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From a Cindy Crawford video shoot to a charcuterie masterclass, from in-depth reporting to retail photography—these are the projects that made an impact and the key takeaways for marketers.
2024 was a year of bold creativity and storytelling at SJC. Our teams delivered standout projects across editorial excellence, branded content, consumer marketing, experiential activations and data-driven innovation—always with a focus on engaging Canadian audiences in meaningful ways.
To curate this collection, we asked some of our creative minds at SJC—including editors-in-chief of Canada’s top media brands, creative directors, art directors and strategists—to share their favourite projects of the year. These are the campaigns, stories, and ideas that stood out to them—not just as great work, but as inspiration for compelling, authentic marketing.
For each project, we highlight:
✔ What made it special
✔ A key takeaway for marketers in 2025
✔ Links to explore more
Explore the strategies, creativity, and insights behind these standout projects.
Editorial
1. FASHION Covers Canadian talent
What we did: For FASHION’s November 2024 cover, we traveled to Vancouver—Canadian actress Shay Mitchell’s second home—to craft a striking visual story that celebrated both her and the incredible Canadian talent behind the scenes. The shoot brought together an all-star Canadian creative team, including photographer Greg Swales, stylist Leila Bani and makeup artist Rio Translato, all originally from Vancouver. Shay also wore a stunning design by Canadian designer Evan Clayton, making this cover a true tribute to homegrown artistry
Why It Stood Out: This cover was a proud celebration of Canadian talent—from the celebrity to the creative team and the fashion itself. Every element of the shoot, from the Vancouver setting to the homegrown designer and crew, reinforced FASHION’s commitment to authentic Canadian storytelling. Beyond the striking visuals, the collaboration showcased how a local-first approach can create a globally resonant, high-impact cover.
💡 2025 Takeaway: Authenticity and local storytelling resonate deeply. Showcasing Canadian talent in a meaningful way not only strengthens industry connections but also creates moments that are both visually iconic and culturally significant.
2. Maclean's Immigration Issue
What We Did: The Maclean's immigration-themed issue (July 2024) which tackled the social consequences of becoming, quite suddenly, a country of 41 million people. The issue took advantage of a variety of story formats—essay, documentary photography, memoir, long-form feature—to explore Canada's recent demographic surge. It offered multiple entry points and came together really well.
Why It Stood Out: Maclean's dove deeply into one of the most important and buzzy subjects on the national stage.
💡2025 Takeaway: Being ambitious pays off. Bold editorial decisions and deep investigative storytelling drive engagement and brand authority.
3. A Feature Portrait that Tells the Story
What We Did: Toronto Life’s feature on Cait Alexander was a stark and honest portrayal of her story as a near-fatal domestic abuse survivor dismissed by the courts on a technicality. Capturing Cait’s vulnerability as her power, SJC photographer Sandro Altamirano created a striking portrait that brought depth and emotion to the piece.
Why It Stood Out: This feature resonated deeply with audiences, driving skyrocketing engagement online and across social media. The raw, unfiltered storytelling and powerful portraiture made Cait’s story impossible to ignore, highlighting the impact of visual journalism in bringing critical issues to the forefront.
2025 Takeaway: Leveraging SJC’s world-class talent and resources enables brands to create powerful, resonant storytelling. Creative collaboration fosters unexpected yet impactful results, while engaging audiences in the right spaces deepens connection and reach. Featuring bold, thought-provoking stories not only drives engagement but also positions brands as industry thought leaders, sparking important conversations that matter.
4. The Launch of 3 Magazine
What We Did: We partnered with 369 Global to launch 3, a luxury print magazine that establishes a new voice in Canadian media. 3 is designed to celebrate and connect third-culture individuals, newcomers to Canada, first-generation (and beyond) Canadians and the culturally curious. With a focus on global narratives, the magazine intertwines topics such as identity, innovation, style, and food, delivering deeply reported stories, thought-provoking columns, and sophisticated features that both challenge and inspire.
💡2025 Takeaway: While digital storytelling can be engaging and compelling, print magazines remain valuable for readers and brands.
5. Matthew Perry Tribute Story
What We Did: HELLO! Canada published a heartfelt tribute and in-depth interview with Matthew Perry’s family following his passing, offering readers a deeply personal look at his life and legacy.
