On Shelf
On Shelf

#OnShelf: Brand innovation & challenges for consumers

by Louise Burgers. In times like this, it is branding with purpose that engenders customer loyalty.

by Louise Burgers. I love seeing brands helping their communities; and in times like this, it is branding with purpose that engenders customer loyalty.

Using technology to challenge toxic beauty standards

Adweek is reporting on the Dove social experiment to expose the dark side of social media and deep fakes, that have a damaging effect on the psyche and body image of young women. The #DetoxYourFeed campaign wants to empower teens to define their own beauty standards—and make parents understand how toxic – and often fake – social media advice can be. “Dove is tackling this problem head-on in its latest campaign to champion wider definitions of beauty and make social media a more positive environment. The brand set up a social experiment that uses Deepfake technology to expose the dangers of toxic beauty advice online. Created by Ogilvy, it aims to empower teens to unfollow anything on social media that doesn’t make them feel good about themselves,” Adweek reports. “Along with this ad, Dove has made educational videos and a “Confidence Kit” with a workbook for parents, caregivers and mentors on how to facilitate conversations with young people about the harms of social media.”

Yoghurt tubs converted to light-weight bricks to build classrooms

Danone NutriDay is building insulated classrooms with its used yoghurt tubs. This follows on from their successful year-long project in 2021 when 19 tons of plastic from yoghurt containers were transformed into making sturdy school desks. Now, from their One Desk. One Child programme, Nutriday embarks on their Tubs2Classrooms project with partners Pick ‘n Pay and Interwaste. NutriDay will set out to educate 80 identified primary schools about responsible plastic recycling. Children will be encouraged to clean and bring their used yoghurt tubs to school. These tubs will be turned into light-weight bricks to build two classrooms by the end of 2022.

Sowing the seeds of sustainability

During Earth Month, Starbucks launched its partnership with the Reel Gardening initiative, which produces a biodegradable seed tape planted straight into the ground to improve the chances of a vegetable seedling. Starbucks offered customers a surprise Starbucks Seed Kit with every beverage purchase in April. The brand also chose a school in Johannesburg to pilot a community vegetable garden programme by providing free Starbucks Vegetable Seed Kits and a supply of used coffee grounds (a nitrogen-rich fertiliser that simultaneously enriches gardens and reduces waste). Reel Gardening gives ongoing support and guidance to these schools on the growing process to ensure that the learners are educated on how to become food secure from this garden.

CAMPAIGN: Nando’s ‘makes the table bigger’ by including ‘them’ & ‘they’

A Freedom Day campaign in April celebrated gender diversity with Nando’s They Are Welcome campaign. Speaking with YFM’s The Shakedown presenters Nia Brown and Mthaux, at the Nando’s restaurant in Braamfontein, Nontobeko Sibiya, marketing manager at Nando’s, says table-side conversations are changing. Gender identity, while becoming more acceptable, is still greatly misunderstood. It’s a topic that can often get lost in translation, particularly in the case of older generations, who may not have been afforded the opportunities to be themselves without prejudice. “It is important to generate and support conversations that give South Africans the platform to share who they truly are. This is the essence of our They Are Welcome Easter campaign. Whether a person identifies as ‘him’, ‘her’, or ‘they’, Nando’s will take care of your sharing meals, while you focus on making those real connections.” Here’s how you can Make The Table Bigger.

 

Main image credit: Supplied.

 

 

Louise Burgers is the Publisher and Editor and Co-Founder of RetailingAfrica.com. She has spent over 20 years writing about the FMCG retailing, marketing, media and advertising industry in South Africa and on the African continent. She has specialised in local and Africa consumer trends and is a passionate Afro-optimist who believes it is Africa’s time to rise again and that the Africa Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA) will be a global gamechanger in the next decade.

 

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