Heineken Beverages, the drinks company formed from Heineken South Africa, Distell and Namibia Breweries, was named Brand of the Year at the 2026 Loeries, South Africa’s advertising awards, according to Bizcommunity. The title went to the company for creative work across several of its brands, drinks categories and disciplines, and the company’s win was announced at the second and final awards evening.
Bizcommunity’s report on that evening, published on 10 October 2026, gives no judging criteria for the Brand of the Year award. It says only that Heineken Beverages was named Brand of the Year.
The work behind the award
The Bizcommunity winners list credits Heineken Beverages with a Grand Prix (the top award in a category) in Live Events for Bar de Change, created by LePub Johannesburg. The same campaign won Silver in PR and Media Communication Campaign. A second LePub Johannesburg entry, Whispering Commentator, won Bronze in Live Events Sponsorship and Bronze in Audio Experiences and Activations.
Bar de Change was announced in April 2026, in sponsored content from Heineken that ran on Business Day on 9 April. Heineken set up an exchange counter at OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg. Travellers paid South African prices for Heineken before they left and received digital vouchers instead of foreign currency, which they could redeem at participating Heineken partner bars across Europe.
Heineken says a beer abroad can cost South Africans up to three times what it costs at home, and that at selected locations the voucher makes the price the same: “One beer there equals one beer here.” That is the company’s own claim. The article gives no rand or euro prices and does not name the partner bars or cities.
The company’s brand director in South Africa, Alex Drake, framed the campaign as removing the friction of currency conversion. In the Business Day piece he said: “As the world’s most international brewer, Heineken exists to bring people together across borders.”
Windhoek’s real hands
The other major entries came from TBWA\Hunt Lascaris, mostly for Windhoek Beer. According to the winners list, The Real Hand Model won Silver in PR and Media Communication Campaign, Silver in Comedic Impact, Silver in Integrated Campaign and Silver in Creative Strategy. A related entry, The Real Guy, won Silver in Film for Branded Content (Single). Bizcommunity’s Heineken report says The Real Hand Model collected five awards in total.
The campaign centres on James Kumar, a Kenyan content creator who was born with polydactyly and has 12 fingers. According to a Bizcommunity report of 30 June 2026, the campaign responds to the habit of checking hands to spot AI-generated people, because AI has historically struggled to render hands accurately.
Keval Ramraj, marketing manager for Windhoek Beer in South Africa, said the brand wanted to make a clear statement as AI-generated content spreads: “Not artificial perfection. Not manufactured humanity. Real stories, real people, and real beer.” Kumar said of his hands: “I view it as a strength rather than a limitation.”
Heineken Beverages marketing director Andrea Quaye described the Brand of the Year title as “a tremendous recognition of the people and partnerships behind the work.” The company credited LePub Johannesburg, TBWA\Hunt Lascaris and its wider network of partners, and said it sees creativity as a business growth driver.
The company and the wider results
Heineken Beverages was formed in 2023 through the combination of Heineken South Africa, Distell and Namibia Breweries. When Heineken announced the deal on 15 November 2021, it put its total investment at about EUR 2.5 billion for a stake of at least 65% in the new company. The company says it has 70 brands and operates in 13 African markets. Its portfolio includes Heineken, Windhoek, Amstel, Savanna, Bernini, J.C. Le Roux, Nederburg, Amarula and Klipdrift.
The Loeries handed out 272 awards in total in 2026, according to Bizcommunity’s totals table: 4 Grand Prix, 28 Gold, 69 Silver and 93 Bronze, plus craft and campaign awards. Joe Public was named both Independent Agency of the Year and Agency of the Year, Publicis Groupe won Regional Agency Group of the Year, and Reg Lascaris of TBWA\Hunt Lascaris was inducted into the Loeries Hall of Fame.
The awards do not carry a financial result. Neither Bizcommunity nor the company has said what the Brand of the Year title means for sales or marketing spend.
