South African Breweries: Alcohol ban

South African Breweries, the major brewery brand, constructively engaged with the government and shifted the narrative in South Africa.

The Challenge

The national lockdown began on 26 March 2020, leaving South Africans anxious and in despair. With lockdown came the introduction of not one but four unprecedented alcohol bans. The reality is that these multiple bans, which lasted weeks on end threatened the livelihoods of over one million, hard-working South Africans: direct employees, farmers, retailers, taverns & bars, hospitality trade and associated industries such as bottlers.

It also ignited illicit trade, the concoctions of dangerous illegal beverages and the immediate loss to the government in the form of excise tax worth∼R500m.

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