TASHAS GROUP
As a Brand Strategist, Tessa works closely with Natasha, the Head Office teams in the UAE and South Africa on all aspects of the Group’s many brands - tashas, Avli by tashas, Galaxy Bar, Flamingo Room by tashas and more - as well as on overall strategy, both regionally and internationally.
With a background in publishing, she headed up the publication of the tashas Café Classics Cookbook that met with critical acclaim. She has also been instrumental in delivering the tashas Inspired Cookbook that will launch in October 2020. She works on special projects across the group.
Tahas Group has been a client of Tessa’s for over fourteen years.
AN AMAZING JOURNEY WITH JAMIE OLIVER
Tessa joined Jamie as a consultant to assist him in developing a relevant brand strategy in 2001 – just as the last Naked Chef series was about to air. At the time he had half of an employee.
Moving from consultant to Brand Director, Tessa worked closely with Jamie to further develop and build his brand across multiple platforms including publishing, television, product, and endorsements in more than 52 countries and 26 languages over the next seven years.
Tessa also worked as a member of Jamie’s key executive team in developing 14 companies that sat within the group. These companies included a television production company (freshone.tv), a design agency (theplant.co.uk) and a talent agency (fresh-partners.com).
Branding Authentic Leadership with Holos Change
Holos believes that Authentic Leadership is the only superpower that can deliver sustained success on all levels.
They have developed a system that can unlock this superpower.
By empowering authenticity in leadership, we enable extraordinary levels of collaboration and commitment that makes change easy.
Their vision is a world where Authentic Leadership is universally practiced, purposefully and successfully, in order to have a sustained positive impact on individuals, teams, organisations, countries and on humanity.
Tessa’s work with Holos began in August, 2020 when she ran a Brand Workshop with the founders, Neil Crofts and Mark Thompson. Her on-going role is to finely craft all elements of the brand and communications for the business moving forward and work closely with the founders on all relevant aspects of the business. She continues to work closely with the team on strategy, communications and brand integration.
Storyteller Productions Brand Strategy & Identity Development
Storyteller is an independent production company with a passion for original content that has global appeal, with the ability to finance projects in-house and work with the most sought-after filmmakers.
Founded by P.J. van Sandwijk and Michael Lesslie, Storyteller creates extraordinary cinematic experiences from documentaries to movies, such as Citizen K, American Dharma, Thirteen Lives (with Imagine), Space X with Tom Cruise, Thai Caves (National Geographic) Roads to Freedom (Ridley Scott) and Locked Down featuring Anne Hathaway and Chiwetel Ejiofor.
They are in the business of storytelling, with a pioneering attitude and a deep understanding of narrative, character and structure, they seek to tell the most compelling stories.
In this project, Tessa worked with the founders to define the Storyteller brand as well as project managed the development brand and motion identity. A fascinating project that spanned multiple time zones with extraordinary creatives based in South Africa and New Zealand with clients based in London and Los Angeles.
tashas Inspired - A Celebration of Food & Art
Tessa worked both as the publishing agent as well as the project manager on this incredible book.
It is more than just a collection of recipes. Divided into seven different chapters; Café Society, A Spanish Affair, Le Bistro, The Levant Kitchen, A New York State of Mind, A Day in the Country and The Mediterranean Kitchen. The concept encourages home cooks to think like a restaurateur by considering all the elements that lend themselves to a specific menu, including the table setting and the music.
Each chapter’s themed menu is accompanied by a specially curated Spotify playlist to transport readers to each location, as well as offering helpful tips and suggestions for styling the perfect tablescape. To evoke a sense of place, the book is filled with over 70 pieces of beautiful and original art, playing a significant role in the art of entertaining. Artists include Alexandra Ross, Michele Nigrini, Mona Saudi and Akim Monet.
The tashas restaurants are all designed with the same underlying blueprint and yet have their own identity, inspired by a different city, country of culture, which is expressed in every element from the menu to the interior design. As with every tashas restaurant, every single detail is thought about in tashas Inspired, encouraging readers to do the same. The large-format hardback book sits perfectly on the kitchen counter as on a coffee table.
Uplifting the Restaurant Industry in South Africa
When Natasha Sideris, Managing Director of tashas and Grace Harding, CEO of Ocean Basket decided to create an organisation to uplift the sit-down restaurant in South Africa and share best practice, they asked Tessa to be on the team. Her understanding of strategy as well as digital technology allowed them to build a quick and powerful presence for The Restaurant Collective online and across all social platforms.
