Branded Prisons, Prudence and Pasta Sauce By Will Novosedlik

The quiet transformation of Brand Canada

Marketing pundits, brand wonks and agency leaders, either in moments of patriotic fervour or out of the simple ambition to advance their reputations beyond the world of marketing, have in recent years taken a shot at reinvigorating the debate about Brand Canada.  

The “Brand Canada” they dream of is couched in themes of innovation and creativity. While we’d all like the world to think of us as creative innovators, and while our economic future may depend on building a strong creative class, these notions are far off the mark when it comes to how the world really sees us. That is, when it sees us.

When it does, it sees us as the land of hockey, forests, lakes, hockey, snow, ice, ice wine and hockey. But I believe Brand Canada is on the cusp of a transformation. It now has the potential to be perceived as the land of banks, farms and prisons. Lots of prisons.                                                         

But let’s start with the farms. Seems there is robust growth in demand for Canadian agricultural commodities across the globe right now.  No surprise. With the economic growth happening in China and India comes an increased appetite for three squares a day – and the ability to pay for it. Multiply that by three or four billion and you have a vibrant, growing commodities market. Duh.

Canada is already seen as a clean, pure, naturally pristine country (what oil sands?), and having demonstrated greater than average economic stability in the face of a stubborn global recession, is now seen as an economically stable one to boot. Canada’s fiscal prudence is envied by careening economies everywhere. In fact it has become such an object of reverence that our very own top banker, Mark Carney, was plucked late last year for a plumb job as head of the global Financial Stability Board. The sense of security that inspires China and India to invest in our commodities is a direct result of these conditions. It’s a great example of how something as intangible as brand image can add value to a commodity.

So now we are becoming a food brand. A safe place to buy produce. Well, it’s nice that people trust us, but still they just want our stuff, not our ideas about the stuff. We’re still cuttin’ trees and haulin’ water in this scenario. We need a more bankable value add. Some expertise that no one else has, some innovation none have even considered, preferably in a niche that is overlooked.

Thankfully, The Harper Government™, in its munificence and in a startling show of creativity, has provided it. At a time when the crime rate is at its lowest since 1973 and showing no signs of discontinuing its historic slide, the feds are committing billions of dollars to the expansion and renovation of prisons! Yup. Less crime, so more prisons.

This innovative decision, which flies in the face of common sense and overwhelming evidence that it has failed everywhere else, demonstrates that this government is committed to what it blindly believes in, not what everyone knows to be true.

As an economic side effect, this bold move has revealed an opportunity to define a whole new competitive niche: prison food processing. No doubt the HG™ will spend its money on the most state-of-the-art Penurial Nutrition Platform money can buy. Then we'll have a case study to flog across the globe. As the leader in PNP, think of all the countries we can help, the prison kitchens we can rebuild, the regimes we can advise! Think of the private label opportunities! I can see it now: “Prigioniere Pasta Sauce: Unlock the Flavour!” 

This is a growth industry, and we stand at the beginning of the curve. While we fill our cells, we'll be keeping the streets free of crime at home, filling prisoners’ bellies around the globe, and providing creative agencies with lots of branding, advertising, design and promotional work. Win win, Brand Canada!  

The pundits want us to have a sexy, energetic, creative brand. But the world has given us another one: prudent, stable and predictable. It seems that in the midst of this global financial mess, nothing is sexier than a stern banker brandishing a maple leaf, a barrel of oil and a shiny new set of handcuffs.

—Will Novosedlik has worked on brands both as a consultant and as a client in Canada, the U.S. and Europe. These brands include Nestlé Canada, Corby Distilleries, Swiss Chalet, Harvey’s, RSA Security, Bata International, Deutsche Telecom, Butterfield and Robinson, Telus Business Solutions, Vodafone and The Reitman Group. Recently, Novosedlik led the brand communications and customer experience teams that launched the WIND Mobile brand in Canada. He currently works as the VP Design Thinking & Brand at Idea Couture.

Comments

Hans Kleefeld

October 01, 2012 04:12 PM