All Kasi enters Zebras' fray
BOITUMELO KHUTSAFALO
Staff Writer
| Wednesday July 30, 2008 00:00
All Kasi managing director, Ludo Kemoeng said under the sponsorship, each Zebras players will get two full kits for every official game. This means that for the first time, national team players will be able to exchange jerseys with their opponents after a game unlike before when the Zebras used one kit for several matches. All Kasi will give the Zebras new tracksuits and training gear every three months. Each player will get a footwear allowance once a year and casual gear vouchers quarterly.
The company will employ a full time kit manager for the Zebras. Under the deal, the junior national teams and the women national sides will get two sets of kits each and one set of tracksuits per year, plus a 40 percent discount on other products. The BFA will get five percent royalties on All Kasi sales of Zebras merchandise paid in arrears quarterly. The two-year deal is worth P1.24 million annually. This is All Kasi's first venture into sports sponsorship. Kemoeng said that with time, they might sponsor other sporting codes. He said that before All Kasi ventured into the market in 2000, the local clothing industry was under-developed.
BFA president, Phillip Makgalemele said before they sealed the deal they considered a number of factors. 'We had to consider proposals from our then sponsor, Puma, a UK brand that would have brought some FDI for the country and a local company. We are happy that the proposal from All Kasi was the best and fits well into our broad objectives as a country on citizen economic empowerment,' he said. He added that All Kasi was first introduced to the market in August 2000 and has since grown to become the clothing brand of choice for many movers and shakers in the country. He said the brand is won by sports and entertainment personalities, young professionals, politicians and high corporate flyers.
He explained that the sponsorship comes at a time when All Kasi and the BFA can leverage around the 2010 World Cup to maximise market potential and expansion beyond the borders of Botswana. 'The BFA will benefit tremendously from this partnership as the replicas will be sold through out All Kasi's distribution network, which presently stands at 23 shops countrywide,' he said. He added that his office will establish an outlet at Lekidi Football Centre for ease of sales. Other distribution points will also be considered. He noted that there has been illegal sale of pirated replicas of Zebras shirts in the market. He warned that with the All Kasi sponsorship they will be able to curb piracy through a clause in their agreement.