A new loyalty programme supporting three community projects that allows repeat guests to give back in a meaningful and responsible way was launched by Mhondoro Safari Lodge & Villa.
The owners ‘ MF Foundation funded infrastructure for Mhondoro’s community projects to provide employment, skills development, and learning opportunities to staff members from the local communities and their children. These initiatives play an important role in job creation in the area, sourcing manpower from the immediate community, and upskilling workers to levels where they are employable by Mhondoro and other lodges and businesses. Ultimately, those with entrepreneurial spirit are encouraged and empowered to start their own businesses or work in partnership with Mhondoro.
Located in the Welgevonden Game Reserve in the Waterberg (Limpopo province), Mhondoro recently purchased two large tracts of land adjacent to the reserve, where it has established an Eco-farm and the soon-to-be-launched sustainable Farmhouse project. Back at the lodge, the Mhondoro Wilderness School operates from an old storeroom that was transformed to provide world-class schooling to a growing number of children from the local workforce.
Membership to the Mhondoro Loyalty Programme is offered in three tiers. In each case, members make a donation towards the community projects at a set fee and purchase accommodation credits to be exchanged for room nights. Discounts are offered at a rate of 15% for Silver, 20% for Gold, and 25% for Platinum membership. The discount applies to accommodation, spa treatments, premium wines, and curio shop purchases. Credits bought are valid for a year, and once spent, members qualify for the additional benefit of free lodge nights at a rate of 2 nights per Silver member, 4 nights per Gold member, and 6 nights per Platinum member per year.
The CEO of Mhondoro Safari Lodge & Villa, Fritz Breytenbach, shares, ‘Our loyalty programme is designed to provide obvious financial benefits to our individual members and holistically creates the opportunity for repeat guests to contribute and become part of the greater good. The reserve is surrounded by several impoverished communities that will benefit directly from funds raised through our loyalty programme. A portion of the membership fee will go directly towards developing and running these community projects responsibly and accountable, aimed at creating more employment, upskilling talent, and educating children. These projects are real and tangible, and we are proud of the fact that our guests have the option for site visits to these during their stay at Mhondoro, where they can witness for themselves the magic created by paying forward. In the words of Winston Churchill: ‘We make a living by what we get. We make a life by what we give.”
Pictures: Supplied
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