SINGAPORE - On her 21st birthday last Friday (Nov 11), Ms Cassandra Sim was surprised with an exclusive copy of The Straits Times, which carried personalised birthday greetings from her boyfriend and his mother on its cover.

Readers can now mark these special occasions with a spot on the front page of Singapore Press Holdings' (SPH) major newspaper titles, with the new Personalised Print product.

Personalised messages can be published on the The Straits Times, The Business Times or Lianhe Zaobao on any date in advance at an introductory price of $1,000. The usual price is $2,000.

The exclusive copy will be delivered to the recipient on the actual day of publication, alongside a framed copy of the newspaper, a bouquet of roses and bottle of champagne.

Said Ms Sim: "It's amazing to see my photos and birthday wishes printed together with the front page news of ST. In future, I can look back and see what happened around the world when I turned 21." The gift was an idea from her boyfriend's mother, Ms Betty Goh.

Mr Jerry Siah, head of Product Innovation and Pricing at SPH Integrated Marketing Division, said: "The Personalised Print allows our readers to commemorate special occasions alongside news of events that happened on the same day. Recipients get to keep a piece of history.

"Each personalised copy of the newspaper serves as a precious record and memory for recipients in years to come."

He added that the space can be an "excellent way for people to convey heartfelt messages to mark special events", such as anniversaries, birthdays, convocations, wedding proposals and marriage vows.

The front page newspaper advertisement space of these major newspaper titles are worth between $8,000 and $28,000.

The product is among SPH's growing list of creative offerings for the market, said Ms Elsie Chua, Chief Marketing Officer of SPH's Integrated Marketing Division.

She said: "We continue to maximise the value of our platforms and products to ensure that they benefit both advertisers and readers."

For Christmas, readers can opt to send a gift in the form of personalised season's greetings printed on The Straits Times front page on either Dec 24 or 25 for a special price of $100.

$10 will be donated to The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund.

For more information, visit www.personal.sphads.com.sg/christmas