Green is the word

Johannesburg - Sustainability may cost a bit at the start, but eventually it pays off in spades. That's the message of Ogilvyearth, the environmentalist "communications practice" ("agency" to you) which has opened in South Africa.

It's starting under the umbrella of Zoom, Ogilvy's retail agency, not because it's retail-focused, but because Zoom is an active environmental protagonist.

Ogilvyearth was started in Australia and since its global launch two years ago has spread to a dozen countries.

It's an idea whose time has come, says global CEO Seth Farbman - "but I also hope it's time will pass. Our ultimate goal is to make sustainability so ingrained in the marketing and innovation process that it no longer requires deep speciality practices."

Farbman says he "couldn't be prouder of the progress and results of Ogilvyearth. We were recently named the top sustainability communications agency by Verdantix, a well-regarded sustainability research group. And Ogilvyearth has grown rapidly, as more and more clients recognise the need for specialist knowledge in such a dynamic field."

The financial collapse of 2008 took people's eye off the environment, but it also made them realise that the collapse was partly attributable to business non-sustainability, says Zoom executive creative director Deon Robbertze. Consequently, awareness of environmental problems is growing as the evidence of past neglect becomes impossible to deny.

"If we're not sustainable on a planet with 6 billion people, how much worse off will we be in 2050, when the population is 9 billion?"

Robbertze concedes that he has a mountain of apathy to climb in South Africa, although in some respects we are ahead of Western countries.

Impoverished Africans tend to re-use waste materials, turning a length of wire into a toy, or plastic packaging into place mats. But there's still a lot of litter.

"The new sustainable economy can create jobs," he says. "Although sustainable options can cost money initially, in the long term they will save money, and leaders in sustainability will earn enormous credit with the public."

Green-washing is a problem. "People get bombarded with claims. But in the age of transparency, the consumer can find out anything about your brand, so you can't get away with it for ever."

Robbertze's business targets look achievable. "Within a year, we want four medium-sized clients. At the moment the unit is part of Zoom, but when it's proved its viability it could spin off as a separate agency. We are running a tight ship and I am working on both agencies."

The primary pitch is legacy-based: "What kind of world are you leaving to your children?"

 - Fin24.com