Partners of the Jamaica Observer Reggae Girlz Ultimate Fan Promotion have deemed the activation a “huge” success.

The promotion, which ran from March 7 to April 21, culminated at the newspaper’s Beechwood Avenue headquarters yesterday with the draw which saw Marilyn Allen emerging as the lucky winner from thousands of entries.

Allen and a guest will fly all-expenses-paid to France to witness the history-making Reggae Girlz in their opening Fifa Women’s World Cup game against Brazil in Grenoble on June 9.

For the chance to win, Observer readers were asked to fill out an entry form published in the newspaper, attach any Wata label, and then deposit the complete package at any of the 57 Total gas stations across the island or any Jamaica Observer office in Kingston, Montego Bay, Ocho Rios, or Mandeville.

The newspaper partnered with the Girlz’s hydration sponsor Wisynco, through its popular Wata brand; French-owned Total service stations; British Airways; Sandals Resorts International, Supreme Ventures Limited; and the Jamaica Football Federation to pull of the “amazing” promotion.

Allen and her guest will enjoy round-trip tickets from Kingston via London, US$1,500 spending money, hotel accommodation for two, and tickets to watch the Girlz’s opening match at the June 7 to July 7 World Cup.

Newly appointed managing director of the Observer Julian Rogers suggested that the overwhelming success of the promotion was entrenched in the unshakeable loyalty of the newspaper’s readers.

“I think it starts with the loyalty people have for the newspaper, and not only in terms of readers, but the partnerships with various institutions and corporate companies… it is always a happy moment when the partnerships with the newspaper and the business community come to fruition with a competition like this,” said the Barbadian after pulling the winning package from the rolling drum.

Rogers, a recognised figure in regional media management, underscored the life-changing potential of the competition.

“We heard from our winner that she was planning to go to Europe, but never imagined that she would be going to Europe to support our Girlz in France, and that is wonderful… so it’s not just one winner, but two, and the family and friends rejoicing in that celebration, and this builds a feeling as far as our readers are concerned that they get something extra and that they are not just buying the paper, and that in the end we showed that we are always looking out for them,” he noted.

Regional manager, North Caribbean at British Airways Georgette Manning said: “We are so elated that we can be a part of this, which will allow Jamaicans to go and support our Girlz in France. British Airways is always delighted to take part in something like this, and we would definitely be willing to come on-board if the opportunity presents itself in the future.”

Karen Mignott, shop, food, and services manager Total, said the outcome of the promotion has left her “very excited”.

“We had a lot of persons coming into our stations asking about the promotion, and we had a chance to engage some of them. I think the Observer did a great job with this competition, and we were very happy to be a part of it… we had Ultimate fans coming to our stations, and for that, we feel like winners as well,” she noted.

Promotions manager at Wata Shanique Francis said being a part of history and sharing in that legacy are the greatest returns on her company’s investment.

“This is a part of history, as the Reggae Girlz are going to the World Cup for the first time… I am very excited that Wisynco could have been a part of this venture. You see when you are a part of history, that is something that lasts a lifetime, and years from now people will look back and remember that Wisynco was the only distribution company that was a part of this history, and they will realise that our company saw the vision to be a part of this journey, and that is very powerful,” she said.

Stephanie Todd, communications officer at Supreme Ventures Limited, said winning is a culture in her organisation, and therefore she connects with the Ultimate Fan Promotion winner.

“We are ecstatic and, as you know, Supreme Ventures is all about winning and promoting a winning lifestyle. But importantly also, we are happy that we were able to bridge the gap between two of our important partners, the Reggae Girlz, who we have been sponsoring from last year, and the Jamaica Observer, a media partner for a long time,” she said following the draw.

Head of advertising, marketing and communications at the Observer Natalie Chin said the promotion gave the newspaper another opportunity to engage its readers and to build on the relationships with key corporate partners.

“We are extremely excited and happy with the success of the promotion. What we found from this promotion is that people are reading the paper, and we are always celebrating our readers, and this is one of the ways to celebrate with them, and it is always good when you can give back to your readers.

”People were excited about the promotion, and so to our dear partners I must say a big thank you,” Chin said.

– Sean Williams