Swish places finger on the pulse of the youth

Co-owners Olin-Shae de la Cruz and Sibz Mthembu founded the business in 2017 as originally a below-the-line marketing company. They have recently seen a gap and opportunity in youth marketing hence their new offering.

Half of the South African population is made up of youth.

However, the offerings for Swish are from 0-35 years of age as their market.

These young people have an appetite for consumer goods and they spend on trends and creating a significant market. It is estimated the youth in South Africa have a disposable income of just over R100 billion a year.

Appropriately, the owners of Swish are street-savvy young individuals who know how to speak, appeal and sell to their generation.

This is something other agencies lack and as a result, they don't do well in attracting youth who could increase brand sales.

Swish has the vision to be the top youth brand experience business in Africa.

The agency strives to be experts in generational landscapes and be at the forefront of raising brand-conscious consumers.

Swish has a finger on the pulse of various youth landscapes through research, understanding, engaging, listening and delivering to brand and generations.

Swish is passionate about the youth and believes many brands are getting it wrong when it comes to understanding and attracting young people to their offerings.

“We bring insight to the table before offering solutions to the brands so there is an understanding of why we are moving towards a certain angle,” says Sibz.

"Young people are the future market for all brands. They are also the influencer market... they negotiate with their parents on how to spend and prove to their peers what works and doesn’t work through various platforms."

The staff at Swish are young and creative. They get it right because they are in the spaces of the young and they can engage with youth cultures and dialogue.

"This insight creates for great research purposes for brands and this is what Swish offers - research on larger scales," says Olin-Shae. “We can then offer a strategy and design solution, then move forward by executing the idea on behalf of brands to deliver maximum results."

Swish has relationships with schools and universities throughout the country. The agency is also connected to many communities.

"We have access and relationships with over 2,500 schools across the country. This includes primary and secondary schools as well as universities," says Olin-Shae.

"We offer insights from all the different generations and demographics."

Swish believes brand awareness and behavioural change implementation should start at a young age.

Having an established network means the agency has a foot in the door to connecting with and grabbing the attention of the youth.

To contact Swish you can visit their website www.swishep.co.za or email at az.oc.pehsiws@ofni.