Staff Writer.
Chicken Licken’s Managing Director & Chief Marketer, Chantal Sombonos-Van Tonder, has made Loeries history by being the first second generation award winner of the coveted Marketing Leadership Award, an honour her late father George Sombonos received in 2013.
The award was introduced by the Loeries in 2007, to recognise an individual for their marketing achievements over a sustained period of time. Previous winners have included Andrea Quaye, former Vice President of Marketing at Anheuser-Busch InBev; Doug Place, Chief Marketing Officer at Nandos; Claudia Waters, Marketing Communications Manager at Mercedes Benz and Yegs Ramiah, former Chief Executive of Brand at Sanlam.
“Chantal’s leadership has seen Chicken Licken win numerous Loerie Awards over the recent years culminating in Chicken Licken becoming the number one ranked brand in the Loeries 2019 rankings. Chantal’s support of her agency is a testament to how effective brand and agency partnerships can create innovative experiences for society,” says Preetesh Sewraj, CEO of the Loeries.
An elated Sombonos-Van Tonder says, “It’s a huge honour for me on behalf of my creative team and Chicken Licken family, but also on a personal level it’s a huge affirmation of the work I am doing in continuing my father’s legacy of tenacity, hard work whilst chartering new territories for the brand.”
Sombonos-Van Tonder, who eats Chicken Licken daily, is exceptionally passionate about the brand founded by her father in 1981 and attributes her business success to the partnership with creative agency Joe Public and her supportive husband and family. “The success of our brand is a balance between our agency’s outstanding creativity and my instincts for knowing what is best for the brand which has been part of my life since primary school,” she says.
Sharing her father’s firm belief in the power of creativity to move the business forward has already yielded exceptional results, despite the tough economic climate. Even with its doors closed during the COVID-19 lockdown, and while other brands struggled to strike the right tone, Sombonos-Van Tonder ensured that Chicken Licken nimbly adapted its advertising to delight its audience thereby sustaining fans’ ardent brand love.
Since taking over the helm, Sombonos-Van Tonder has collected a series of accolades – a total of 49 Loeries including a Grand Prix, eleven Gold awards and both the coveted ‘Brand of the Year’ and ‘Brand Representative of the Year’ awards for 2019.
As one of a few women in leadership, the mum of two boys, a teenager and toddler, highlights that, “Women can achieve the same success and, with determination and support, can balance both career and family.”
Sombonos-Van Tonder holds a Bachelor of Scientific Economics from the University of Stellenbosch and has been at the helm of the business for nearly two decades. “Chicken Licken is my life and I am as passionate about it as my father. He once told me that if you believe in something you should be willing to die for it.”
With 247 franchisees across South Africa and in Botswana, Sombonos-Van Tonder hopes to continue to innovate with its creative communication with the aim of delivering a soulful and affordable experience to their customers.
Here’s a list of all the winners from today:
| Brand Identity & Collateral Design – Identity Programmes |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Brand Council and Switch Brand SA for Brand Council: Identity Programme |
| Silver Loerie goes to Motley Crew CrossFit and DUKE for Motley Crew brand identity |
| Gold Loerie goes to Nahana Communications Group and FCB Joburg for Nahana |
| Brand Identity & Collateral Design – Logos |
| Gold Loerie goes to PROOF and King James Group for PROOF |
| Graphic Design – Posters & Environmental Graphics |
| Campaign Bronze goes to Loto Libanais and Impact BBDO for Dream Number Campaign |
| Silver Loerie goes to Al Saiyid Gun Society and Impact BBDO for Objects Not People |
| Graphic Design – General Design |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Yes 4 Youth and M&C Saatchi Abel for The CV Suit Collection – Shirt |
| Campaign Bronze goes to TOPS at SPAR and TBWA Hunt Lascaris Durban for Aftertaste Campaign |
| Gold Loerie goes to Pride of Africa and Joe Public Shift for Pride of Africa |
