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Carlo Redwood: Sports Enthusiast, Marketing Genius, Father

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The man A fervent Manchester City fan and overall sports fanatic, Carlo Redwood has always been a lover of football. From the age of five years, while attending Mona Preparatory School, he honed his skills on the pitch, representing his school from the 4th grade onwards. He made the transition to high school football giant Jamaica College, where the passion and love for the sport grew more intense as he played at the Pepsi and Colts levels. Carlo Redwood then moved on to Wolmer’s Boys’ School, where he played Manning Cup before heading off to the California-based Master’s College on a football scholarship, no less. It is this love for the sport, he shares, that has helped him to understand the connection between “fans and their sport of choice.” It came naturally, then, that he would use this connection to enhance the brand that LIME represents – use it as an avenue to offer their products and services to customers…and the success is evident.

The Creative Strategist

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In November 2012, when Carlo Redwood joined LIME’s marketing team, he had a mission for the telecoms heavyweight. “When I joined LIME, I think what the customers told us was that they needed simpler and clearer communication – certainly in a more relevant way that would create more interest in our company.” And that was his mission, to communicate the value that LIME delivers to customers in a way that was relevant, interesting and engaging to customers.

The next step was to engage customers at the community level and nothing has proven more binding in this regard than sports. Enter the LIME/ISSA Schoolboy Football season, where, as title sponsors, the telecoms company introduced cheerleading and marching bands at the games to create a new entertainment package around football in Jamaica. Carlo again sought approval to sponsor the 104th staging of the Boys and Girls Athletics Championships, which has consistently remained one of the biggest sports celebrations in Jamaica.

To engage customers at the community level and to unearth new talent, the LIME team went into various towns and laid out a track to find the ‘Fastest Man & Woman in Town’. And in this World Cup year there’s no denying the fanfare and hype around the LIME Street Football tournament which offers the average Jamaican the opportunity to participate in a national, organised form of the much-loved and most popular form of football, scrimmage.

The Father

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A proud first-time father to now seven-year-old Zaine, Carlo Redwood can’t help but smile when talking about his son. For him, the best thing about being a father is realising it all comes full-circle. “Being able to impart the experiences and knowledge you have gained in your life to a younger version of yourself; and to realise that the same things your parents said to you, you are saying to them now, it all comes full-circle.”

Still, it was the first time he held Zaine in his arms that he experienced the most joy as a father. “Until your child is born and you hold them for the first time, you don’t really realise how much your thinking and actions change. They are the priority in all decisions going forward; it really changes your perspective on life.”

“It is essential that he knows to love and share love with others. He must be honest, righteous and hardworking.” These were the lessons he learnt from a mother who also nurtured his competitive persona and desire to win and a father he describes as a strong representation of God’s love, and who encouraged the practising of Christian values.

When the Redwood men are bonding, one of Zaine’s favourite pastimes is going to the movies. They compete via video games too, and trade moves on the football pitch when not racing against each other in the swimming pool. Most of all, they converse frequently. “I relish playing football with him and going swimming, and to the movies. But it is imperative that I know what he’s feeling and his daily experiences. It’s the same place, but a totally different time, and I must be there to answer his many questions and explain life to him.”

The best thing about being a father is being able to impart the experiences and knowledge you
have gained in your life to a younger version of yourself

Carlo Redwood

Carlo Redwood encourages his son to “work hard for whatever it is you desire. There are no shortcuts to becoming successful. You have to out-work everybody else to be the best. Be committed, honest and humble before God and man. Always show love to everyone, and it is never enough to be just talented or intelligent; you must work hard, as well.”

As integral as his part is as a father, Carlo Redwood knows he could never do it alone and relies on the family unit to help him raise Zaine the best way he can. “Apart from the integral role his mother and I play in his daily upbringing, his grandmothers and extended family are very involved in his life and they are very vocal about how he should be raised.” He relishes seeing him go through the stages of life and being able to guide him along.
On the very serious topic of discipline, Carlo says it’s a continuous conversation he has with Zaine. “Sometimes you think a child should know something, but you must invest the time to teach them and not assume they do know. Show them where they have gone wrong and this will prove a fundamental method of not making it a habit.” This is why he leads by example, so that the principles of right and wrong may someday be fully understood by his son. “There is a fine line between patience and discipline, and physical discipline has its place, but parents must know to not go overboard.”

Read: Gary Matalon: A Devoted and Dedicated Father

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