Sponsorship drive: Kryolan on the lookout for inspiring SA sportswomen

Neil Wilkinson, managing director at Kryolan South Africa, and Barry Hendricks, Sascoc president

Kryolan, best known for its stage, theatre and film make up, has also gained traction as a manufacturer of traditional cosmetics for day-to-day use. The company is one of the few of its kind internationally that manufactures its entire cross-section of products.

In recognising women in sport, Kryolan is partnering with South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (Sascoc) to identify the athletes and to drive greater awareness of female sporting achievers, with a focus on the inspiration they provide to their fans and followers.

Neil Wilkinson, managing director at Kryolan South Africa says, “The main focus of our partnership with female sports achievers is to empower them to inspire and to change perceptions around women’s highly influential standing in sports achievement. Traditionally, male sportspeople receive the lion’s share of attention. We would like to showcase the fact that women are equally as influential and important in sport.”

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Wilkinson adds, “In enlisting the advocacy of inspiring female sports influencers, we hope that we can ultimately play a part in elevating the status and media presence of women’s sport, and in turn empower more women to take the initiative to succeed in whatever they choose to do.

“Our vision is to enhance the presence of female achievers in the media, with a view to creating a knock-on effect that will motivate other women to follow in the footsteps of their role models. We are also proud to be providing a sponsorship platform for great sportspeople who ordinarily might not be eligible for sponsorships from other brands.”

Focus on empowerment

Wilkinson says that empowerment is a key driver of Kryolan’s ethos. The company’s retail stores throughout South Africa operate based on a royalty-free model, which enables retail partners to maximise their visibility and profit, using recognition of the Kryolan brand as leverage.

“If we look at the impact of Covid-19 internationally, training and community upliftment are important drivers in revitalising the economy. Over the next year, Kryolan will be focusing on training and re-training retail partners to boost their sales and income prospects. The enquiries we have received about our training initiatives thus far have already been overwhelming and we are very excited to provide a platform that will help people transcend the effects of the Covid crisis,” concludes Wilkinson.