Ontario Place

Bringing an iconic brand back to life through outdoor art exhibit

CHALLENGE

Starting in 2011, MAVERICK had the opportunity to tell a story of the 40-year anniversary of Ontario’s urban playground and its significance to history and culture. The PR campaign was a resounding success, but after one more season in operation, was shuttered. Six years later, we had the opportunity to be at the forefront of the campaign to bring this iconic brand back to life.

STRATEGIC APPROACH

With the goal of raising awareness of winter activities at Ontario Place in mind, we recommended an experiential media tour with arts media and city reporters. Guided by a MAVERICK-trained spokesperson and artists on-hand for interviews, we took media around all 12 art installations, ensuring they could interact with each piece and learn more about the artists and their inspirations.

SOLUTION

Through an exclusive media tour, we offered an opportunity to experience the skyscape of a winter art exhibit, with skating under fairy lights and engaging with artists over an intimate bonfire - beavertails and hot chocolate in hand.

RESULTS

MAVERICK secured 15 journalists for the media tour and conducted 10 subsequent private tours as requests came in from major outlets following the launch. We were able to generate articles in the Toronto Star, Globe and Mail, Toronto Life, NOW Toronto, CBC and Chatelaine, to name a few, as well as live broadcast segments on CTV, CityTV, CP24, Global News and CBC.