Why It Stood Out: As Canada’s number one newsstand magazine, HELLO! Canada is known for delivering exclusive, in-depth Canadian celebrity features that resonate with readers. This interview was a rare and deeply personal tribute, offering an intimate perspective on Matthew Perry’s life through the voices of those who knew him best.
💡 2025 Takeaway: Persistence and patience can lead to impactful results. Securing this interview took nearly a year of careful outreach, proving that building trust and fostering strong relationships is essential.
6. Chatelaine's Cheapskate Guide Summer Issue
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What We Did: Chatelaine’s Summer 2024 issue was a standout for multiple reasons. The “Cheapskate’s Guide to a Fun Summer” package offered a lively and timely response to the cost of living crisis, engaging all pillars of the magazine. The Honest Ed’s-style illustrations were the perfect complement. The issue also included winners of The Beauty Awards and a "Catelaine" flip cover. (See more on these two projects below.)
Why It Stood Out: This experience proved the power of editorial flexibility. For the past few years, the Summer issue had been the Made in Canada issue, but it wasn’t resonating with advertisers—though that might be a different story today! From an editorial and commercial perspective, this was a landmark issue—Chatelaine’s highest revenue generator of 2024, with major partnerships with Pet Valu and Giant Tiger.
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💡 2025 Takeaway: Being flexible with editorial themes can unlock new engagement and revenue opportunities. If something isn’t working, a fresh, audience-driven approach can make all the difference.
🔗 Explore Chatelaine's Summer Money-Saving Guide
7. Anatomy of a Great School Day
What we did: For back-to-school season, Today’s Parent positioned itself as the go-to resource for families navigating a successful school year. Through a comprehensive digital guide, the team provided expert-backed tips and practical advice to help parents create a smooth and structured school routine. From optimizing bedtime habits to setting up an ideal learning environment, the content was designed to support families at every step.
💡2025 Takeaway: While seasonally relevant topics drive immediate interest, layering in infographics, GIFs, and other visual elements helps ensure the content remains compelling long after its initial release. A strong evergreen content strategy provides long-term value, builds brand authority, and keeps audiences coming back for trusted insights—whether it’s for back-to-school or any other recurring need.
7. New Newsletters for Châtelaine
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What We Did: We launched two new newsletters—C’est exquis (food) and C’est extra (style)—to better define Châtelaine's voice online and develop a closer relationship with readers who engage with us through newsletters. These targeted newsletters allow us to deliver specialized content directly to audiences who are most interested in these topics, strengthening their connection to the brand.
Why They Stood Out: By creating niche, interest-driven newsletters, we provided readers with curated, high-value content that aligns with their passions. This approach enhances engagement, builds brand affinity, and reinforces Châtelaine's authority in the lifestyle space. Tailored newsletters help establish a more direct and personal connection with readers, turning casual followers into loyal audiences.
💡2025 Takeaway: Tracking reader engagement in a structured way leads to smarter editorial decisions. By analyzing email performance metrics, publishers can refine content strategies to better match audience preferences, increase engagement, and strengthen reader loyalty. Targeted newsletters are a powerful tool for deepening audience relationships and enhancing content impact.ing reader engagement in a structured way leads to smarter editorial decisions. By analyzing email performance, you can refine content to better match audience preferences, increase engagement and strengthen reader loyalty.
Branded Content
1. Catelaine
What We Did: Chatelaine transformed into "Catelaine" in a groundbreaking editorial collaboration with Pet Valu, celebrating the deep bond between Canadians and their feline companions. The summer issue featured a custom flip cover, expert pet advice, stylish product recommendations and a heartwarming feline photo shoot.
Why It Stood Out: This 360-degree branded content campaign seamlessly integrated Pet Valu into the Chatelaine editorial ecosystem, demonstrating the power of authentic storytelling
💡2025 Takeaway: Trust between brand and publisher results in authentic, high-performing content.
2. Giant Tiger x Chatelaine Branded Content
What We Did: We executed two branded content campaigns with Giant Tiger and Chatelaine last year: the summer issue cover (with additional branded content story about summer style) and the winter Giant Tiger holiday Christmas Party, which had our Toronto office transformed into a holiday party, including our own staff as enthusiastic, festive models.
Why It Stood Out: These were fun, editorially driven stories that would have appeared in Chatelaine whether they were branded or not.
