What happens when three of South Africa’s most recognisable brands meet around a braai?
You get a bakkie built for it.
Eskort has teamed up with Checkers and Toyota to launch the Braai-Lux, a fully customised Toyota Hilux designed to take the South African braai wherever the road leads.
And this is no ordinary prize.
One lucky customer will win the customised vehicle, along with an exclusive braai experience with two-time Rugby World Cup winner Bongi Mbonambi, who is the face and official ambassador of the campaign.
The competition runs until 22 November 2026.
When the braai goes mobile
South Africans do not need much convincing when it comes to a braai.
It can happen in the backyard, at a campsite, at the rugby or wherever friends and family happen to gather. That culture of bringing people together is at the heart of Eskort’s Braai-Lux campaign.
The prize takes that idea literally.
The Braai-Lux is a New Generation 2026 Toyota Hilux 2.8 GD-6 4×4 Raider 6AT Double Cab, sponsored by Toyota and customised for the ultimate braai experience.
The build was completed by Ironman 4×4 and Halfway Toyota Honeydew.
And it comes loaded for more than simply getting from A to B.
The conversion includes a Megamaster grill, dual fridge/freezer, roller drawer system, Dometic roof rack, Bossenberg Canopy and 270° awning.
It also features a full front bull bar, light kit, suspension kit and off-road tyres sponsored by Tyremart.
Inside, the braai-ready transformation continues with custom embroidered Takla seat covers, dash cover and carpets.
In other words, this Hilux has been built with the braai in mind.
And then there is Bongi
Winning the bakkie is only part of the experience.
The winner will also get the opportunity to fire up the Braai-Lux and enjoy a braai alongside Bongi Mbonambi.
The two-time Rugby World Cup-winning Springbok hooker brings a sporting connection to a campaign built around community, food and shared experiences.
Eskort CEO Arnold Prinsloo says Mbonambi represents the authenticity, warmth and credibility that the brand wanted at the centre of the campaign.
“Bongi is the kind of person South Africans would genuinely invite to their braai,” says Prinsloo.
That makes him a natural fit for a campaign built around bringing people together.
Three brands, one very South African idea
The Braai-Lux brings together Eskort, Checkers and Toyota, with each brand contributing a different part of the experience.
For Eskort, the campaign builds on a relationship with South African mealtimes that stretches back 109 years.
The company has grown from small-town roots into one of South Africa’s leading pork producers, with a national manufacturing, retail and distribution footprint.
Today, Eskort is South Africa’s leading antibiotic-free pork producer and has more than 300 products, covering fresh pork, braai cuts, everyday favourites, convenience meals and a kids’ range.
For a brand with such a long connection to South African food culture, putting its name behind a mobile braai is a natural extension of that heritage.
“Eskort has been part of South African braais for generations,” says Prinsloo, “so this campaign gives us the opportunity to put our brand right at the centre of one of the country’s most loved tradition.”
Checkers brings the retail platform to the partnership.
The retailer’s Xtra Savings rewards programme has been named Best Retail Loyalty Programme of the Year for the fifth year running.
Its Checkers Sixty60 service has also become a major part of South African shopping, offering on-demand grocery delivery in 60 minutes at in-store prices.
Toyota, meanwhile, brings the Hilux.
The Toyota Hilux is South Africa’s best-selling vehicle and has become one of the country’s enduring cultural symbols.
The ninth-generation model launched in South Africa in June 2026, continuing the Hilux legacy.
Together, the three brands have created a prize that connects food, retail, motoring and South African social culture.
How to get into the draw
The entry process is designed to be as straightforward as the weekly shop.
Customers need to purchase any participating Eskort product at Checkers in-store or through Checkers Sixty60 and swipe their Xtra Savings card.
Each qualifying purchase earns an entry into the competition.
That is it.
Buy an Eskort product, swipe your Xtra Savings card and you are in the running to win the Braai-Lux and a braai with Bongi Mbonambi.
The competition closes on 22 November 2026.
More than a bakkie
The clever part of the Braai-Lux is that the prize is not simply a customised vehicle.
It is a physical expression of a familiar South African idea: that a good meal can become an occasion, and an ordinary gathering can become a memory.
Eskort, Checkers and Toyota have taken that idea and put it on four wheels.
The result is a Hilux equipped to carry the braai beyond the backyard — complete with the gear to grill, chill, shelter and explore.
And for one South African, the prize comes with something money cannot simply buy off a showroom floor: the chance to put the fire on, gather around the Braai-Lux and share the experience with a two-time Rugby World Cup-winning Springbok.
The Braai-Lux competition is now running until 22 November 2026.
One bakkie.
Three iconic brands.
A whole lot of braai.
And potentially one very legendary South African road trip.
