2025 Winner
BronzeBest in Branded Content
Sport Chek
"Dropping Gifts, Not Gloves"
Cartier
"Dropping Gifts, Not Gloves"
Cartier
Amid the holiday retail frenzy, Sport Chek faced a significant challenge: standing out as a go-to gifting destination for sports lovers … in a season saturated with promotions from bigger retail giants.
While most campaigns focused on generic gift-giving, they saw an opportunity to tell a story rooted in reconciliation and the unique brotherhood of hockey. Rather than compete with similar offers, the agency leaned into a strategic insight — the emotional intensity of hockey culture and the deep loyalty of Canadian fans.
The big idea: have ex-NHL defenceman and now sports analyst Kevin Bieksa, known for both his fierce on-ice presence and off-ice charisma, reconnect with past rivals by gifting them handpicked items from Sport Chek. Titled Dropping Gifts, Not Gloves, the concept reframed traditional sports rivalries into moments of warmth and generosity. The players weren’t cast — they were chosen by Kevin himself, ensuring genuine emotional stakes. The result was branded content with heart, bridging sports storytelling and retail purpose with natural credibility.
The campaign unfolded as an integrated media ecosystem, anchored by three 30-second spots in which Kevin surprised his former rivals with meaningful gifts. These aired during Hockey Night in Canada, where Kevin introduced the concept live to his co-hosts — an organic and high-credibility placement that felt native to the broadcast rather than imposed.
To maximize reach among younger fans, they adapted the content into shorter formats for TikTok and Meta, ensuring the narrative remained accessible and engaging across viewing behaviours. Digital banners ran across Sport Chek’s owned channels and key sports environments like NHL.com, TeamSnap, and the Ottawa Senators' site, driving traffic to gift collections featured in the content.
To further support the campaign’s organic reach and sense of authenticity, they produced short-form videos showing Kevin’s past adversaries-turned-friends reacting to their deliveries. These unscripted home visits by the Sport Chek crew captured happy, relatable moments, with athletes commenting on their gifts and reacting to Kevin’s handwritten cards. These peer-driven clips were shared on the athletes’ own platforms, fuelling organic reach among hockey audiences.
To enhance the campaign's organic virality and authentic feel, the agency even created an ugly Sport Chek Christmas sweater for Kevin to wear on broadcast. The seamless coordination between creative teams, Sport Chek, and media partners like Hockey Night in Canada was paramount to the success of this multi-faceted execution.
What set this campaign apart was its ability to transcend traditional advertising and embed itself into the cultural fabric of hockey. More than visibility, this campaign is rooted in authenticity. Rather than disrupt the Hockey Night in Canada experience, the brand became part of it, crafting a moment that felt earned and emotionally resonant.
The use of Kevin Bieksa as both talent and narrative thread was central to this innovation. His reputation as both a fighter and a fan favourite allowed us to create a nuanced storyline of redemption and friendship. The gifting moment became less about product placement and more about emotional payoff, a fresh take on holiday storytelling for a retail brand.
The execution innovatively amplified the core story across diverse platforms, from linear TV to short-form social video (Meta, TikTok), digital banners on sports-specific sites (NHL.com, TeamSnap), and email, ensuring the narrative reached various segments of the sports community in their preferred consumption formats.
The creation of the ugly Christmas sweater and reaction videos for social further demonstrated an agile and innovative approach to content extension. This campaign proved that a retailer can build brand love by participating meaningfully in the stories that matter to its audience.
While most campaigns focused on generic gift-giving, they saw an opportunity to tell a story rooted in reconciliation and the unique brotherhood of hockey. Rather than compete with similar offers, the agency leaned into a strategic insight — the emotional intensity of hockey culture and the deep loyalty of Canadian fans.
The big idea: have ex-NHL defenceman and now sports analyst Kevin Bieksa, known for both his fierce on-ice presence and off-ice charisma, reconnect with past rivals by gifting them handpicked items from Sport Chek. Titled Dropping Gifts, Not Gloves, the concept reframed traditional sports rivalries into moments of warmth and generosity. The players weren’t cast — they were chosen by Kevin himself, ensuring genuine emotional stakes. The result was branded content with heart, bridging sports storytelling and retail purpose with natural credibility.