| Graphic Design – Package Design |
| Bronze Loerie goes to First Base Pizza and Canvas for Kiss |
| Bronze Loerie goes to ThreeDots and Xfacta for ThreeDots |
| Silver Loerie goes to Castle Lite and Rocketfuel for The Coldlock Pack |
| Graphic Design – Creative Use of Paper |
| Silver Loerie goes to I Love Coffee and Saatchi & Saatchi for Signing Cups |
| Design – Motion Graphic Design |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Nissan Middle East and TBWARAAD for miNIMal |
| Silver Loerie goes to Beatnik and Old Friends Young Talent for Beatnik logo sequence |
| Silver Loerie goes to Mnet and Wicked Pixels for Channel O Rebrand |
| Design – Design for Digital |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Chicken Licken and Joe Public for The Hungry Poet |
| Bronze Loerie goes to WH Smith and FP7McCann, Dubai for PopUp Books |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Rand Merchant Bank and Promise and Fell&Co. for A Story of Courage |
| Bronze Loerie goes to MakeReign and MakeReign for Introducing MakeReign on the global stage |
| Silver Loerie goes to Fiftyfifty Lebanon and Impact BBDO for Close The Gap |
| Silver Loerie goes to Pineapple insurance and MakeReign for Insurance with a snap |
| Design – Architecture |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Rosemary Hill and ANVL Works for Greenhouse Cafe |
| Design – Interior Design & Temporary Structures |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Nando’s and Studio Leelynch for Rosettenville, the original home of Nando’s revisioned |
| Design – Fabric Design |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Lulasclan for African Kingdom Textile Design |
| Campaign Silver goes to Molo Mhlaba Schools and MAL for the MoloMaakMal Campaign |
| Design – General Product Design |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Nando’s and Studio Leelynch for Design for the New Normal |
| Silver Loerie goes to Castle Lite and Rocketfuel for The Crate Converter |
| Design Mixed-MediCampaign |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Redemption Rum and Jane Says Design for African Gold Campaign |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Hype Magazine & Tears Foundation and TBWA Hunt Lascaris Johannesburg for BLAME NO MORE |
| Gold Loerie goes to An-Nahar Newspaper and Impact BBDO Dubai for The New National Anthem Edition |
| Gold Loerie goes to Babyshop and FP7 McCann Dubai for Parenthood: Rephrased |
| Design Crafts – Photography |
| A Craft Certificate goes to Vodacom and Openfield Marketing Johannesburg for Once Upon an African Future |
| Design Crafts – Illustration |
| A Craft Certificate goes to 3 Taverns and Muti for 3 Taverns Lables |
| Design Crafts – Typography |
| Campaign Craft Certificate goes to Loto Libanais and Impact BBDO for the Dream Number Campaign |
| Craft Gold goes to Donner Sang Compter and FP7McCann, Dubai for Blood Unity |
| Design Crafts – Writing for Design |
| Craft Gold goes to An-Nahar Newspaper and Impact BBDO Dubai for The New National Anthem Edition |
| PR and Media Communication |
| Bronze Loerie goes to An Nahar Newspaper and Impact BBDO Dubai for The New National Anthem Edition |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Donner Sang Compter and FP7McCann, Dubai for Blood Unity |
| Bronze Loerie goes to LADA and TBWARAAD for Thank you Russia |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Gillette South Africa and Grey Advertising / WPP Team Liquid for Nozizwe |
| Silver Loerie goes to POWA and Black River FC for RSA |
| Silver Loerie goes to Snickers and Impact BBDO Dubai for Hunger Insurance |
| Gold Loerie goes to Chicken Licken and Joe Public for Everyone’s talking about it. Even Kentucky. |
| Live Events |
| Silver Loerie goes to LOSEV and Rafineri Reklamcilik for DEAR BROTHER |
| Gold Loerie goes to Mastercard and FP7McCann, Dubai for Astronomical Sales |
| Live Activations |
| Bronze Loerie goes to Chicken Licken and Joe Public for Everyone’s talking about it. Even Kentucky. |
| Silver Loerie goes to Diageo for Guinness Goal Challenge |
| Live Events – Sponsorship |
| Bronze Loerie goes to MTN South Africa and TBWA Hunt Lascaris Johannesburg for The Official MTN Bozza of the Springboks |
| Live Crafts |
| Campaign Craft Certificate goes to POWA and Black River FC for RSA – POWA |