We’re looking at the World Cup from an entrepreneur’s perspective. Today, we’re taking a look at one product in particular, the vuvuzela.

Vuvuzelas, the plastic trumpets blown by football/soccer fans, have spread like wildfire since the start of the World Cup (you’ve probably heard them on TV in the background). The stadium horns are a spinoff of traditional instruments made from kudu antelope horns and are similar to tin noisemakers used for decades by soccer fans in Brazil and Mexico. Regardless of your stance on their annoyingness, they’re quite interesting from a business perspective.

History

In the 1990s, South African plastics expert and mould maker Neil van Schalkwyk saw a trumpet being blown at a soccer game and made a plastic version, starting company Masincedane Sport to mass produce it. By 2001, the company had won a SAB Kickstart award for enterprise development and was selling 500 horns a week — and double that by 2002. Then, in 2004, as a way of supporting South Africa’s bid, former South African president Nelson Mandela brought hundreds to Zurich, where FIFA would announce the 2010 World Cup host. The day of the announcement, Mandela, Desmond Tutu, the finance minister, and the sport minister were all photographed blowing vuvuzelas in celebration; Masincedane Sport sold 20,000 units that day. Since then, business has been booming. Van Schalkwyk says he’s sold over 1.5 million instruments since October 2009.

An International Business

Without the World Cup, it’s believed the South African vuvuzela industry would still be worth around 50 million rand (6.58 million USD) — all for a piece of plastic that sells for about a dollar. While Masincedane Sport is the only company licensed to sell the instrument in South Africa, countless other companies are selling them anyways. Toy factories in China’s Guandong province have produced millions that are then sold on street corners around the world and given away by businesses as free promotional items. Even Masincedane Sport’s license has been called into question, since, as a simple horn, the vuvuzela has many relatives and many possible ‘inventors.’

In 2007, Frank Urbas and Gerd Kehrberg, two German entrepreneurs, anticipated the instrument’s popularity and acquired the European resale rights from Masincedane Sport two years later. Since then, they’ve produced several million in Germany.

Turning Obstacles Into Opportunities

The vuvuzela’s popularity has sparked a variety of innovations. Urbas and Kehrberg’s version comes in a variety of colors (including a model with red, gold, and black stripes since Germany makes up 90% of the European market) for fans from around the world. They also added safety features: in addition to making it quieter, they designed their vuvuzela to break into three pieces so that the long, plastic horn couldn’t be used as a weapon by angry fans.

Vuvuzela noise has become a major issue. While FIFA has announced that they will not ban the instrument, players have complained that the din has kept them from hearing calls from the sidelines, news broadcasters say that the noise drowns out their commentary, and local residents cite a lack of sleep. Meanwhile, doctors and researchers say that the horns, which average 127 decibels (louder than a chainsaw), could permanently damage fans’ hearing. Manufacturers, on the other hand, note that the outcry has only reinforced the vuvuzela’s association with the World Cup, turning it into a memento that even noise-haters will want to buy.

Masincedane Sport has also turned the controversy into two business opportunities. They created a new model, which is 20 decibels quieter. They’ve already sold 30,000 of the new type, despite the fact that the intended purpose of their product is to make as much noise as humanly possible.

They have also partnered with Uthango Social Investments to sell Vuvuzela unPlugged earplugs to preserve both the vuvuzela experience and fans’ hearing. The ear plugs have been flying off shelves – local store owners say they can’t keep up with demand – and are available wherever vuvuzelas are sold. Uthango Social Investments is a group that focuses on social entrepreneurship and local development in South Africa; the earplugs are made by 120 disabled South Africans who earn a direct income from the project.

Other entrepreneurs have also jumped on the vuvuzela bandwagon. Some are cashing in on the trumpet’s noise, like those developing the 20+ apps mimicking the sound for iPhones and iPods and those selling ringtones. The Vuvuzela Orchestra puts on performances and sells kits that come with six tuned vuvuzelas, a training DVD, and booklets that teach songs.

Others are playing the noise-reduction angle. Clemence Schlieweis, a 29-year-old German sound engineer, has produced a 45-minute audio clip of a reverse vuvuzela sound wave. He says that, when played in front of a TV, the clip will cancel out the horns’ noise for at-home viewers. You can buy it online for about $3.60. An Irish company, Restored Hearing, assists fans suffering from temporary tinnitus – ringing in the ears caused by loud noises like vuvuzelas – with a personally-tailored, low frequency therapy session. The sessions can be downloaded online as a one-off purchase, batches of 10, or on a subscription basis.

Whether a symbol of South African culture or just another noisemaker, a fan favorite or a nuisance, the instrument sure has people talking. All in all, the vuvuzela is great for business.

Want your own vuvuzela (your neighbors will love you) to add authenticity to your viewing experience? Buy one on Amazon.

Photo courtesy of Steve Crane.

Tags: Pop Culture, World Cup Business

Posted in News & Current Events