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Buzzkill
Agency LG2 / Toronto + Ontario Cannabis Store / Toronto + Nimble Content / Toronto + Recess Post / Toronto
Category
Brand Identity
Annual ID
OS25_HW043M
Background
Canada legalized cannabis in 2018. Since then, sales in Ontario (Canada’s largest province) have grown to an estimated $3.2 Billion, with over 3,800 cannabis retailers. The thing is, at least half of this market is still illegal, making it hard for consumers to know what’s legal and what isn’t, but more importantly what’s safe and what’s not. With laws restricting traditional advertising channels, the Ontario Cannabis Store (OCS), the province’s authority on safe consumption, needed to find a new way to convince people to buy legal.
Creative Idea
To attract the attention of cannabis consumers, the OCS launched Buzzkill—a fake brand of illegal cannabis featuring 25+ unique products, each highlighting a different contaminant, all available in a fake retail dispensary located on Queen West, one of Toronto’s busiest shopping arteries, where 25% of dispensaries are illegal. BUZZKILL fit right in.
Insights & Strategy
Pesticides. Heavy metals. Mold. Even E. coli. Most Canadians have no idea what could be lurking in illegal cannabis, because, unlike legal products, the black market isn’t third-party tested. This was the insight that led to our strategic line - shop legal, because the black market is more of a buzzkill than you realize.
Execution
We crafted the Buzzkill brand from scratch, including custom typography (BUZZ MONO), and a packaging design system used to create 26 unique products across the 5 main cannabis categories (flower, beverage, edibles, oil, and plain old rolled joint). Every product included exactly what is commonly found in untested illegal cannabis: pesticides, heavy metals, toxic chemicals, feces and more. With names like Magic Mold, Pesti-Cider, and E. Cola, these products brought the dangers to the forefront, demonstrating how illegal cannabis is more of a buzzkill than consumers realize.
Once inside the retail space, consumers were able to experience the brand to its fullest. Typical dispensaries keep products behind glass, but BUZZKILL had rows and rows of products lined-up on open shelves, so consumers could pick them up and learn about the dangers through clever product messaging. Instead of staying behind the cash, “budtenders” roamed the floor interacting and teaching. Motion graphics were projected on screens that encapsulated the brand - a mix of stylized petri dishes, mould spores, and pesticide spraying. Tables of product brochures ran down the middle of the space, so the product messaging could live beyond the store experience. And finally, every customer left with a range of slick BUZZKILL swag (with hangtags that incorporated safety tips and directions on where to buy legal cannabis.)
Once inside the retail space, consumers were able to experience the brand to its fullest. Typical dispensaries keep products behind glass, but BUZZKILL had rows and rows of products lined-up on open shelves, so consumers could pick them up and learn about the dangers through clever product messaging. Instead of staying behind the cash, “budtenders” roamed the floor interacting and teaching. Motion graphics were projected on screens that encapsulated the brand - a mix of stylized petri dishes, mould spores, and pesticide spraying. Tables of product brochures ran down the middle of the space, so the product messaging could live beyond the store experience. And finally, every customer left with a range of slick BUZZKILL swag (with hangtags that incorporated safety tips and directions on where to buy legal cannabis.)
Results
Buzzkill generated an earned audience of 33.2MM , educated Ontarians of the dangers of illegal cannabis (59% more aware), increased visits to OCS.ca’s safety page by 20%, and increased their likelihood to shop legal by 152%. More than a marketing play, it reinforced the importance of the OCS’ mandate garnering a front page article in one of Canada’s largest national newspapers with the CEO, and proved to consumers it’s better to shop legal, because illegal cannabis isn’t worth the risk.
2025 Awards
Total Points: 3
Merit
Credits
Agency
LG2 / Toronto
Media Agency
Initiative
PR / Marketing Agency
Glossy
Client / Brand
Ontario Cannabis Store / Toronto
Production Company
Nimble Content / Toronto
Post Production Company
Recess Post / Toronto
Chief Creative Officer
Josh Stein
Luc Du Sault
Nicolas Baldovini
Chief Strategy Officer
Sophie-Annick Vallée
Copywriter
Daniel Kanhai
Creative Director
Jeff Cheung
Rana Chattejee
Ryan Crouchman
Designer
Adam Globa
Erin Struble
Jessica Brasil
Director
Erica Orofino
Jamie Pennock
Editor
Joey Whitelaw
Motion Designer
Samuel Thibodeau
Photographer
Ashley Harris
Kaamil Lakhani
Producer
Laura Merrett
Social Media Manager
Jessica Rochwerg
Strategist
Nikole Patterson-Hurst
Strategy Director
Mike Strasser
Executive Producer
Andrew Lynch
Tanja Harney
Senior Art Director
Kyle Winsor
Senior Copywriter
Scott Hildebrant
Agency Production (Creative Production Services)
Tara Greguric
Tracy Haapamaki
Agency Production (Integrated Production Services)
Christine Malacas
Assistant
Benjamin Sagar
Chief Customer Experience Officer
Alexandre Jalleau
Client Services
Casey Mendoza
Geraldine Sebastian
Krista Findlay
Luke Whitty
Shilpa Chandra
Director, Client Advice & PM
Ryan Gentile
Director, Communications & Strategic Engagement
Julie Gathercole
Engineer
Benjamin Spiller
Experiential Production Partner
Wxm
Founder
Shannon Stephaniuk
Line Producer
Kyle Welton
Manager - Communications And Strategic Engagement
Amanda Winton
Manager, Strategy
Austin Tenhunen
Marketing Specialist
Angela Bosilkovski
Merchandise Production Partner
O2o
The Gas Company
Online
Brett Blackwell
President & CEO
David Lobo
Production Design
Briar Koski
Dylan Hamilton
Lisa Ye
Senior Communications Designer
Elizabeth Varghis
Senior Legal Counsel
Katharine Brickman-Miller
Senior Manager, Social Responsibility And Impact Partnerships
Jenna Valleriani
Senior Marketing Manager
Kim Lang
Vice-President, Account Services
Shelly-Ann Scott
Vice-President, Executive Creative Direction, Design
Ryan Crouchman
Vice-President, Strategy
Keith Barry
VP, Channel Strategy & Digital Experience
Janet Ihm
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