2019's BrandPrint Sessions
For years, Tessa has been doing one-off brand strategy sessions with clients. It is the best place to start creating your brand. In this four hour session - or 2 x 2 hour by Skype - Tessa works with her clients to define their brand, their why a well as pinpoint the opportunities that exist to commercialise the brand while maintaining its authenticity. Whether you want to continue working with Tessa or simply need some clarity, it is a fantastic and interactive session.
Over the course of 2019, she has done sessions with:
Donald Nxumalo - https://www.donaldnxumalo.com/
Stephanie Kienle Gonzalez - https://www.instagram.com/stephkienlegonzalez/
Steve Steinfeld “The Joburg Foodie” - https://www.instagram.com/thejoburgfoodie/
Juanene Frydman - http://juanenefrydman.com/
Caryn Cohen - http://www.bambanani.biz/
WSquare - https://www.instagram.com/wsquare_art_installation/
Grace Mononela - https://www.instagram.com/gracemononela/
It has been an honour to work with such a wide variety of clients to define their brand, their why and their platform strategy.
Whether you are an international client and would like to work over Skype or do the session face to face, it is a great way to tap into Tessa’s background and experience. This is the same workshop that she has done with other clients that include Kholisa Thomas, Lewis Pugh, The Lewis Pugh Foundation, Jamie Oliver, tashas, Stella McCartney and David Higgs to name a few.
For more information about how to work with Tessa, go here.
Getting artfull with Kholisa Thomas
Tessa worked closely with Kholisa Thomas, Founder of artfull, to develop the incredible concept that she came up with to disrupt buying art by connecting art lovers with emerging artists.
The relationship began with Tessa facilitating a four-hour workshop to help Kholisa get clear on her personal brand and how that would influence the development fo the artfull business and brand.
For the next 18 months, they worked side by side to develop the brand and concept into a working business. This included the creation of the visual look and feel, videos, photography, website copy, automated email strategy, and content, trademark as well as the social media launch and strategy.
Building an online, disruptive business isn’t easy. Every little detail needs to be thought through and speak to the brand essence.
Of the project, Tessa says, “It was an immense pleasure to work with Kholisa on every element of this startup. Working collaboratively is what I love. I think the results speak for themselves”.
For more information go to www.artfull.co.
FOX BROWNE CREATIVE
Fox Browne Creative was founded by Debra Fox and Christopher Browne in 2009.
They met while working at andBeyond, formerly CC Africa, where Debra was the Chief Operating Officer and, Chris was the Creative Director. After seventeen years with andBeyond, they started Fox Browne Creative to develop bespoke luxury properties in Africa and around the world using their unique skills in design and hospitality.
They, together with their skilled team, offer direction and assistance for the development of luxury lodges, lifestyle retail outlets, remote private homes and small hotels. Their in-house team delivers architectural design, interior design, hospitality training and operations from concept development through to the final delivery of the guest experience.
Most importantly, they are passionate about creating beautiful guest experiences for their clients, who make a meaningful difference to the environments in which they operate.
During the first phase of this project Tessa worked with the team define their brand and their WHY with their team. We then embarked on a complete redesign of their brand, identity, language across all platforms - including the creation of a beautiful website that highlights the brilliant work that they do.
MILE 8 | DAVID HIGGS
Originally, the celebrated South African chef, David Higgs, approached Tessa to do a brand strategy session with him and key members of his team. It was quickly decided that it was time for him to do his first cookbook.
The team wanted to create something truly unique and of the best quality possible. In her role, Tessa collaborated with David and the creative team in developing all of the content, copy, photography and design as well as developing timelines, budgets, etc.
Strategically, Tessa looked at a variety of publishing options – self-published, locally published in South Africa or published by an international partner. We decided to go with the self-published option printing with an Italian company that prints for one of the best publishers in the world, Phaidon.
Mile 8 is the story of David Higgs, celebrated chef and co-presenter of My Kitchen Rules, starting in the coastal town of Walvis Bay, through the cowboy kitchens of Cape Town in the 90’s, to the heart of South Africa’s lush Winelands, and culminating at Marble, a culinary tour de force in the heart of Johannesburg. It is a culinary adventure with over 90 dished and 150 recipes that bring together the unique and interesting flavours of Southern Africa.
