APG Sideways
About our guest: Chelsea Rho
Like many in our discipline, Chelsea accidentally fell into strategy. But as a natural finder of connections and solver of puzzles, it was probably inevitable.
She started as an Account Coordinator / Digital Media Buyer (and occasional Copywriter) at a small agency in Edmonton 12 years ago. One day her boss said “you know you’re a strategist, right?” and the rest is, as they say, history (thanks, Rob). In her current role at Cossette, Chelsea’s well-rounded background helps her bring a range of perspectives to creative, brand and comms strategy for several regional and national brands.
Previous Posts
Brilliant Weird Best
Planners are curious folks so we asked Chelsea to tell us the most brilliant, weirdest and best thing she’s come across recently.
Brilliant: Makro “Life Extending Stickers” and “AdScan”
Makro is really punching above their weight when it comes to brilliant retail marketing. Their Life Extending Stickers took what is typically a mundane aspect of in-store merchandising and used it to generate new product use cases and demonstrate their value-centred USP—raising sales and reducing waste without changing their assortment or external comms.
Taking a hard left from fully analog into tech-forward, their AdScan campaign is another example of turning retail marketing convention on its head, using their app to turn the OOH advertisements from brands they carry into discounts for their customers.
Jaguar’s rebrand—and cryptic responses to the internet losing its collective mind—have been living rent-free in my head this week. I hardly know where to begin to describe the fever dream that is the “Copy Nothing” video.
Rather than retooling the brand for the future of their industry, is Jaguar truly abandoning their legacy? Can their “affluent Gen Z” target drive future success of the brand? Are we being trolled? I’m personally rooting for a mid-bending reveal that makes it all make sense.
Also, gold medal to Nothing:
As the explosive rise of women’s sports continues, this campaign remains top of mind for me for a few reasons. It was, of course, an instance of “right message, right time.”
Amidst many forgettable activations in the cluttered world of sports sponsorship, Rethink / Molson made an iconic move, capitalizing on an incredible insight and gaining massive recognition for the brand by letting it take a back seat—which sounds like a risk on paper, but I’d be shocked if anyone doubted that this was a home run from the start (wrong sport, I know).
Top Guilty Pleasures
Not all of our consumption habits can be academic. That's why we asked Chelsea to give us the sources to her creativity.
Twisty British Thrillers
Between reading on my commute and rotting on my sofa, I’ve been taking in a lot of British thrillers lately. My recos:
Read: Local Girl Missing, Claire Douglas. I was immediately sucked into the world of the drizzly coastal tourist town with a protagonist who seems to be quickly losing her grip on reality. I’m not exaggerating when I say that the big twist left my jaw on the floor.
Watch: Stay Close (based on Harlan Coben novel). A tad campy at times but also fun and, of course, comes with a killer surprise at the end.
As the owner of a small 1920s home in East York with exactly one closet and zero right angles, I’m always on the lookout for inventive (and flexible) ways to make the most of every square inch of space. I spend an inordinate amount of time watching small-space organization creators (love @tidydad) and any and all IKEA hacks.
If you need me, you can probably find me on Facebook Marketplace trying to sell all my stuff and perhaps buying some new storage containers.
My first foray into Korean competition shows, I was immediately hooked by Culinary Class Wars. The drama. The insane plot twists. The theatrics of the setup. It was perfectly campy, over the top (see: Bibimbap King), thoroughly addicting—and a refreshing contrast to its North American counterparts.
While I mostly cheered for the Black Aprons (who doesn’t love to root for the underdog?) I also found myself secretly hoping for soft-spoken Korean-American chef Edward Lee to come out on top. I won’t spoil the winner, but even with the long run time, it’s worth a watch.
This month on Slack
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Contributor - Trevon Daley
Pokémon GO wasn’t just a game—it was Niantic's strategy to crowdsource geospatial data by enticing players to map the world while playing. This effort built a massive geo model, now poised to power AR, robotics, and wearable tech, alongside $8B in game revenue.