💡 2025 Takeaway: When a brand trusts its creative partners, the results can be elevated to new heights. Giant Tiger gave us the flexibility to push creative boundaries while staying true to their guidelines, allowing for fun and engaging storytelling. Additionally, this campaign highlights the value of passionate teams—when creative and editorial teams fully embrace a project, they can produce innovative, cost-effective solutions that resonate deeply with audiences.
🔗 See the Chatelaine Summer and Holiday Party campaigns.
3. Pandora x FASHION Co-Branded Cover
What We Did: For the first time at FASHION, we executed a cover integration in partnership with Pandora for the Winter issue. Cover star Maison Bailey wore Pandora jewelry, seamlessly incorporating the brand into the editorial vision while maintaining the magazine’s signature aesthetic. This collaboration marked a new approach to blending editorial and branded storytelling in an organic and visually compelling way.
Why It Stood Out: This cover was a bold step in pushing the boundaries of brand partnerships, demonstrating how editorial and commercial storytelling can align authentically. The seamless execution relied on trust, collaboration, and a shared creative vision, resulting in a first-of-its-kind integration for FASHION.
💡 2025 Takeaway: Media brands like FASHION are always evolving—continuously pivoting and bringing fresh, creative partnership ideas to the table. In today’s media landscape, strong relationships and trust are key, and the most successful collaborations come from brands and partners who embrace innovation and authenticity together.
🔗 See the photos from the co-branded cover.
Consumer Marketing & Retail Campaigns
1. Cindy Crawford Broadcast Spot for The Brick
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What We Did: We had the incredible opportunity to partner with The Brick and the iconic Cindy Crawford to create a stunning video commercial celebrating more than 15 years of Cindy Crawford HOME. Our multi-layered production brought together photo and video teams to capture both polished and candid moments. Working closely with Cindy herself, who was hands-on throughout the entire creative process, we crafted an authentic story that showcases her exclusive collection's timeless elegance, designed for modern living.
Why It Stood Out: The campaign exemplified a real collaboration and exceptional effort across all teams at SJC. The creative team worked seamlessly with the account team, the studio and the producers
💡 2025 Takeaway: Successful brand campaigns require more than just star power—they demand behind-the-scenes excellence and dedicated cross-team collaboration. Aligning creative vision, production expertise and strategic storytelling ensures an authentic, emotionally engaging campaign that elevates brand equity and drives consumer action.
2. Walmart Back to School Campaign
What We Did: For Walmart's Back to School campaign, the creative vision was to shoot at a stadium and track & field location. To bring this to life, our team transformed our own backyard parking lot into the perfect set. Leveraging a mix of traditional production and AI-powered tools, we created a seamless blend of stills and online video, all delivered in Walmart's signature blue, showcasing inspiring product stories.
Why It Stood Out: This campaign showcased the power of creativity and resourcefulness in production.
2025 Takeaway: It’s essential to embrace innovation without losing the human touch. The future of effective storytelling will be defined by the ability to harness new tools while maintaining a deep connection to the emotional and visual essence of the message. Seamless integration of technology and creativity will be essential to engaging audiences.
3. FWD’s Budget-Friendly Summer Campaign
What We Did: Forward With Design (FWD) challenged us to create a high-impact summer campaign on a tight budget while showcasing their collection in diverse settings. Our team scouted versatile Toronto locations for the photo shoot and used Virtual Production for video, enabling us to create any environment imaginable—all within a single studio.
Why It Stood Out: This campaign demonstrated how creativity thrives under constraints, proving that resourcefulness, technology, and teamwork can come together to deliver stunning, high-quality results.
💡 2025 Takeaway: Strategic use of Virtual Production and adaptable locations and creative teams can help brands achieve premium, diverse visuals without excessive costs.
4. Sobeys' Always-On Social content
What we did: Introduced strategies for Sobeys' Always On Social content, tailored for channel optimization and managing distinct brand voices across multiple banners.
Why it stood out: We created unique personas for each banner and anchored creative elements including food styling, props, filming, lighting and sound, making the content recognizable and memorable.
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💡2025 Takeaway: Distinct brand voices can be maintained across multiple banners through tailored creative elements and channel optimization.
5. The Beauty Awards 2024
What We Did: SJC Media launched its annual Beauty Awards, Canada's most prestigious beauty award program recognizing the top products across six key categories: skincare, makeup, hair care, nail care, bath & body, and fragrance. This year marked a monumental year for the Awards, welcoming HELLO! Canada to the esteemed judging panel alongside returning partners Chatelaine, Châtelaine and FASHION magazines. The collaboration brings together a powerhouse team of industry experts, including dermatologists, makeup artists, hairstylists and editors, for a truly comprehensive evaluation process.
