Purple Pineapple Marketing

Purple Pineapple marketing is run by a twenty-six year old marketing strategist Reabetswe Mabine. Born in Bethlehem but raised in Bloemfontein, Reabetswe is an ambitious young lady with a vision to branch into not only the African but international market in the near future. “After I completed my undergraduate degree in marketing and communications, I went back for a postgraduate qualification to apply myself as I wanted to be well rounded in my industry. And the BCom Honours in Marketing has helped me improve my marketing skills from a business standpoint,” she said. In 2016, she founded Purple Pineapple Marketing initially under the banner of “The Evergreen Branch” which was later rebranded to Purple Pineapple Marketing. Reabetswe says she was inspired by business woman and Philanthropist Thato Mokgothu to follow her passion. “She encouraged me to do that which makes me look forward to getting out of bed in the morning because people who do what they love never feel like they are working,” she said. “Our business objective is to be pioneers in building forward-thinking, long-lasting, and competitive brands that people relate to. Through this, I aim to establish brands as household names, allowing them to market and sell their products and services effectively. I also want to provide marketing and brandingservices that will help start-ups, small and medium businesses to access their market share,” explained Reabetswe What makes your business to stand out from the rest? Tell us about the unique features. My business story began at a business convention when I realized that brands did not understand what their customers wanted. I then founded the business to help bridge the gap between brands and their customers through designing innovative and tailored brand development and growth strategies. We have brand packages for start-up companies at reasonable prices, and a unique feature is what we call “Pineapple for Hire” where any company is able to outsource us as a marketing department and let us deal with everything marketing and branding allowing them the peace to run their company without having to worry about the marketing aspect. What are the highlights of being a businesswoman? My highlights of being a businesswoman must be the ability to make moves that inspire other women who are already in business or who aspire to be in business. Being a businesswoman has also given me a voice to speak and have influence in conversations of key importance that might impact people’s lives and their way of thinking. Another highlight was when I was able to branch out into investment property, which is an industry I have always wanted to tap into and now that I have, I intend to scale and grow my property investment portfolio. Are there any challenges or lowlights? The lowlight would have to be the barriers to entry in the business world, especially as a woman where one does not only need to keep proving oneself as compared to male counterparts. Women generally also experiences challenges of being expected to give out favours in exchange for business deals. Another challenge is to operate in a market that is not ready and sometimes unwilling to buy into your service offering. Do you have advice for aspiring entrepreneurs? First and foremost, find your passion. The moment you start your business in line with what you are passionate about, you give your company a stronger chance for success. The biggest mistake one can make is getting into business for the sake of getting into business, or solely for money but with no passion for that industry or market. Who do you look up to and why? My mother. I watched her become a single parent after the passing of my father and she picked herself up to build a home for us from nothing. She would work double shifts to put food on the table for me and my sister. It did not stop there, she adopted two other children and raised them as her own, and I have never heard her complain. She carries herself with so much grace and dignity. She is always there for us; she carries our pain like it’s her own. My mother is the epitome of class, sophistication, and hard work.