With the removal of the special dispensation for its citizens there has been a lot of discussion around the economic conditions in Zimbabwe. So what is it really like?

In Zimbabwe today, everything is available. The US dollarization of the economy has ensured that the supermarket shelves are stocked and that the shortages that made headline news are a thing of the past. Whilst the Zimbabwe Dollar was the currency and hyper-inflation of half a billion percent was the norm, it was a challenge to source even the basics. News of the availability of an item would spread rapidly with consumers travelling long distances and standing in queues to get hold of it.

In today’s Zimbabwe, there is a shortage of cash, not a shortage of goods. Sellers of goods and services have to revert to Marketing 101 and find ways to encourage consumers to spend their hard earned and limited cash on their items. Where does that place us, purveyors of out of home media? We asked ourselves the question, calculated our risks, saw the potential benefits and took the proverbial plunge into this newly revived economy. As we have rolled out campaigns we have discovered that return on business investment for our clients is almost as high as Zimbabwe’s previous inflation figures.

During the World Economic Forum on Africa, held in Dar es Salaam in May this year, Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai told investors that there is plenty of money to be made in Zimbabwe. Mr Tsvangirai said to potential investors, "forget about the perceived risk in Zimbabwe. Your return on investment is much, much higher in Zimbabwe than in other countries and regions."*  At Provantage, we believed him, and have entered our neighbour’s marketing arena with open minds and creative ideas and have been met with open arms.

Zimbabwean consumers are desperate for information. Our out-of-home channels are extremely successful in South Africa, but in SA where we interact with hundreds, we are interacting with thousands in Zimbabwe. The Zimbabwean consumer is eager to learn and sample products that are now readily available. The results have been phenomenal and surpassed our expectations.

At Provantage, we have been able to use our experience in Africa, together with our proprietary systems and technologies, and most importantly our relationships with local partners, to develop and implement activation campaigns that work. We are proud to have worked in South Africa, Zambia, Malawi, Ghana and Nigeria this year and to be able to add Zimbabwe to our list. Zimbabwe is open for business.