Wine industry kicks off new era with Bafana Bafana wines

IN a first for the African continent as well as for the South African wine industry, a special wine named after the national soccer team has been launched for soccer and wine lovers, as well as the all-important emerging market of wine consumers.

Bafana Bafana Wines consists of five different wines bottled under the Bafana Bafana brand, making this range the only wine officially licensed by the South African Football Association (SAFA). The five wines – white, red, rosé, sparkling white and sparkling rosé – are produced by Oranjerivier Wine Cellars located in Upington in the Northern Cape.

Bafana Bafana Wines is a joint venture between Oranjerivier Wine Cellars and Afriwines, who negotiated the official licensing rights with SAFA Legal & Management (SLAM), SAFA’s Master Licencee. According to Koos Visser, marketing manager for Oranjerivier Wine Cellars, the decision to become involved in the Bafana Bafana project was to develop a product for the emerging wine market.

“The time for introducing a new generation of wine consumers is now, since next year South Africa is going to be a nation exposed to soccer to the point of it becoming a national obsession,” says Visser.

“The opportunity to produce a wine bottled under the official Bafana Bafana trademark is a once in a lifetime chance to tap into a market where the name Bafana Bafana has such an extensive profile. We are confident that through this range, the wine industry will do something it has not been able to do: to penetrate the emerging market where wine has an extremely low level of awareness.”

Visser also says that the wines themselves have been made especially to suit the unique tastes of this market. “They are lovely, uncomplicated wines – fresh and fruity displaying true grape characteristics. None of the harsh tannins that many consumers find offensive and sends them to the fridge looking for a beer.” According to Visser the wines are also made to a lower alcohol content so as to further promote Bafana Bafana wines’ commitment to responsible alcohol use.

“We are marketing wine as part of a healthy lifestyle and want to accentuate the natural properties of wine through promoting responsible alcohol use.” Trevor Theledi, a partner in Afriwines, says that Bafana Bafana Wines will change the way South Africans look at wine. “This is the breath of fresh air the industry needs, as wine consumption is dropping every year,” he says.

“At the moment wine has a very low level of awareness among black consumers. By aligning wine with soccer and specifically with Bafana Bafana, the product has already developed a relationship with the consumer before the bottle has even been opened!” Visser says that the marketing of Bafana Bafana Wines will also change the way wine is being marketed.

“As an officially licensed product, Bafana Bafana Wines will be supported nationally by high-profile product activation events instead of using traditional communication methods,” he says.

“These events, to be held in fashionable venues in traditionally black areas throughout South Africa will introduce the wines to a broad-based target market that has to date never before been targeted by any local wine brand. Extensive product information and education will be complemented with extensive media coverage and below-the-line campaigns in publications that are not targeted by the traditional elements of the wine industry.

“Quite frankly, Bafana Bafana Wines is writing the book on developing a new, dynamic and lucrative sector of the local wine market. Stockists can be assured of extensive, focused, visible and high-profile market support,” says Visser.