The Drink Cart: Bandwagon Jumping
The only ad newsletter that will ship you a red cap and speedo for rescuing the bond stooge.
Dear marketing fans and everyone who has been routing for the Blue Jays since before 1993.
I’m not trying to sneak baseball or World Series content into the newsletter, but the fever has gripped the city of Toronto like nothing I’ve ever seen. And the content just kind of walked itself in here. What was I supposed to do?
What do we mean by bandwagoning? Take official sponsor, TD Bank, who changed 2 of their logos on their new tower. Or Price Waterhouse Copper was putting up these off-brand Jays celebrations on Sunday, after the series had left the city. I can only imagine some President wrote a memo about the team and this is the result (at least the team is coming back now). Don’t get me started about how Rogers is non-stop reminding us that they are owners of the team and even changed their end frame in the ad to blue from their red.
I can’t believe someone has these behind home plate tickets and is trying to hock them for $56k each. This is like having a $500 million dollar contract but still doing Uber Eats Instagram posts? (No shade, the guy’s been busy)
It’s okay Vladdy. I forgive you.
To be fair, the biggest bandwagon has actually been in politicians and government. They never want to miss out on something like this. They like bandwagons like Justin Trudeau loves Katy Perry. I mean no wonder the federal government has “spent over $13 million on branded merchandise since 2022.” Those are some Shohei Ohtani-like stats for merch. Who wants government merch? Why is there government merch? I have so many questions.
Take for instance the City of Toronto. Since October 24 (Game 1) The City of Toronto has posted 72 times on X. 39 of those are about the Blue Jays or World Series. Versus 33 other posts for all other city business.
So more than half (54.2%) of the City of Toronto’s posts have been about baseball, with city business making up just under half. That’s such a damning indication of a completely unserious government. More hilarious, the city has posted almost as much as the city has sold new condos lately (53).
No wonder a recent survey, “finds 64 per cent of Torontonians asked believe the city is on the wrong track, with 68 per cent saying the mayor and city council are out of touch with what residents want.”
I couldn’t get a good shot of it last night, but this stupidly awesome giant horn truck rolled past my apartment after the game last night and was blasting the horn. That was pretty fun. Such a great branding piece.
The one off-brand bit of bandwagoning that was really nice was the Wealth Simple “1993 - 2025” ad about the Toronto Stock Exchange. It’s baseball, it’s Blue Jays, but without any of the iconography. Just the music and colour. Love this.
Drink Cart Approved™ agency discussion topics
My wife and I joke about this chain all the time, the OG logo was better.
Gaslighting yourself into drinking more water.
Can we put a stop on government ads right now?
Cringe alert. While i was watching my first Hallmark Christmas Film of the year (A Royal Montana Christmas if you must know) and saw this ad playing. Now I’m all in favour of being rah rah Canada but saying things like, “Be your most flag‑flying, maple leaf-buying, local‑adventuring self” and dropping them off on this completely underwhelming landing page takes a lot of balls.
Shameless Cat Ad Content for the Super Fans
One thing about watching so many hours of baseball and Hallmark content is that I got to see this incredible Catit Cat Litter ad in real life. I’m not even sure what is going on but I’m here for it.
Do cats really dream of their litter boxes? And if they do is it always a sort of a Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome situation? We might have to ask our Drink Cart Cat Expert, Scott (Sorry, Nick).
Unreal Branding Finds
This magical old Shell clamshell gas station cause me to stop my feed scroll and like The Joker in 1989’s Batman exclaim, “Stop the press, who’s that” when he sees Vicki Vale for the first time.
The iconic gas station was one of seven that opened up in the 1930s in the Winston-Salem and Kernersville area. As Atlas Obscura notes, “The clamshell stations represented the transformation of a brand into a building, a symbol into a real thing.”
What they also mention is that shell-shaped gas stations is highly impractical and by the 1970s they started to become other business and now, just the first gas station on the National Register of Historic Places.
Last call: The Drink Cart Team Zissou Rum Cannonball
Hey intern, get me a Rum Cannonball. I think that’s what the immortal Steve Zissou said. Okay, fine, technically it was a Campari (equally iconic)
Welcome aboard another week of our agency liquid refreshment expedition. This week we’re diving deep—approximately 3 ounces deep—into uncharted waters with a cocktail that’s part cannonball, part life raft and entirely necessary for survival at sea or the pitch you had this week.
The Rum Cannonball isn’t just a drink, it’s a deep sea mission. Like any proper Zissou venture, it requires precision, courage, a red toque and a speedo.
But it really is a shame about the Hotel Citroen.
“What a shame. They had a bartender here, Kino, made the best rum cannonball I’ve ever tasted.”
Our research vessel has been deployed. The crew morale? Significantly improved. The budget? Still somehow over. The dolphin scouts? Absolutely useless.
Fair warning: This cocktail goes down smoother than our intern’s diving technique, but packs more punch than an encounter with a jaguar shark. Approach with the same cautious enthusiasm you’d bring to any submarine or agency emergency.
Here’s my take on it:
2 oz Dark rum
1 oz Light rum
2 oz Pineapple juice
1 oz Pomegranate juice
2 oz Ginger Ale
1/2 oz Grenadine
2 Maraschino cherries
The Drink Cart is your weekly fuel for pop culture brains and ad junkies. A cocktail of ad insights and hot takes that feel like you’re hanging at your favourite dive bar after launching your latest campaign.