By Tech & Business Desk | December 2025
Sola Oke, Managing Director at Pernod Ricard Africa, has emphasised that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer an emerging experiment but a strategic engine driving the future of African brands.
Speaking on a panel at the Africa Tech Festival, Oke described AI as the “next frontier” for brands across the continent, cutting across creativity, culture, sustainability, and responsible business practices.
“AI is no longer a buzzword for us at Pernod Ricard Africa,” Oke said. “It is a practical tool embedded across the business.”
According to him, the organisation has adopted AI at multiple operational levels, transforming how it builds brands, allocates marketing resources, and empowers sales teams.
Among the tools highlighted was Maestria 2.0, a brand-building platform that allows the company to match brands to specific consumption occasions. Oke also revealed how Matrix AI links marketing expenditure to real-time performance, enabling dynamic budget reallocation and preventing brand exhaustion in saturated markets. Additionally, sales execution is enhanced through D-Star, which equips frontline teams with AI-powered insights tailored to specific outlets.
“These tools allow us to tailor strategies for each of our more than 200 brands with more precision,” he noted. “It ensures the right product reaches the right consumer, at the right time, and at the right price.”
Oke further emphasised that AI has strengthened decision-making at the local level, allowing teams to prioritise promising markets and develop targeted promotions that resonate with consumers.
“Our teams are now empowered to act on data-driven insights,” he said. “From selecting key locations to deploying timely promotions, we are working with greater confidence and accuracy.”
However, Oke was quick to caution that technology should not overshadow identity.
“AI doesn’t replace creativity,” he stressed. “It doesn’t replace the heritage or the soul of a 200-year-old brand. It reveals richer insights, so we can tell more authentic stories.”
According to him, innovation must be practical and culturally relevant.
“AI cannot be a shiny new tool for its own sake,” he said. “It must feed into our heritage, our culture, and understand African nuances. Only then can its impact be meaningful for Africa.”
On transformation, Oke argued that people, not technology, determine success.
“Successful AI transformation is about mindset change and disciplined change management,” he remarked. “AI helps us adapt, but it is our people who make us win.”
He concluded on a note of evolution:
“In today’s world, it is not the most creative brands that will thrive. It’s the most adaptive.”
Oke’s contribution at the Africa Tech Festival reflects a growing continental shift toward using technology not just as a productivity tool, but as a strategic advantage woven into brand identity and customer engagement.
