The African connection: + or -?

The image of the SA wine industry “hanging from the lips” of Dr. Johann Rupert at the Vinpro Info Day last week reminded me of Gulliver when he awoke to find himself tied down by the Lilliputians. “Die gehoor van sowat 500 wynboere het aan sy lippe gehang…”

Johann told the liquid Lilliputians “Ons handelsmerk is nie korrek nie. Ek haat dit om dit te sê, maar as jy oorsee is, is die grootste kommunikasie oor Afrika dié van mense wat geld insamel vir liefdadigheid en dit is ’n beeld van honger babas met vlieë op hulle. So, Afrika, so lief soos ons vir Afrika is, se beeld is nie so goed soos Europa s’n vir byvoorbeeld verwerkte voedselprodukte nie.” Basically Africa does not have a great image, so should we really portray ourselves as Africans if we want to export? I say YEBO!

While Johann spoke a lot of sense, I suspect on this one he will be pleasantly contradicted when Distell – in which he is the largest shareholder – announces earnings up 20-25% for the last six months of 2011. I’m betting sales into Africa will continue to boom, confirming just how inept SA marketers have been in neglecting our northern neighbours and the potential of a continent incontinent for wine. Too alcoholic for effete Europeans? Bring on the big stuff in Brazzaville!

Sure Stellenbosch stuffed the SumbandilaSat satellite project, with the craft tumbling out of control in space (wags say it should be renamed WOSA or SuSat), but Sauvignon and Shiraz are a different matter.

In addition to Abidjan, after Brazil overtook the UK as sixth largest economy in the world last year, perhaps we should be selling in Salvador and Sao Paulo. Brazilians, many descended from slaves, love the African connection. The Cape Town Waterfront’s Mr. Wine, Vaughan Johnson, points out that the only people who drank wine during the 2010 soccer World Cup were from Brazil. Brits and Germans drank beer.

While Europe crashes into recession, orders from Oxford will be under pressure but it is worth remembering that Picasso got most of his revolutionary ideas from African Art while safaris and game rangers are still popular in Stuttgart.