Leading Design Firm Launches Student Design Competition

Pigeon brands design competition image with empty bottles on right side and pink header stating your vision for the future.
Wednesday, September 25, 2019 - 11:30am

TORONTO – September 24, 2019 – Canada’s award-winning design firm, PIGEON Brands, in partnership with Metro, is offering design students in Ontario and Quebec the opportunity of a lifetime – beyond the classroom – with a chance to design packaging for one of Canada’s favourite grocers. 

Launching September 24, the competition puts selected OCAD University and Collège Salette students to the test by inviting them to create new designs for Metro’s private brand, Irresistibles. 

Students will be judged based on criteria such as concept rationale, design, creativity, market understanding and viability, as well as overall presentation. The winning designers will land a paid internship at the Toronto and Montreal PIGEON Brands offices and recognition for outstanding work in design. The second place prize as well as a “Student’s Choice Award,” decided on by the student faculty, will be awarded by Metro. 

The judging panel will include experts from Pigeon, Metro, the participating schools and Christopher Durham, President, My Private Brand and Co-founder of the prestigious Vertex Awards. 

“We’re excited to meet the design leaders of the future, while giving them the chance to gain real-world experience on a project for a massive Canadian retailer,” says Thomas Pigeon, CEO and Founder of PIGEON Brands. “We want to foster creative minds and help students get familiar with the industry they’re working towards being a part of.” 

This joint initiative from PIGEON and Metro rapidly gained traction with the partners as it connected two leading schools, expertise from a recognized agency team, and a great client. 

“The design students will be able to explore the very dynamic industry of private brands, a segment that is experiencing amazing growth, linked with the appreciation of young generations and our velocity to understand and integrate new consumers’ needs. At Metro, we are committed to turning our own products into distinctive brands. We love the idea of connecting with the next generation, giving them the opportunity to showcase their creativity,” notes Marie Hordecki-Aymes, Director, Design & Packaging at Metro. 

The winners will be announced by year-end with an award ceremony at each school celebrating their efforts. 

For more information on PIGEON Brands, visit www.pigeonbrands.com. 

 

PIGEON Design Competition Info Session

Monday, Oct 7, 6 PM

Centre for Emerging Artists & Designers, Level 3, 115 McCaul St.

 

About PIGEON Brands 

PIGEON builds brand value with every engagement. For over 40 years, it has helped many of North America’s leading consumer brands navigate a changing world, deliver inspired results via thoughtful strategy, brilliant creative, and through ideas that travel. PIGEON builds brands through design, integrated marketing, production, and relentless execution. PIGEON’s partners are among the top brands in Canada and around the world, such as Grupo Bimbo, Hershey, Corby Spirit and Wine Limited, Kraft Heinz, Ikea, Lavo, Danone, Metro, Lassonde, and Irving, to name a few. The firm is privately held, with offices in Toronto, Montreal and now, Mexico City. 

 

About the Centre for Emerging Artists & Designers

Established in 2013, the Centre for Emerging Artists & Designers (CEAD) sits alongside the other student-focused departments in the portfolio of the Vice-Provost, Students & International at OCAD U. The CEAD is committed to supporting the early-career advancement of all students and recent alumni at OCAD U. Our team delivers specialized programs and services that connect individuals to meaningful opportunities, communities of practitioners, skill-building resources and facilitated learning experiences.

I Voted! Increase voter awareness through design, with Instagram

I voted sampler
Wednesday, May 8, 2019

In the lead up to the 2019 federal election, OCAD University has partnered with Instagram to give students the opportunity to create an “I Voted” sticker that will be available in Instagram Stories. The goal of the competition is to leverage the widespread reach of Instagram to encourage civic engagement for the upcoming Canadian federal election. 

Over 500 million people across the world use Instagram Stories, and this fall Canadians will be able to use this platform to tell their community that they voted in 43rd federal election by using this interactive “I Voted” sticker on Instagram. 

This two-phase competition will commission up to 10 students to design an “I Voted” sticker for Canada, with one winning student working on the final design on Instagram. To facilitate this, the winner will receive an all-expenses paid trip to San Francisco where they will meet with the Instagram team and finalize their design. The winner will also receive $5,000 cash!​

The first phase of the competition is open to all current, full-time undergraduate and graduate students at OCAD University, including those who are graduating in summer, 2019, who are at least eighteen (18) years of age. 

Phase 1
Participants can submit up to five links to posts that images show your best existing art and design work on social-media. The submissions do not need to be related to the specific theme of the competition and can feature recent or previous work. This could include illustrations, graphic design, paintings, animations, or photos/video of products, sculptures, or installations. The deadline to submit these links is Friday, May 17, 2019. A short list of the results will be announced on Friday, May 31, 2019. 

Up to 10 winners will receive:

  • $250 to create an “I Voted” sticker design
  • Your sticker design featured in an online exhibition
  • Eligibility to win the additional prizes in Phase 2

Phase 2: Interactive “I Voted” sticker design

The students selected by the phase 1 jury will each create a design for a new interactive “I Voted” sticker for Instagram Stories. The deadline for these submissions is Friday, June 28, 2019. The submissions will be evaluated by a Jury comprised of OCAD U faculty and Instagram employees. Winners will be announced on Thursday, July 18, 2019. The results will be highlighted on the competition website, http://ivotedocadu.ca. In addition to the $250 commission fee, three additional prizes will be awarded.

For complete details on how to participate, please visit http://ivotedocadu.ca. ​