Putting the wind in Shosholoza's sails

While finishing touches are made to Shosholoza this month, Saatchi Focus has been responsible for building the Shosholoza brand and creating an identity for the team through the development of sales material, brochures, banners, power point models, audio visual material, web designs as well as designing sponsors branding on the hull and the sails of the yacht.

The America's Cup Challenge is the 4th largest sporting spectacle in the world after the Olympics and the World Cup Soccer and attracts a cumulative TV audience of 2.9-billion people for the final, a lucrative opportunity for sponsors and advertisers worldwide.

Focus also manages media relations on behalf of Team Shosholoza with great successes around the world including front-page coverage in the New York Times and inserts on CNN and BBC. It was through this media coverage and their sponsorship efforts that the R100-million sponsorship deal was secured

Grant Scholtz, managing director of Saatchi & Saatchi Focus says: "It is a few ordinary South Africans from all walks of life challenging the best in the world. The passion displayed by everyone involved in the campaign is what we call the spirit of Shosholoza. This is the stuff dreams are made of.

"Shosholoza is the manifestation of the new South African optimism - an optimism that means that we can take on the world through sheer enthusiasm, passion and team spirit."

Over the next few months Shosholoza will be participating in a series of Louis Vuitton Acts on the international circuit to qualify for the Louis Vuitton Cup, which will eventually determine if Shosholoza will be the challenger in the America's Cup in 2007.