Who: Arterra Wines Canada (Jackson-Triggs brand), with Bensimon Byrne for creative, PHD for media and Golin for PR.
What: A new multi-faceted initiative to make Jackson-Triggs more inclusive, and to make the wine industry itself more diverse and representative.
When & Where: The campaign began early last month with a 30-second ad which is running online and on TV through the end of February. Aside from advertising, there’s a year-long art installation showcasing the work of BIPOC artists, as well as a series of fun, but also more representative, GIFs.
Why: The impetus for the campaign is explained on a special Jackson-Triggs microsite, WineCanChange.ca: “We are proud to be the wine for so many Canadians. But we acknowledge there is work to be done within the Canadian wine industry to foster a more diverse, equitable and inclusive world for every Canadian.”
“Jackson-Triggs sells as many bottles of wine as there are Canadians,” said Joseph Bonnici, partner and executive creative director at Bensimon Byrne. “So it has to take a strong position when it comes to standing for diversity and helping to change wine culture to be more inclusive. We’re looking at every aspect and touchpoint of the brand and challenging ourselves to be the leader. To be better.”
How — Operationally: The brand has made four commitments to improve diversity and inclusion, all detailed on the site:
• Accountability: “With every creative endeavo[u]r we pursue, we choose to be guided by the advice and opinions of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion teams inside our organization and out.”
• Improve BIPOC representation in the wine industry: “[W]e’ve partnered with Vinequity to help ensure that people who identify as BIPOC are given equitable treatment and access to opportunity to grow and thrive in the Canadian wine industry.”
• Support diverse creators: “We’ve always been proud of the work we’ve done to support Canadian music. But we need to do more to help support artists and musicians from underrepresented and marginalized communities and use our privilege to amplify their voices.”
•Greater representation in creative and marketing: “We’re committed to ensuring more diversity within our own content and marketing campaigns. From the talent on screen to the people behind the camera, we know we need to do more to bring everyone to the table.”
How — Communications: In terms of advertising, the brand worked with Canadian singer/songwriter Emanuel on a cover of Jimmy Cliff’s “Wonderful World, Beautiful People” as a soundtrack to a 30-second ad.
The spot spells out Jackson-Triggs’ commitment to more inclusivity, directing viewers to the WineForChange.ca site. Emanuel was chosen in part because his music celebrates Black culture and inspires hope and healing. Jackson-Triggs is also donating $10,000 to the Nia Centre for the Arts on Emanuel’s behalf. Nia Centre is building Canada’s first professional arts centre dedicated to Black art.
“Jackson-Triggs has been a proud supporter of Canadian music and art for more than 20 years, but we know we need to do more to amplify and support the voices of artists and musicians from underrepresented and marginalized communities,” said Andrea Hunt, executive vice president, marketing at Arterra Wines Canada, in a release. “This is the first of many commitments we are making as we are guided and inspired by artists, friends, and partners in diversity, inclusion, and belonging.”
As part of its support of diverse creators, Jackson-Triggs also launched the “Artists You Should Know Series” at its Niagara winery. The year-long art installation will showcase the works of BIPOC artists, the first being Montreal-based Maia Faddoul (that’s her art above).
What about the GIFs: “When you look at things like the representation of wine culture online, it was the same imagery over and over,” said Bonnici. “[W]e’ve all seen a funny wine gif posted on someone’s social channel. But the reality is very few reflect how we need to change. So we reshot and recreated all of the most popular wine gifs to reflect a more diverse and inclusive culture” (see two of the GIFs below the ad).
