Our Story
Our Story
It started in Oct 2013, when our founder Bryan Choo felt it was strange that Singaporeans had to turn to foreign guide books to read about where to get the best chilli crab in Singapore. He felt more could be done for locals, and that inspired him to start TheSmartLocal.com, Singapore’s first hyperlocal publisher that showcased the best of Singapore by locals, through helpful and positive content.
After getting huge viral success on Facebook, Bryan seized the momentum and grew the business. Over the next few years, TSL Media Group quickly took shape as he built different media brands for specific communities, such as MustShareNews, EatBook and ZULA. Our clients loved it.
Today, we are a 200-employee-strong Southeast Asia-focused collective of media publications, creative services and media tech solutions. Our brands garner more than 400 million views annually across platforms. We have also expanded our creative services and capabilities to include audience insights, bespoke polls, social listening and influencer marketing. With the acquisition of X10 Media in 2024, we further solidified our position as an end-to-end media and creative services provider in the regional media landscape.
Our Mission
Connecting the world through a hyperlocal lens
Our Vision
To become the leading media tech collective in Southeast Asia
Press mentions
- CNA 938 (26 Jan 2024) – Melanie Oliviero speaks to Bryan Choo about TSL Media Group’s growth over the past decade
- The Straits Times (23 Jan 2024) – Singapore’s fastest-growing companies 2024
- Marketing Interactive (2 Jan 2024) – These families were reunited by Scoot as part of its new heartwarming travel campaign
- Lianhe Zaobao (11 Aug 2023) – 新社媒不断涌现 叫用户太疲倦
- Lianhe Zaobao (2 Jul 2023) – 抓住读者好奇心 朱逢国从容收集大数据
- The Business Times (2 Feb 2023) – TheSmartLocal’s regional push gets leg-up with acquisition of Malaysian tech firm
- Marketing Interactive (3 Feb 2023) – TheSmartLocal CEO bullish on media tech transformation with acquisition of MY-based firm
- Marketing Interactive (13 Jan 2023) – TheSmartLocal nabs key talent from ad land to help with growth ambitions
- Marketing Interactive (10 Mar 2020) – TheSmartLocal launches YouTube drama series inspired by Netflix’s ‘Black Mirror’
- Campaign Asia (9 Jul 2020) – The future of lifestyle publishing
- Mumbrella Asia (23 Oct 2019) – Meme-obsessed ‘Ah Bengs’ the stars of new film for Singapore’s Central Provident Fund
- Mumbrella Asia (30 Nov 2018) – Winning work: How TheSmartLocal harnessed the power of positivity to beat the big media players
- Mumbrella Asia (14 Sep 2017) – The Smart Local creates 4-minute teen romance for Canon