September 25
Vancouver’s One Twenty Three West has created a new visual for its client the Canada Media Fund to mark the success of Schitt’s Creek at the Emmy Awards.
Created by One Twenty Three West’s ECD Rob Sweetman and CD Kate Roland, the image reflects the record nine Emmys won by the show, with the atom held by the winged woman in the Emmy statuette forming a letter “O’ in an elongated version of the most Canadian of words: sorry. The CMF provides $353 million in annual funding tor TV and digital media industries.
“We’re all proud of what Schitt’s Creek accomplished, but we’re still Canadians and we’re a humble bunch,” says One Twenty Three West president and CEO Scot Keith. “So our team created this image for us all to celebrate the nine Emmy Awards.”
A Minnesota-based group called World Population Balance has launched an out-of-home campaign in Vancouver with a stated goal to “hasten progress toward a small family norm.”
The “One planet, one child,” campaign features billboards in high-traffic areas with pictures of happy families accompanied by messages like “We Chose One!” or “We Chose Childfree!” Other messages include “Transit congestion starts at conception” and “What’s growth doing for you?”
World Population Balance executive director Dave Gardner says the goal is to get Canadians talking about over-population. “This is a positive campaign,” he said in a release. “It encourages couples around the world to make their own informed and considered decisions about family size. We’re not dictating anyone’s choice. We’re celebrating and thanking people for small-family decisions.”
September 24
Cossette has made two new additions to its Quebec management team, including the hiring of Florence Girod as head of culture and integrated product, and Louis-Philippe Tremblay as executive creative director, Quebec.
Girod’s is a new role within the company, with the agency saying she will be called upon to act as “guardian of the organizational culture.” She has been with Cossette for 11 years.
“Cossette has built a strong organizational culture that unites us and allows us to stand out by being both human and effective,” said Girod. “We want to keep this culture alive and, above all, continue its evolution despite the current situation.”
Tremblay is returning to Quebec after spending the past eight years in New York with agencies including Publicis, Havas and BBDO. His career has also included stints in London and San Francisco. “He has an innate talent for crafting unique brand experiences, which—combined with his innovative thinking—will allow us to further evolve our creative product to benefit our clients,” said Louis Duchesne, president, Cossette Québec and East, in a release.
Hudson’s Bay is introducing a new collection of Sesame Street clothing and accessories for kids and adults. “The fun and adorable collection featuring some of the most familiar faces in children’s television combined with Hudson’s Bay’s highly-coveted colourful stripes is perfect for every Canadian Sesame Street fan to wear with pride,” said Mellany Masterson, head of Nelvana Enterprises, part of Corus Entertainment and the licensing agent for Sesame Workshop in Canada.
The collection includes eight limited-edition SKUs including a baby onesie, baby pants, baby booties, sleep masks, and PJ sets for both kids and adults.
September 22
Danone Canada has enlisted Hamilton, Ont. street artist Scott Martin (who goes by the working name Burnt Toast) to create limited-edition artwork for the packaging for its new Light & Free yogurt brand, which is built around what the company describes as “unconventional” flavours.
Martin’s artwork is being featured on the yogurt’s Watermelon, Cucumber & Lime flavour, while Danone also enlisted him to create a mural appearing at Toronto’s Stackt Market until Sept. 25.
“Burnt Toast is a Canadian artist who seeks inspiration from individuality, and this made him the perfect partner to help tell the Light & Free brand story,” said Jeremy Oxley, vice-president of marketing, strategy and insights at Danone Canada, in a release.
Holy Schitt’s… Hudson’s Bay has just scored a major marketing coup. On Tuesday, just two days after Schitt’s Creek‘s triumph at the Emmy Awards, the retailer announced that two of the show’s award-winning stars will appear in its upcoming holiday advertising campaign.
Annie Murphy and Catherine O’Hara, who won in the Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series and Best Actress in a Comedy Series respectively, will appear in the Canadian retailer’s holiday campaign, which launches Nov. 2 with ads running across TV, as well as TheBay.com and its social channels.
Murphy previously appeared in advertising for the meal delivery service HelloFresh that launched in January.
Hudson’s Bay also announced that it plans to unveil its annual Holiday Market, featuring “stand-out gifts and exceptional decor to fashion and beauty, and cozy essentials for when the mercury begins to drop,” six weeks ahead of schedule. The Holiday Market will debut on TheBay.com on Oct. 2 and in-store on Oct. 5.
Innocean Worldwide Canada has hired creative director Stephen Stahl to work on the Hyundai Canada account, working alongside fellow CD Bill Newbery.
Stahl was previously a freelance writer with shops including Dentsu, Publicis, The&Partnership, Ogilvy and FCB. He also spent more than a decade at Leo Burnett as a senior copywriter and prior to that five years as a copywriter at Cossette.
He has worked with a wide variety of clients including IKEA, TD Bank, Gain, Bounce, Earl’s, McDonald’s, TVOntario and Mr. Clean, with accolades from awards shows including the Cannes Lions, The One Show, The Clio Awards, the ADCC and Communications Arts.
A suggestion put forward by Greenpeace and its agency partner Rethink is among the four finalists for a new name of the Quebec town of Asbestos, which announced its intention to change its name earlier this year.
The town of 7,000 people was originally named after what was once Canada’s largest asbestos mine.
The proposed new name, Apalone, refers to an endangered spiny soft-shell turtle species. It was the leading candidate among six names put forward by Greenpeace as part of its “After Asbestos” campaign earlier this year.
After some Asbestos residents took to social media to mock the idea of their town being associated with a turtle—which, let’s face it, is a big step up from being equated with a known cancer-causing agent—Greenpeace responded with a full-page ad that will appear in a local newspaper this week explaining why they should consider the name.
“[Y]ou’re resilient. You’re here to stay. You choose preservation over destruction,” it reads. “And you’re walking slowly but surely towards a new page in your history. Come to think of it, a turtle might not be that bad a choice.”
The other names short-listed by Asbestos council are Jeffrey, Trois-Lacs and Phénix. Asbestos citizens will vote on the town’s new name between Oct. 14-18.
