Support ‘Buy Local’ in large numbers, help grow an economy on the mend
Shoppers will have noticed since the beginning of the month a new, bold visual campaign in supermarkets and stores to promote local products. Driven by Team Namibia in collaboration with several partners, the campaign forcefully reminds consumers that there are many Namibian alternatives and substitutes for imported retail products.
One of the campaign partners, Weathermen & Co was tasked to design a campaign to rally consumers behind local products, not only for their quality but also for the downstream benefits to the Namibian economy. The design components had to be aligned to the campaign’s main objective to encourage growth at home through increased consumption of local goods and services.
Weathermen’s Senior Art Director, Vanessa Mengerssen and her team immediately got cracking. “After receiving the brief, we wanted to create imagery for the campaign that would elicit a feeling of togetherness, following the example set by the organising partners who joined forces to launch this movement. We wanted to inspire that shared purpose among the Namibian people. Being a Team Namibia member ourselves under our holding company, the Ohlthaver & List (O&L) Group, we wanted to contribute to what we believe will be an impactful movement,” she said.
Weathermen gave more than their creativity, they also did the work at no charge.
At the official launch earlier this week, the Minister of Industrialisation and Trade, Hon Lucia Iipumbu expressed her ministry’s strong support for the campaign, urging all consumers to heed its message and start buying local products. “The [Buy Local Grow Namibia] campaign will highlight the vital role of local businesses in our nation’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic,” she said.
Weathermen’s acting MD, Patsie Hoeksema said“We all need to own and champion our local products and services, because it’s only in our numbers that we will truly mobilise this movement and make a significant, far-reaching impact. I encourage everyone to make their dollar count for their fellow Namibian by spending that dollar locally.”
The other campaign partners are UN Namibia, Namibia Trade Forum and the Namibian.
