admin
I WAS first inspired to write this article because of Vault Cosmetics’ unique approach to business.
When the cosmetics company sponsored the video shoot of hip hop artiste – Cal_Vin’s song, we could not help but applaud to the noble idea. What makes Vault Cosmetics stand out is that they set the tone.
In an environment filled with despair and companies too stingy to support the arts sector, Vault Cosmetic founder – Jackie Mgido went out of her way to give back. Here was a compassionate reply at the right time.
Cal_Vin is the man-of-the-moment in local hip hop. If his songs rapture the radio charts, the muso deserves a pat in the back, more-so because he is a fast emerging brand.
At least Bulawayo will soon have a worthy music video that can compete for honours anywhere.
However, in doing further research, I found that, while certainly there are very few companies with Jackie Mgido’s approach, the underlining advantage rests on businesses deriving innovation from the arts world. How will exposure to music and the arts help the average business manager? Let us think of arts-based initiatives that can be used to enhance value-creation capacity and boost business performance.
On sponsoring the music video, Vault Cosmetics built both their profile and public appeal. Cal_Vin’s fans and indeed hip hop followers would want to be associated with every brand that comes out of Vault Cosmetics.
It is a win-win situation and an undeniable appreciative effort from the company. The traditional view of the relationship between business and the arts is very much a one-way affair: organisations may endorse, fund or publicise the arts but the arts have nothing to offer from a business perspective.
Arts organisations like the National Arts Council of Zimbabwe must, in haste, communicate the value of investing in the arts through advocacy and research. More is to be unleashed when companies start engaging with the arts. The arts are at the core of the common person. There has been a lot of talk about the need for innovation in the arts of late. I’m no analyst but, one needs to look at how other artistes are surviving in the region. So in this case business and art can be blended together. It is hard to be creative in a vacuum.
Business newspapers will tell you that today’s environment demands innovation and creativity. So the first port of call would be engaging the arts. Ever walked into a bank or office park with artistic works on display? Be it photography of the powerful, simply advertising, music icons or sculpture – such an environment is eye-catching and welcoming.
One bank in Bulawayo seems to have that concept: connecting art to the business world. If business entities attach some affinity to the arts, it means the creative industry has financial potential. We take our hats off to all the businesses that hung up works of art on their office walls and boardrooms.
We have corporates that stretch further to commission works in whatever genre of the entertainment and showbiz industry.
Locally the trend is a bit complex. Corporates on occasion would hire an artiste’s work. It is common with functions, where a company wants to sell its image. The best way is to have a dance group performing for a targeted customer who is expected to buy into the idea. It stops there.
Support for the arts is commonplace in South Africa where banks, mining companies and government departments are an important stakeholder. This remains a pipe dream for the art practitioners in Zimbabwe.
Top businesses in South Africa, I’m sure would kill to sponsor music shows, television programmes, fine art exhibitions and theatre. This idea works well for a business that wants to be seen as socially responsible. In the same breadth, artistes benefit both financially and in social standing.
If in other countries, business link up with artistes, how best can we adopt the same model? Despite the depressing economic reality, there must be a way.
A chat with local artistes that have stood the test of time reveal that back then, some big companies scrambled to sponsor artistic works. It is a yester year story. Is it happening now?
What Vault Cosmetic did for the arts in Bulawayo, sparks creative inspirations, thus aiding to business growth.
Have a say: on WhatsApp or follow the writer on twitter @nkosieLegend
Online Reporter