From left to right: Entrepreneurs Andrea Grand, Dacyion Reid, Joanna Griffiths, Chloe Beaudoin and Jessica Miao.

Mastercard is throwing its weight behind female small business owners again, this time with support from Joanna Griffiths, the founder and president of Knix, the DTC apparel brand.

Canadian female entrepreneurs who’ve made their mark are central to the national ad campaign.

“We wanted to feature a prominent Canadian entrepreneur to tell a real story of paving the way for future women small business owners,” says Shawna Miller, senior VP and head of marketing and communications for Mastercard in Canada. “Joanna Griffiths, president and founder of Knix, is one of the most well-known Canadian women entrepreneurs and we were drawn to her passion for supporting other women entrepreneurs.”

In October, the credit card brand announced that its Mastercard x Pier Five Small Business Fund would provide ten women-owned small businesses $10,000 each in funding. Funds will help recipients grow their businesses and enable them to connect with mentors and Mastercard experts, with winners to be announced in January.

In the hero spot, Griffiths is joined by Dacyion Reid, founder of Dacy’s Gourmet Kitchen, who was profiled in last year’s campaign, in addition to past Fund recipients Chloe Beaudoin and Jessica Miao, co-founders of Apricotton, a teen bra company, and Andrea Grand, co-founder of Barbet, a sparkling water business.

The campaign was timed to coincide with Small Business Month and focuses on the storyline of “opening doors for the next generation” of women small business owners.

It is informed by the fact while small businesses make up 98% of all businesses in Canada, only around 18% are majority-owned by women, and that mentorship formats – both senior to junior and peer-to-peer – are highly effective for supporting budding female businesses.

“Mastercard is ‘always on’ in our support for small business, offering tools, resources, insights and special offers to ensure that small businesses always have the chance to thrive,” Miller says.

The Mastercard Small Business campaign includes an “extensive national media campaign” that includes a 360 multi-channel approach entailing TV, social, display, video and OOH.

Platform partnerships will be leveraged to provide a mentorship opportunity to the small business community, with thought leadership articles and podcasts (sponsored content partnership with Globe and Mail and The Peak), live events and virtual discussions (LinkedIn Live Small Business Event Series). Bespoke targeting will allow people to explore their local small businesses and drive foot traffic to local community stores through place-based and mobile tactics.

“From a consumer perspective, the most relevant media channel is social, with Mastercard entering bespoke partnerships with the likes of TikTok and on LinkedIn for the SMB target audience,” Miller says. “We are also running a series with TikTok whereby influencers will introduce ‘secret menu items’ at key small businesses that can be unlocked with your Mastercard.”

The campaign will also run on Disney+’ new offering within ad-supported subscription plans, which launched Nov. 1.

McCann led the creative, Carat was responsible for the 360 media strategy and execution, including social and digital. Armstrong worked on the campaign web strategy and development, while Ketchum led PR.