The campaign unfolded as an integrated media ecosystem, anchored by three 30-second spots in which Kevin surprised his former rivals with meaningful gifts. These aired during Hockey Night in Canada, where Kevin introduced the concept live to his co-hosts — an organic and high-credibility placement that felt native to the broadcast rather than imposed.
To maximize reach among younger fans, they adapted the content into shorter formats for TikTok and Meta, ensuring the narrative remained accessible and engaging across viewing behaviours. Digital banners ran across Sport Chek’s owned channels and key sports environments like NHL.com, TeamSnap, and the Ottawa Senators' site, driving traffic to gift collections featured in the content.
To further support the campaign’s organic reach and sense of authenticity, they produced short-form videos showing Kevin’s past adversaries-turned-friends reacting to their deliveries. These unscripted home visits by the Sport Chek crew captured happy, relatable moments, with athletes commenting on their gifts and reacting to Kevin’s handwritten cards. These peer-driven clips were shared on the athletes’ own platforms, fuelling organic reach among hockey audiences.
To enhance the campaign's organic virality and authentic feel, the agency even created an ugly Sport Chek Christmas sweater for Kevin to wear on broadcast. The seamless coordination between creative teams, Sport Chek, and media partners like Hockey Night in Canada was paramount to the success of this multi-faceted execution.
What set this campaign apart was its ability to transcend traditional advertising and embed itself into the cultural fabric of hockey. More than visibility, this campaign is rooted in authenticity. Rather than disrupt the Hockey Night in Canada experience, the brand became part of it, crafting a moment that felt earned and emotionally resonant.
The use of Kevin Bieksa as both talent and narrative thread was central to this innovation. His reputation as both a fighter and a fan favourite allowed us to create a nuanced storyline of redemption and friendship. The gifting moment became less about product placement and more about emotional payoff, a fresh take on holiday storytelling for a retail brand.
The execution innovatively amplified the core story across diverse platforms, from linear TV to short-form social video (Meta, TikTok), digital banners on sports-specific sites (NHL.com, TeamSnap), and email, ensuring the narrative reached various segments of the sports community in their preferred consumption formats.
The creation of the ugly Christmas sweater and reaction videos for social further demonstrated an agile and innovative approach to content extension. This campaign proved that a retailer can build brand love by participating meaningfully in the stories that matter to its audience.
Credits
CREATIVE AGENCY: CartierPRODUCTION HOUSE: Media Moose
POST-PRODUCTION HOUSE: Media Moose, Anarchy Post
MEDIA AGENCY: Touché!
CLIENT: Sport Chek
AGENCY - CARTIER
ACCOUNT SERVICES
VICE-PRESIDENT AND PARTNER: Audrée Couture
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Marie-Philip Lamarche
ACCOUNT CLIENT Marianne Ossa
STRATEGY
VICE-PRESIDENT AND PARTNER Victor Dagenais-Benoit
CREATIVE
VICE-PRESIDENT AND PARTNER Sébastien Pelletier
ART DIRECTOR : Jean-Simon Charland
COPYWRITER : Ollie Miles
AGENCY PRODUCER : Mélissa Lépine
CONTENT : Jean-Sébastien Smith
STUDIO
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR : Marylène Rochefort
PRODUCTION MANAGER : Sandra St-Pierre
GRAPHICS AND PROGRAMMING : Marlène Cogez, Solenne Leost, Pierre Rochefort, François Brisson
MÉDIA - Touché !
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Michelle Mitchell
STRATEGIST: Saurabh Vekariya
BUYER: Michelle Cockburn
CLIENT - Sport Chek
VP MARKETING: Stephanie Wall
ASSOCIATE VP MARKETING: Kate Ryan
BRAND MANAGER: Alexandra Bak