Press Releases

South Africa’s first ever brandy collaboration showcasing the diversity and heritage of the popular spirit has launched, with a mini range of 12 brandies from various regions across the country. With the gift range, Sugarbird, well-known for its popular craft gins and gifting, has made its first foray into the brandy category with a newly-released XO 14-year-old. A 750ml bottle will be available just in time for Christmas. After successfully curating the country’s best craft gins in the Sugarbird and Friends Ginvent Calendar, Sugarbird has done it again with the release of the brandy gift box. The brandies in the gift pack, which range from three-year-old blended brandies to 15-year-old potstills, offer true competition to the best French cognacs and have cumulatively won more than 70 international and local awards. SA brandy is currently rated the world’s finest. […]

With entries received across Africa, the Africa Photo Awards 2020 took place yesterday at the Keyes Art Mile in Johannesburg, South Africa. Local photographer and graphic designer, Hanli Smit walked away with the award for Photographer of the Year for her image Homage-to-Tretchikoff. Smit’s images won two main categories: Fashion for Avant-Garde-Fashion-The-New-Normal, and Portraiture for Homage-to-Tretchikoff, with this image securing her the main prize. The Africa Photo Awards is a non-profit competition which showcases the best photography from the continent, sponsored by Fujifilm South Africa and QPhoto ProLAB. The intention of this prestigious event is to create a competition that challenges individuals as photographers, and is inclusive of all styles, levels and approaches to photography. Working alongside her favourite model Robyn Sauls, Smit believes it was a last-minute decision to change the backdrop during the […]

Starbucks Southern Africa is adding a splash of colour and festive goodwill to its exciting new ‘Carry the Merry’ campaign – where green cups turn red and acts of kindness are the order of the day. Every year Starbucks adds its own special touches of brightness to the festive season, with memorable moments, events, products, tastes and holiday beverages. This year, to add joy to a year that has been filled with adversity and in celebration of World Kindness Day on 13 November, Starbucks Southern Africa is introducing ‘Carry the Merry’, with Starbucks green cups that turn bright red when filled with a hot drink, and an invitation to share acts of kindness. Adrian Maizey, owner and CEO of Rand Capital Coffee, the licensee of Starbucks in Southern Africa, says, “To inspire festive goodwill, Starbucks […]

Blaauwklippen Before & After – sophisticated, stylish, sensuous, the perfect gift In search of something special this year for that discerning individual with a taste for the finer things in life? Consider Blaauwklippen’s distinctive Before & After apéritif – a unique, masterful blend of wood-matured red Noble Late Harvest wine and Blaauwklippen 10-year-old Potstill Brandy. Before & After offers sophisticated year-round drinking pleasure – served chilled or on crushed ice in summer, or as a warming, conversation-inspiring fireside drink in winter – but its Christmas spice aromas and rich fruitcake flavours make it especially apt at this time of year. The brandy-fortified wine stirs sensory memories with its deep red colour, cinnamon and clove aromas, and sweet ripe fruit flavours of raisins and blackberries edged with a touch of wood. As its name suggests, Before […]

Elgin Vintners has joined the growing global trend for canned wine with the launch of Fynbos Lite, premium vintage red and white wines in convenient, eco-friendly packaging that are light in all senses of the word – a lighter carbon footprint, light on alcohol and lighter on the waistline. Fynbos Lite celebrates the home of Elgin Vintners in the Elgin valley surrounded by the World Heritage Site of the Kogelberg Biosphere, the heart of the Cape Floral Kingdom which is world-renowned for its unspoilt beauty and exceptional biodiversity. Fynbos Lite cans capture the natural beauty of the region with striking illustrations of abundant wildflowers and the malachite sunbird (green sugarbird) found in the Kogelberg area. Canned wine is an increasingly popular choice for its convenience, especially for those who enjoy nature and an outdoor lifestyle […]

The spate of cyberattacks targeting individuals in South Africa in recent months necessitates a more cautious approach to our online activities. What can we do to become more cybersecurity aware especially with the festive season around the corner? Not only must digitally-connected South Africans keep the threats of previous years in mind, but hackers have become more sophisticated thanks to the connected lifestyles of South Africans. For example, email and text phishing will almost certainly remain a constant threat. However, more elaborate tactics designed to compromise your financial information and steal your identity are coming to the fore. Before we explore some of these, also remember that this is an opportune time for fraudsters to exploit our collective goodwill. Fake charity scams are not unique to the internet. But when combined with all the COVID-19 […]