THE LEWIS PUGH FOUNDATION
The Lewis Pugh Foundation is a not for profit charity, working to preserve and conserve our oceans for a peaceful and sustainable future.
Lewis approached Tessa to develop a unique and separate brand strategy for the Lewis Pugh Foundation. The project consisted of developing the Foundation’s BrandPrint, brand strategy as well as building an online presence from the website to all social media platforms.
It was an honour for Tessa to further the work that she had done with Lewis in the past and assist him in the development of the important work that he is doing with the Foundation to preserve and conserve the world’s oceans.
www.lewispughfoundation.org
THE LONG SWIM | LEWIS PUGH
Lewis Pugh took on a huge challenge by swimming the length of the English Channel – around 330 miles (530km) – from Cornwall to Dover.
The swim, which he completed within 50 days, is part of the worldwide Action for Oceans campaign, which calls on governments to fully protect at least 30% of the world’s oceans by 2030.
As well as raising awareness about ocean health, Pugh’s swim sought to highlight the positive impact marine conservation zones have on marine life.
After developing the Lewis Pugh Foundation brand and website in 2017, Lewis approached Tessa to update lewispugh.com as well as lewispughfoundation.com for his most important campaign to date – The Long Swim.
She worked closely with Lewis and his team on many elements of the campaign.
JOIN CIRCLES AROUND YOUR HEALTH
JoinCircles is an online wellness company where you can personalise your nutrition, environment, and lifestyle choices from your DNA up.
Dr Heidi Van Loggerenberg and her partner, Marguerite Gander’s intention is to ensure that you get maximum value for your monthly health budget, as well as provide you with an easy way to achieve optimal wellness and preventing chronic, lifestyle-related disease through personalisation.
Traditional medicine treats acute disease very well but often falls short when treating chronic disease. Both of them had cancer in their mid-30’s after living very similar lifestyles growing up. They believe they ‘turned on’ their cancers by making the wrong choices for their DNA.
Cancer taught them that all of our daily nutrition, environment and lifestyle choices add up and that these choices can change the way our genetic code expresses itself. Now, they join circles around a DNA daily to change its expression for the better. Making better choices takes daily commitment. Once you know ‘WHY’ you want to prevent disease and create optimal wellness, this commitment comes from a very deep, personal place and better choices become easier.
Launched in 2016, based on their own health experiences and solutions, they wanted to create a place where you could stand at the centre of your healthcare – where you could order your own DNA and labs tests (without seeing a doctor), store your health data and then send it to which ever practitioner you choose, and start to construct your personalised health protocol.
They offer protocols and programmes to help get you started. They help you find your WHY and provide you with all the tools you need to join circles around your DNA daily.
Tessa collaborated with Heidi and Margie to develop their brand, their online strategy, overall brand look and feel as well as create all of the content for their website and assisted in the relaunch of the business.
BUILDING THE TASHAS BRAND
tashas is a growing business with 17 restaurants in South Africa and five locations in UAE.
The core of Tessa’s consultancy with tashas, is working directly with Natasha Sideris, founder and Managing Executive, on a multitude of projects including overall strategic development and growth for the brand and the business both internationally and within South Africa.
Specific projects include: social media strategy, brand strategy, trademark and IP strategy, web presence, publicity, organisational strategy as well as publishing the first and best selling tashas Cookbook, launched in March 2015 to critical acclaim.
CREATING AUTHENTIC LUXURY TRAVEL BRANDS
Tessa worked alongside Fox Browne Creative in developing their brand, marketing strategy and digital implementation for an exciting, new luxury adventure travel property in India. Driven by one man’s passion for wildlife and his home country of India, the brand is reflective of his mission.
CREATING A RICHER LIFE
Tessa collaborated in re-defining Ann Wilson’s on-line personality-led business with her internationally-based team. The first step was to redefine the brand experience for this cutting edge concept that delivers dynamic training programs that teach individuals how to create a wealthy life.
LEWIS PUGH & SAVING THE WORLD’S OCEANS
In this role, Tessa worked hand in hand with Lewis to develop his brilliance, his brand, his business as well as his overall strategy – focussed on furthering his work as an ocean advocate, pioneer athlete, best-selling author and as one of the world’s leading inspirational speakers.