Discovery Inc. held a media launch for its new HGTV (DStv 177) channel on MultiChoice's DStv satellite pay-TV service in South Africa, in the form of a 3-day press tour in Cape Town that included an official press event and media presentation on the morning of Day 2 that incorporated a room makeover activation as well, followed by lunch. (Day 1 here)
The media got briefed by Discovery Inc. executives who flew from the United States, Dubai and Amsterdam to Cape Town, as well as MultiChoice executives, and the American TV talent Tarek El Moussa of HGTV's Flip or Flop show who made an on-stage appearance.
Discovery Inc. made use of the Cape Town-based events solution company Show Works, who used one of the large sound stages at Waterfront Film Studios where filming of M-Net's (DStv 101) new drama series Trackers just wrapped filming two weeks before, to create the HGTV presentation stage.
The sound stage included a lunch and open bar area as well as a pop-up coffee corner with a barista, with the main stage flanked by empty demo room spaces on the sides, each with an easle and mock-up floorplan.
Here the media - later divided into groups - had to compete against each other and time in transforming the rooms using paint and furniture from a "stock room" at the back of the sound stage, similar to how professional stagers do makeovers of rooms when selling homes.
Besides invited national South African press, some media from the Middle East were also invited and flown by Discovery Inc. to Cape Town since HGTV is available in that region on the beIN pay-TV operator as well.
On arrival, media were given hard hats and handyman aprons.