THE PREMIERE NEXT-GEN TITLE SOLD THROUGH MORE UNITS IN IT’S FIRST WEEK THAN ANY OTHER ASSASSIN’S CREED GAME Ubisoft® announced strong early sales for Assassin’s Creed® Valhalla, one of the highest-rated games this season1. Building on favourable review scores and early player response, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has sold through more units in its first week than any other Assassin’s Creed game sold during the same period.  Assassin’s Creed Valhalla also has become the top-selling Ubisoft PC launch ever, driven by all-time record Ubisoft Store sales performance. With strong feedback from players on next-gen consoles, ACV is delivering on its promise to make the most of the new hardware. “We are truly delighted by the enthusiastic response from players and want to thank the fans for their incredible support.  Delivering this game amid a global pandemic […]

The comfort your television can bring you is incomparable; whether it be for a binge-watching session of your favourite series, or a new series that has you on the edge of your couch, or you’ve simply turned your television on in the background while you prepare dinner in the kitchen. Never did this source of comfort ring truer than this year. 2020; the year the unexpected happened, where the abnormal far outweighed the normal. It was our TVs that brought about some normality in an otherwise uncertain world. The theme for this year’s World Television Day, TV makes a difference, celebrated on Saturday 21 November speaks to its role in 2020. “Television continues to be the single largest source of video consumption globally. While screen sizes may have changed, and consumers are able to create, […]

Prima Interactive is pleased to confirm that the launch of the Xbox Series X | S yesterday, was officially the biggest launch of an Xbox console in South Africa. This is the third generation to be launched in South Africa, and the first time that South Africa has been part of the Worldwide launch date. “Yesterday was a really good day for Xbox. Most of the Series X stock has been sold out. There are a few units here and there still available for purchase. We want to thank the Xbox fans and the retailers for their support in making the launch so successful“ says Ian Hepplewhite from Prima Interactive. ”We were really pleased that we managed to get most of the stock to stores in time, and being able to deliver the biggest launch […]

Soon South Africa gamers will be able to buy one of two new Xbox Series Consoles. At R11 999*, the Series X is the most powerful console ever made and is nearly 30% more powerful than any other console. “But the surprise package may be the Series S priced at R6 999” says Ian Hepplewhite, CEO of Xbox Distributor Prima Interactive, “If you don’t have a 4K TV, the Series S is ideal” It’s small and compact and powerful. It delivers 1440P resolution – commonly called 2K, which is perfect for HD Tv’s. The SSD memory capacity is upgradeable, and Smart Delivery will give you the version of the game you need. There are hundreds of games available at launch including games from the beginning of Xbox. Getting into Next Gen gaming is a whole […]

The latest set in the LEGO® Holiday collection the Elf Clubhouse is a delightful addition to any holiday display, available from LEGO Retail Stores and LEGO.com from the 23rd of September Experience the magic of Christmas this holiday season and discover the quaint cottage that is home to Santa’s Elves, with the latest LEGO holiday set – the LEGO® Elf Clubhouse. Jam-packed with seasonal touches, the LEGO® Elf Club House allows families to escape the chaos of holiday season, immerse themselves in the fantasy world of holiday season and create a new festive building tradition. The LEGO Elf Clubhouse is a truly magical set, with festive features which offer a glimpse into the everyday lives of Santa’s little helpers – including a waffle machine to help them re-fuel after a long day of toy making, […]

International Best-Selling Video Game Franchise To Inspire Live-Action, Animated and Anime Entertainment Netflix yesterday announced it has entered into an agreement with Ubisoft to develop content based on the international best-selling video game franchise Assassin’s Creed. The first series in development is slated to be an epic, genre-bending live-action adaptation; a search is currently underway for a showrunner. Ubisoft Film & Television’s Jason Altman and Danielle Kreinik will serve as Executive Producers. Under the agreement, Netflix and Ubisoft will tap into the iconic video game’s trove of dynamic stories with global mass appeal for adaptations of live-action, animated, and anime series. “For more than 10 years, millions of fans around the world have helped shape the Assassin’s Creed brand into an iconic franchise,” said Jason Altman, Head of Ubisoft Film & Television - Los Angeles. […]