The partnership between the Department of Marketing Management at UP and Bridgestone South Africa reached exciting new heights in 2016. During the third-year Marketing Management Practical Project module, which provides students with the opportunity to practically apply theory to the marketing field, the students were tasked to develop a marketing communication plan to create awareness and grow the sales of Bridgestone and Firestone tyres via their Supa Quick franchise distribution channel.
To conclude the final phase of this exciting project, Bridgestone took the overall winning team – the Dynamic Treads – on an all-expenses paid weekend in Cape Town. The Dynamic Treads team members were Geena van der Vyver (team leader), Jennifer Came, Robyn de Wet, Georgia-Anne Essey, Andrea Ingle and Samantha Tutton.
Read more about the Dynamic Tread’s weekend away below, written by the team leader, Geena van der Vyver.
We were extremely excited when Bridgestone announced on the first day of class that the winners of the third assignment would win a trip to Cape Town. At the prize-giving event six months later, we were envious of whichever team would be announced as the grand prize winners, little knowing that we, the Dynamic Treads team, would be to ones to go to Cape Town on an all-expenses paid trip!
The morning of 18 November saw six very excited ladies boarding the plane to Cape Town, ready to embark on a weekend packed with activities, as a perfect ending to celebrate the culmination of three years of studying. The weekend adventure started with a visit to the Bridgestone regional office in Cape Town, followed by cocktails at the Blowfish restaurant in Bloubergstrand.
Top left: Robyn de Wet and Andrea Ingle
Bottom left: Georgia-Anne Essey and Jennifer Came
Top right: The Dynamic Treads team
Bottom right: Geena van der Vyver and Samantha Tutton
After a delicious lunch, we headed to the V&A Waterfront for the much anticipated cruise on the Bridgestone Yacht. Even though it was very windy, we enjoyed the fresh sea air and sundowners during our cruise around Table Bay. The last activity for the day was dinner at City Grill Steakhouse at the V&A Waterfront. We were accommodated in the quaint boutique hotel, Daddy Long Legs Art Hotel.
Left: Back row: Georgia-Anne Essey, Dr Michelle van der Merwe, Shaun Wustman, Amanda Lovell, Audrey Heyns, Dr Gerhard Heyns and Laureane du Plessis.
Front row: Geena van der Vyver, Samantha Tutton, Jennifer Came, Andrea Ingle and Robyn de Wet.
Top right: The Bridgestone yacht entering the harbour.
Bottom right: Robyn de Wet, Jennifer Came, Andrea Ingle, Samantha Tutton, Georgia-Anne Essey and Geena van der Vyver.
The next day, an early breakfast was followed by a trip to the charming Stellenbosch area, where we attended a brandy and chocolate pairing and a tour of the Van Ryn’s Brandy Distillery. Our lunch at Java Bistro in Stellenbosch was followed by a strawberry picking experience at the Mooiberge Strawberry Farm, which had a picturesque view of the mountains.
Top left: Geena van der Vyver, Samantha Tutton, Georgia-Anne Essey, Andrea Ingle, Jennifer Came, Robyn de Wet, Dr Gerhard Heyns, Audrey Heyns, Shaun Wustman, Amanda Lovell and Laureane du Plessis.
Bottom left: Samantha Tutton and Georgia-Anne Essey
Top right: Andrea Ingle, Robyn de Wet and Jennifer Came.
Bottom right: Geena van der Vyver.
After quenching our thirst at the Thirsty Scarecrow restaurant next to the strawberry farm, we headed back to our hotel rooms to get ready for a musical dinner show. Dressed to impress, our group of 12 sat down at Richard’s Supper Stage and Bistro to enjoy a typical Cape Town meal, whilst learning about the history of the Kleynhans family that lived in District 6, in the show ‘Kaapse Stories from the Mother City’ – the highlight of the trip.
Top left: Andrea Ingle, Samantha Tutton, Robyn de Wet, Jennifer Came, Geena van der Vyver and Georgia-Anne Essey.
Bottom left: Richard’s Supper Stage and Bistro.
Right: Geena van der Vyver, Samantha Tutton, Georgia-Anne Essey, Jennifer Came, Robyn de Wet and Andrea Ingle.
On the morning of our last day we were treated to breakfast at the Millhouse Kitchen, followed by a wine and chocolate pairing at Lourensford Wine Estate in Somerset West. After a thank-you speech and a few tears, we headed to the airport, where our wonderful weekend came to a close.
Bridgestone and the University of Pretoria gave us the opportunity to apply the knowledge we accumulated over the course of our three-year degree, into a real-life marketing problem. Each and every one of us will take this experience and the knowledge that came with it into our future careers. We are grateful to the Bridgestone team and the Department of Marketing Management in UP’s Faculty of Economic and Management Sciences for preparing us for industry challenges that we will face in the future.
We want to thank Bridgestone for all the effort and for setting up the perfect Cape Town adventure for us. We could not have imagined a better way to end off three years of hard work and we will forever treasure the memories of this trip!
And Bridgestone don't forget… Wheel Drive You!
Geena van der Vyver
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