Cross-Brand collaborations seem to be happening everywhere lately and taking the world by storm. Be it in the fashion, music, and health industry. The market is big enough for any brand to have a share. Brands are tapping into new markets to deliver value to their customers and societies.

The role of brand collaboration in societies.

Brand collaboration allows brands to get in front of potential customers. According to a 5WPR report, 83% of millennials say they value a business that aligns with their values and beliefs. Such businesses are more likely to survive during times of a crisis. With the transformation in technology, consumers are more aware of the influence that brands have in societies. Brands that are purpose-driven such as Bolt add value to society through strategic partnerships.

Here are some of the great collaborations by Bolt to address the socio-economic problem.

Bolt’s x Pink Drive

Bolt partnered with Pink Drive early this year. Their partnership was meant to give health care professionals a ride to vaccination sites. Pink Drive is a non-governmental organization based in Cape Town. Partnering with Bolt was influenced by a surge in demand for Covid -19 healthcare professionals. Healthcare professionals play an important role in caring for our health and well-being during the global pandemic. Their collaboration was impactful and reduced costs and admin it took health care workers to get to the vaccination site.

The collaboration came at a time where access to transportation was difficult due to lockdown restrictions. The brand saw an opportunity to work with this NGO to fill in the gap. The Pink Drive health care professionals were transported to public sector vaccination sites in Gauteng, Western Cape, and KwaZulu-Natal.

A free ride to your next interview.

Bolt x Harambee

Unemployment in South Africa is one of the most troubling socio-economic issues. According to Aljazeera, unemployment in South Africa is at an all-time high compared to the rest of the world. The current youth unemployment rate is at 64, 40%.

Bolt South Africa, collaborated with Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator. Harambee is a Non-Profit Organization that is dedicated to the ambitious fight against youth unemployment in South Africa. Harambee achieves its objective by providing unemployed youth the opportunity to get employment through skills development programs.

This collaboration supported Bolt’s vision of driving excellence by helping young South Africans to have access to work opportunities.

Access to transportation and the cost of travel is one of the biggest financial barriers to employment. According to a report by Harambee on breaking Barriers – Transport, this is made worse by the apartheid-led geographic inequality that sees lower-income groups still living further away from jobs and paying more for transport to get to work. This is why enabling access to transport is one of the key factors in overcoming poverty in South Africa.

Addressing Gender-Based Violence

Bolt x Namola

Violence against women is rife in South Africa. Women’s safety in public transports has been a concern for many years. Since the lockdown restrictions, more than 120 000 GBV cases were recorded in SA. Bolt partnered with the National Safety Platform (Namola) to introduce the Women-Only-Service feature into the Bolt app. The feature allows only women to request directly to female drivers. This service is protected by a built-in SOS emergency system. Female passengers requesting this service connect directly to female drivers on the app. Male drivers are not able to see boarding requests.

Brands with good social purpose and value creation are important more likely to have trustworthy customers and experience positive returns on their investments.