💡2025 Takeaway: Leveraging visual storytelling and expert curation from trusted media brands enhances audience engagement in competitive spaces.
🔗 See the 2024 Beauty Awards winners
Events & Experiential Marketing
1. Chatelaine x California Grown Charcuterie Masterclass
What We Did: Organized by SJC’s events pillar, Wonder, this immersive event brought together food lovers, influencers and industry professionals for an interactive charcuterie masterclass featuring California-grown products. Guests enjoyed a hands-on experience learning about artisanal cheeses, premium meats and perfect pairings while engaging with expert-led storytelling.
Why It Stood Out: The event was designed to create deeper brand connections through experiential marketing and premium content extensions across Chatelaine’s platforms.
💡 2025 Takeaway: Creating immersive, hands-on experiences authentically connect audiences to a brand's story and offerings.
2. Toronto Life's Most Influential 2024
What We Did: : Each year, Toronto Life names the city’s Most Influential People, a highly anticipated editorial package that celebrates Toronto’s power players. In 2024, we launched a multi-platform campaign to bring the feature to life across multiple touchpoints, including a cover story, exclusive video content, a high-profile photoshoot, a live event, and dynamic social media engagement.
Why It Stood Out: This campaign showcased the power of a multi-platform approach, bringing together print, digital, video, events, and social media to create a seamless and far-reaching experience. By leveraging collaboration and high-quality execution, Toronto Life reinforced its position as a leading voice in the city.
💡2025 Takeaway: A strong commitment to quality and brand elevation fosters powerful audience connections. By leveraging a multi-platform approach—combining editorial, video, live events, and social media—brands can maximize impact, drive engagement, and strengthen their authority in the market.
🔗 Browse The Influentials 2024 and see the event highlights.
3. FASHION x Bonpoint Luxury Event
What We Did: Our events team organized a custom event for French childrenswear brand Bonpoint to launch its new Pokemon collection in partnership with FASHION magazine. The charming Bloor Street boutique in Toronto played host to an exclusive shopping event and celebration, attracting some of the city’s most stylish families.
Why It Stood Out: This event was a perfect blend of luxury branding and experiential marketing, demonstrating how a carefully curated in-person experience can amplify brand storytelling. By partnering with FASHION, Bonpoint seamlessly connected with style-conscious families, creating an exclusive, high-touch event that felt both premium and playful. The intimate boutique setting, combined with the cultural appeal of Pokémon nostalgia, made for a highly shareable and engaging brand moment.
💡2025 Takeaway: Luxury storytelling is evolving—brands that weave emotional narratives around family, connection, and real-life experiences can deepen engagement while maintaining a premium feel. Expanding beyond product stories to human-centered storytelling creates more meaningful connections with audiences.
🔗 Get the event highlights.
Data-Driven Marketing
1. Audience+
What We Did: In 2024, we soft-launched Audience+, a next-generation advertising platform that provides brands with exclusive access to SJC Media’s highly engaged audiences. Developed in partnership with Optable, Audience+ leverages first-party data and privacy-first technology to create precise audience segments across key categories like Fashion, Food, Health and Business. Through secure data clean rooms, advertisers can match their customer data with SJC insights, enabling smarter, privacy-compliant targeting.
Why It Stood Out: Audience+ represents a major shift in privacy-first advertising. By leveraging first-party data rather than relying on third-party cookies, it provides advertisers with a future-proof solution for reaching highly engaged, relevant audiences. The integration of data clean rooms ensures secure, privacy-compliant targeting, setting a new standard for responsible and effective digital advertising. This launch underscores SJC Media’s leadership in audience intelligence and data-driven marketing.
💡 2025 Takeaway: As the advertising landscape evolves, first-party data is more valuable than ever. Marketers need privacy-compliant solutions to reach the right audiences with precision and confidence. This year, Audience+ will expand its capabilities, offering brands even greater opportunities to leverage high-quality, first-party audience insights for impactful, data-driven campaigns.
🔗 Learn more about Audience+
Inspired by these projects? We're excited to partnerwith new and current clients in 2
Inspired by these projects? We’re always exploring new ways to tell great stories and create meaningful brand experiences. If you’re thinking about what’s next for 2025, we’d love to chat. Let’s connect. 📩
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