On Sunday, March 1, South Africa’s elite attended the Veuve Clicquot Polo Series Invitational held at Val de Vie Estate in Paarl. The chic event also presented an opportunity to celebrate the fourth birthday of the arrival of the luxurious Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine plug-in hybrid (PHEV) in South Africa.
The Veuve Clicquot Polo Series Invitational was hosted by the glamorous Nomzamo Mbatha and attended by celebrities, business figures, socialites and some of the country's best polo players. Guests enjoyed Veuve Clicquot on tap and danced to music by Shekinah.
Luxury Swedish car brand and Val de Vie’s official vehicle partner, Volvo entertained guests with unique light installation aimed to encourage guests to “take the first step” towards making the planet more sustainable.
Toward the end of the afternoon, the company invited guests to contemplate the importance of green initiatives with them by means of a beautifully crafted ceremony.
“In Sweden, there is a tradition that is enacted every afternoon where friends and loved ones join over something small to eat,” says Volvo’s head of marketing and communications, Charmagne Mavudzi. “It is a moment of self-reflection and connection. The Swedes call this special time fika.”
Still practised at Volvo’s headquarters in Sweden daily, guests were honoured to be led through their own fika moment. While enjoying spekboom-infused cinnamon buns created by SA’s own celebrity chef Rueben Riffel, guests were called to contemplate their roles in humanity’s new green challenge.
“There is no question that the environment in which we live is demanding a change from us,” notes Mavudzi. “How, in the presence of friends new and old, are we as individuals to participate in this process?”
Sporting an emissions output of only 49 g/km, a pure-electric range of up to 44km and having been voted 2019’s Best Electrified Seven-Seater at the Driving Electric Awards, the Volvo XC90 T8 Twin Engine PHEV is tangible proof of Volvo’s go-green message. “This message is being welcomed with open arms, both locally and across the world, by eco-aware motorists,” concludes Mavudzi.
