Captain CAN

A young French man in his early twenties had just finished his internship with Unilever France. His manager, who heads exports, walks up to his desk to tell him about his next assignment. ‘Africa is full of chaos; we keep you in Europe’.?The young man’s response left the manager speechless: ‘Je choisis l'Afrique’. The manager tries to talk him out, but clearly the young man has made up his mind. That day, the young man chose Africa; his name is Laurent Goldman.

Fast forward to the present day.

Unilever International- Unilever's global business unit and whitespace partner has forged a partnership with CAF (Confederation of African Football) Africa Cup of Nations C?te d’Ivoire 2023, making our personal care brands Rexona, Dove, and Axe the official sponsors of CAF Africa Cup of Nations C?te d’Ivoire 2023 (also called CAN). Africa is home to some of the best football talent in the world, and this partnership is an incredible opportunity to engage with scores of football fans and athletes.

That’s a lot of responsibility and an opportunity to make a difference. So, we huddle—we have so little time; how do we pull this off?

We need a team, and we need a captain!

With great enthusiasm and some anxiety, I call Laurent to tell him about the partnership. He is an avid football enthusiast and an Ivorian at heart, so he jumped with joy. Everything must have been done yesterday. ‘Don’t worry, Ani (how he calls me); everything will be taken care of’ came the response with a heavy French accent.

I felt reassured before I hung up. One last thing, Laurent: you are our captain for the CAN event.

Oh, ‘Captain CAN?’ He giggled, and we laughed together.

So, we flew to Cote d'Ivore together for a market visit and to chalk out our plans. This is nothing like anything we have organized in such a short time. We walk into the office of one of the largest retailers, and Laurent is greeted with a hug by the top boss. Laurent expresses his desire to have space for in-store activations in all the stores, but the team tells him everything is booked, and we are too late. After all, CAN is ‘the’ event, and all companies are making a beeline.

When all seemed lost, a voice bellowed, ‘You will get the space." It was the top boss. He continues, ‘Because Laurent is asking for it’. I watch in awe.

Onwards, we continue our market visit, and Laurent explains, and I listen.

I love to watch consumers as they look through the shelves, touch the product, pick it up, keep it back, and finally choose one that goes in the basket. Whenever it's my product (I mean, Unilever), it’s a win!

Laurent helped me out with the translation. When the conversation was ending and we were shaking hands, Laurent pulled out an Axe jersey I never knew he was carrying—much like a magician pulls out a rabbit from his hat. The shopper was all smiles—clearly, he didn’t expect it.

I realized what Laurent just did—he converted a consumer for life.

Resourcefulness is the ability to make things happen. It is the single most invaluable quality that often doesn’t get its fair share. Truth be told, resourcefulness is ‘the superpower’.

For Laurent, what started as French exports into Africa eventually expanded to global exports. Africa continues to have a special place in his heart. He has built the business, nurtured the team, and made things happen. With Laurent, we always can.

Aye! aye! Captain CAN