie. Now motorists are baffled by the appearance of cat stencils on road signs and street sides. A post on Fife Jammers' Facebook page attracted more than 500 reactions and over 100 comments. The internet is abuzz with speculation. It asked: 'Would love to know who the stencil artist is. This one is in Glenrothes but I've seen one in Kirkcaldy too.' And a post by Alan Kimmitt on the Glenrothes Awareness page also attracted hundreds of reactions. It said: 'Loving this wee cat on the sign next to Riverside Park. Looks great when caught in headlights at night.' As well as being stencilled into the grime of street signs, more colourful versions of the cat emblem have appeared at the sides of roads across Fife. Colourful cats are appearing on roadways across Fife. The feline artworks have the internet buzzing with speculation. On the Fife Jammers site Andy Little said: 'They're up Ladybank/Cupar way too. Seen a dude with a high vis vest on with the same symbol the day they appeared…no clue what they are.' Meanwhile Maxine Bell commented: 'Fife's own budget Banksy!' Cat spotters Irene Pearson spotted one on a bus shelter in Falkland and several people have seen them on Kirkcaldy Promenade. Another comment links the cat stencils to a radio and newspaper campaign called 'new cat on the block' which has a website and QR code. The new cat on the block logo and QR code. Visiting the website does not satisfy your cat curiosity, however. It merely leads to a link where you can register for email updates on the mystery. Among the locations where the cat art has been spotted are: Cluny, Thornton, Melville Lodges roundabout, the A92 dual carriageway, the road between Aberdour and Dalgety Bay, Kirkcaldy, Dunfermline, Cowdenbeath, Leslie, and various laybys throughout Fife. The cat art has highlighted how many street signs need a wash. All together there appear to be more than 100 cats out there. The cat campaign may have had at least one unintended consequence, however. More than half of the online comments express disgust at how filthy Fife's road signs are.
