South Africa’s favourite retailer, takealot.com, has revealed the winner of its first-ever Heritage Day Design Challenge, which gave South Africans the chance to showcase their creativity inspired by our country’s diverse cultures and rich heritage.
September shone a spotlight on our country’s colourful diversity, and Takealot called on South Africans to share their creativity by visually re-imagining the Takealot box using the South African flag colours and drawing from their heritage and traditions for inspiration. With thousands of entries over the 2 week challenge, the retailer is thrilled to announce that the winner of the competition is Tshepo Masilo from Randpark Ridge, Randburg.
Tshepo Masilo’s winning entry was a bold mix of proudly South African images that truly encompassed the spirit of South Africa, and the artist walked away with a massive R100 000 Takealot voucher and a R10 000 Takealot voucher to donate to a South African charity or local Heritage Site of his choice. The winning design will also be printed on 1 million Takealot boxes that will be delivered around the country in December. “My design deserves to be on 1 million boxes because it represents who we are as South Africans. The skyline around the edges depicts the 9 provinces in one fluid design emphasising that we are one nation. The elements and vernacular in the creative design relays the energetic feeling we have as a people and identifies with each South African regardless of race or religion, it is indicative of who we are. A bird’s eye view highlighting all our heritage and what brings us together as one nation, one South Africa” says Masilo.
“We are so proud that we gave South Africans a platform to celebrate their unique identity”, says Julie-Anne Walsh, Chief Marketing Officer at takealot.com. “Takealot boxes have become iconic in South Africa and bring moments of delight to our shoppers across the country. Now these boxes will be personalised with Tshepo’s story. His traditions, journey, perspective, will move across the country to delight and surprise our customers before the Takealot box has even been opened”.
Taking place across Takealot’s social media pages – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok – the challenge embraced innovative technology to leverage Whatsapp, a platform that millions of South Africans use on a daily basis, to engage with a chatbot in multiple language options that included isiXhosa, isiZulu, English, Afrikaans and Sesotho. “Heritage is so personal in a country like ours. We really wanted to make sure that every South African had the chance to enter the competition on a platform that is user friendly and accessible, so that every story could be told”, continues Walsh.
Judged by a panel comprising five proud South Africans, each with their own unique heritage, including 2019 Miss Universe winner Zozibini Tunzi, beloved musician and entertainer Emo Adams, award-winning musician Kwesta, Takealot Group CEO Mamongae Mahlare and takealot.com CEO Frederik Zietsman, choosing a winner was not an easy task. Frederik Zietsman says: “The calibre of artwork we have seen from all corners of the country has been an exceptional showcase of our country, its people and the inherent traditions that have been passed down for so many generations. The panel was taken on a journey and our hope is that when our customers receive their order in a box covered in the colourful winning artwork, they too will be taken on a journey.”
This initiative is made even more personal due to the fact that Takealot is a home-grown South African business, who has, for over a decade, committed to championing the digital economy. “Our South African roots run deep. Our aim with this challenge was to celebrate the inherent ‘South Africanness’ of our customers – the people who have made our business the success that it is. Our people have incredible stories to tell. We want to hear them, we want to share them and most importantly we want to continue to enable them with initiatives like this”, concludes Zietsman.
