Proudly South African has, with the help of members of the public, named its new mascot – a colourful and fun character named LoLo Warona – whose job is to skillfully remind consumers to purchase local in order to create jobs and stimulate the South African economy.
The team at Proudly South African realised that a well-designed and thought-out character could play a crucial role in promoting its brand to its audience. The result is LoLo (an abbreviation of “Love Local” and Warona, meaning “Ours,” and confirming that we all have a responsibility to be the difference we want to see, to create a demand for local jobs by creating a demand for local goods. LoLo is an approachable and relatable mascot that will help amplify Proudly South African’s message through interactions with young people that can be shared on social media platforms such as TikTok, reaching an even bigger audience.
Proudly South African’s primary communication with LoLo Warona is clear: Buying local goods helps to create jobs which has a direct impact on today’s young people and on future generations. Designed in the shape of a swing tag found hanging on many goods, LoLo reminds South Africans to check the tag of their purchases to find out where they were made.
Happy MaKhumalo Ngidi, Chief Marketing Officer at Proudly South African and her team spent weeks collaborating with members of the public to name the mascot: “We are hoping that LoLo Warona becomes synonymous with our brand and that it will be used on a variety of platforms. It is a fun mascot, and we hope when consumers see LoLo Warona they identify it with Proudly South African and importantly think about how they can make their contribution by buying local.
And, of course, we’d like to also thank the public for helping us find such a befitting and apt name for our Proudly South African mascot.”
The first outing for LoLo Warona was at the annual Proudly SA Buy Local Summit & Expo, where the mascot got to meet many guests and even got to shake Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s hands, just after taking an unscripted stumble that went viral on social media.
As part of its on-going campaign, Proudly South African has also launched a television commercial (TVC) which puts the country’s youth firmly in the spotlight. It aptly demonstrates the direct impact that consumers can have on the future of South Africa’s children if they buy home-grown products and support local businesses.
The unveiling of LoLo Warona and the TVC launch follows on Proudly South African’s Buy Local Summit where proudly South African businesses converged at the Sandton Convention Centre to showcase their businesses and attend sessions by government representatives, businesspeople and entrepreneurs.
The answer to helping be part of the solution to South African’s unemployment rate is unequivocal. Everyone of us living in this country has to make conscious decisions about buying locally made products or using local services. Our future, and that of our children, depends on it.
