Research finds that as of 2023, only one-third of senior management and leadership positions in Canada are held by women. Also, there’s still a significant gender pay gap — women earn 9.2% less than their male counterparts.

With the approach of Women’s History Month, the Toronto Star and The Kit — the Star’s fashion and beauty brand — saw an opportunity to connect with marketers who recognise the value of women as consumers, decision-makers, and leaders in their companies.

Tapping into fashion stylist (and The Kit contributing editor) Julianne Costigan’s Portraits with Impact programme, the team developed a sponsored content package. Beyond print and digital articles, the initiative included an empowering corporate event that became a beautiful brand spotlight for the client, framed around their women C-suite leaders.

Highlighting women leaders

This unique offering attracted Mercedes-Benz Canada, a company that has a strong history of brave, pioneering women playing key roles in the company’s success.

One of these women was Bertha Benz, the wife and business partner of Carl Benz, who took the company’s Patent-Motorwagen on the first long-distance road trip, validating the concept for the automobile and paving the road for a whole new industry.

Five women from departments across Mercedes-Benz Canada participated in a personal development day. During the personal development day, the women participated in a wellness coaching session, a hair and makeup session, one-on-one time with a stylist, and a photo shoot with Costigan’s team.

The impact of portraits

Metrics prove the campaign exceeded expectations. The portraits and the women in them were featured in a full-page print article and brand feature in the Toronto Star, plus a digital article and video on thestar.com.

The article “Putting women in the driver’s seat” achieved more than four times the targeted pageview goal and the video had a high average click-through-rate. Promotional support that included social media content, audio ads in the This Matters podcast, and banner ads in The Kit newsletter also saw high engagement.

Beyond metrics, the campaign helped the Toronto Star re-establish the power of its media with a vital partner in the automotive category. The Portraits with Impact campaign has also caught the eye of other companies; a new client agreed to participate in International Women’s Day, and two others have signalled their interest in future campaigns.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .