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Delicious, Tomorrowland comes to South Africa

by Kim Penstone When Lloyd Cornwall first visited Neighbourgoods in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, he realised that he had stumbled right into a brand-new lifestyle grouping of South Africans. People whom, at first sight, would have very little in common, yet brought together by Neighbourgoods.

What he saw was a completely integrated crowd – in his words, white, black and Indian. Couples in their 30s. Families with young children. Older couples, with no children. And he started thinking about food.

A music man at heart, Cornwall is perhaps most famous for bringing the Ministry of Sound brand to South Africa. His company Massive recently joined forces with VWV, to create VWV Massive, which combines the entertainment and sponsorship expertise of Massive with South Africa’s biggest event company.

EXCLUSIVE: Exposing ‘& Anonymous’

Don’t be surprised when you are greeted at the door of & Anonymous by a bearded man sporting a pink Barbie-topped balaclava. Or a leather-clad woman in a diamante-studded, gimp-like mask. Or anything in between, provided it hides the wearer’s face. The founders of & Anonymous are simply living the new company’s credo;

“A lot of agencies say it, but we wanted to live it: it’s time that the work came first. So we don’t need a name, and you don’t need to know our faces. It’s time to drop the ego, and focus on the ideas.”

Unfortunately, for the purposes of a media launch, names and faces are crucial. So the balaclavas are removed, revealing Joy Turnbull, ex Network BBDO Deputy MD; Brad Reilly ex Jupiter Drawing Room Chief Creative Officer; and Darren Cronje, ex Jupiter Creative Director.

Together, they have over 40 years of experience in the marketing, brand building and advertising arena, having worked their way up the ladder from junior account director and creatives to leaders and board members of two of South Africa’s top agencies. They have built brands from scratch, turned them around from certain death, collected a treasure trove of awards both locally and abroad, and monetised ideas for clients ranging from small localised businesses to global megabrands such as Coca-Cola.

But, as is often the case in any form of big business, the further the trio advanced in their careers, the more removed they became from the work.

TopTV – determined to not bottom out

Kim Penstone talks to Peter van den Steen, the man appointed to save TopTV from bottoming out.

On October 31 last year, TopTV sought business rescue protection under Chapter 6 of the 2008 Companies Act. What this means to TopTV is that it provides the company with a protective bubble within which to restructure itself and hopefully avoid liquidation. What it means to the media industry is that the local Pay TV sector could once again become a monopoly dominated by Naspers-owned DSTV. What it means to court-appointed Business Rescue Practitioner, Peter van den Steen, is that there is a lot of work to be done, because it is in the public’s interest that TopTV lives to broadcast another day.

And, we hasten to add, that’s not just because TopTV has resubmitted its application to broadcast adult content in South Africa!

In Zimbabwe ad agencies first port of call as economy stabilises – Denford Magora

Denford Magora, CEO of The Jupiter Drawing Room (Zimbabwe) & Partners

by Kim Penstone In advertising circles, Zimbabwe is perhaps most famous for its now defunct currency, which was glued to billboards across the country in the award-winning “Trillion Dollar” campaign for The Zimbabwean. It’s been three years since the Zimbabwean dollar was abolished and the country adopted the US dollar as its official currency, but the perception of worthlessness remains.

But (to paraphrase Ford’s famous line): have you been to Zimbabwe lately?

“Zimbabwe is growing, even thriving. Commercially speaking, it’s probably more stable than South Africa!” says Denford Magora, CEO of The Jupiter Drawing Room (Zimbabwe) & Partners.

He speaks from direct experience, having grown TJDR (Zimbabwe) & Partners into the largest advertising agency group in the country in just one year, boasting annual revenue of over R30 million, and a blue chip client base that includes Old Mutual Zimbabwe, Zimplats, Toyota, Nando’s, Schweppes, CBZ bank, Delta Beverages (SABMiller Zimbabwe), Western Union and South African Airways.

Magora, who was born and bred in Zimbabwe and has work experience in both South Africa and the UK , already owned and operated a successful agency out of Harare. But recognising the potential for growth, especially post hyperinflation which saw the demise of many global groups in the country, he approached The Jupiter Drawing Room with a partnership proposal. Today, Magora is CEO of The Jupiter Drawing Room (Zimbabwe) & Partners, which incorporates existing agency Jericho and a new agency, The Jupiter Drawing Room (Harare).

Magora explains that the abolition of the Zimbabwean dollar in 2009 was like a call to arms for Zimbabweans scattered across the globe. Many of those who had left the country have returned, with international experience, determination to make the country work, and an unfaltering belief in the future of the country that was once famous for being the “breadbasket of Africa”.

Zimbabwe is currently experiencing GDP growth of 5%, but Magora points out that industrial and manufacturing capacity is operating below 60%, which means that there is plenty room for growth. He adds that many companies are waiting for so-called ‘political normalisation’ before they step into Zimbabwe – “but they forget that there is a population of around 14 million people living there now, who have needs and wants.” And for the first time in a long time, real currency to spend.