Price promotions might give you a short-term spike. But they don’t build long-term brand equity; if anything they destroy it. That’s why smart brand teams go beyond promotion to brand activation: campaigns that sell more stuff and strengthen the brand. A brilliant example is Metropolitan’s Collective Shapers, now in its fourth season and expanded to a national programme in 2025 (1).
The initiative helps young entrepreneurs aged 18–35 turn their ideas into real businesses with training, mentorship, market access and financial support. It’s not just a CSR side project — it’s Metropolitan’s empowerment purpose brought to life.
Here’s what makes Collective Shapers 2025 a standout activation.
1. Taps into a passion point
Great activations start with passion points — interests that matter to your core audience. For South African youth, two are obvious: entrepreneurship and sustainability. Young people are hungry for opportunities to hustle, grow and create their own futures. At the same time, they’re increasingly aware of the need to build sustainable businesses that last.
Collective Shapers 2025 taps directly into this energy by focusing on logistics and agriculture, two industries central to South Africa’s economy and future growth . The programme doesn’t just hand out advice — it creates a stage where entrepreneurs can showcase ideas, get recognition, and turn their passion into progress.
2. Brings to life the brand story
Every great activation should dramatise the brand’s core idea. For Metropolitan, that idea is “Together We Can.” Metropolitan Collective Shapers brings this to life by showing how progress is made possible when people join forces — young entrepreneurs, mentors, communities, and the brand itself.
The programme is a living expression of the belief that empowerment doesn’t happen in isolation. It happens through collaboration, support, and partnership. By curating stories of young South Africans being lifted up through shared effort, Metropolitan makes “Together We Can” not just a line in a brand book, but a tangible reality that audiences can see and feel.
3. Links to product category
The activation also ties smartly back to Metropolitan’s financial services core. At a functional level, Collective Shapers provides financial literacy training, equipping youth entrepreneurs with the know-how to run sustainable businesses. That direct category link builds credibility and salience.
But the campaign goes further: it positions Metropolitan insurance policies as a way to fuel the future of South Africa’s youth. By choosing Metropolitan, customers aren’t just protecting their own families — they’re also helping to unlock opportunities for the next generation of entrepreneurs. That’s a powerful blend of category relevance and emotional resonance: protecting today while investing in tomorrow.
4. Amplified across your mix
Turbo-charged activations don’t stop at one channel — they orchestrate many. Metropolitan amplified Collective Shapers 2025 through multiple channels, with each channel reinforcing the others. This ensuring the campaign worked harder than a simple one-off sponsorship ever could.
- Digital and social media — telling Shapers’ stories and inviting participation.
- On-the-ground activations — events and workshops across the country.
- Partnerships with business and community networks — creating credibility and reach.
- PR and media coverage — reinforcing Metropolitan’s role as an enabler of futures
- Outdoor – raising awareness and also promoting the Collective Shapers’ local businesses (see below)
5. Creates a replicable brand activation property
The most powerful activations aren’t one-and-done; they become brand assets that grow over time. Metropolitan has nailed this with Collective Shapers. This is a textbook example of fresh consistency: the same big idea each year, refreshed with new industries and a broader scope. It builds recognition while keeping the initiative exciting. Scaling nationally not only creates more impact by driving reach, it also strengthens Metropolitan’s brand as a trusted enabler of opportunity.
- 2022: Polokwane (agriculture)
- 2023: Tshwane (hospitality)
- 2024: KwaZulu-Natal (farming)
- 2025: National rollout (logistics and agriculture)
In conclusion, Metropolitan’s Collective Shapers shows how to go beyond promotion to build a replicable activation property by tapping into passion points, reinforcing the brand story and linking directly to the product category.
You can explore brand activation in depth on the short, on-demand TURBO MARKETING incourse on our brandgym Academy platform here. The course is fully refunded if you go on to take the full brandgym Mastering Brand Growth program, where we explore a comprehensive and practical 8-step program for creating brand-led growth
