Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends Unveils 2022 Winners

By Shady Salah On Feb 28, 2022

AMA Toronto has revealed the five industry figures it is welcoming into Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends this year.

This year’s class of inductees includes Zak Mroueh, who founded agency Zulu Alpha Kilo in 2008 and has served as its chief creative officer ever since; Brenda Pritchard, partner at Gowling WLG, who has worked in the law firm’s advertising and marketing practice since the 1980s, helping clients ensure their ads are both creative and legally compliant; Dani Reiss, president and CEO of Canada Goose, who has helped the company grow to a globally recognized luxury outwear brand; and Edie Weiss, president, and CEO of Radke Film Group, a collection of commercial production companies that includes Radke Films, Steam Films, OPC, Soft Citizen, Filmgroup.TV and Vapor Music.

“Each of these diverse Canadians has elevated our industry in Canada and on the international stage and are being recognized for their remarkable leadership achievements,” says Tina Portillo, president of AMA Toronto, the association that runs CMHOL in a statement. “Through the Marketing Hall of Legends, their career stories are celebrated to inspire us, share wisdom, and ultimately help empower new leadership and business growth throughout our community.”

Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends honours the industry’s most inspiring visionaries, enablers, builders, and mentors who’ve had tremendous impact on the field of marketing throughout their careers. The Marketer-on-the-Rise award celebrates Canada’s top up-and-comers — the next generation of influential marketing leaders.

The award winners will be honoured and formally inducted by AMA Toronto on May 12 at an in-person gala event.

The 2022 Marketing Legends were carefully chosen from this year’s nominations by a selection committee made up of a distinguished and diverse group of marketing experts. The selection committee was chaired by 2020 Legend inductee Nancy Marcus, former chief marketing officer at Kruger Products and one of Canada’s most recognized marketing professionals in the consumer-packaged goods industry.

“This year’s inductees into Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends are exceptional trailblazers from parts of the industry that we have not previously focused on,” says Marcus. “The selection committee delivered a number of “firsts,” acknowledging Legends in our film production, legal and sponsorship sectors.”

The award recipients this year embody a more diverse swath of marketing disciplines than ever before. Brenda Prichard is the first advertising and marketing lawyer to be honoured by Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends, and Edie Weiss, who founded one of Canada’s leading advertising production companies, is the first recipient from the commercial film industry. In another first, Chris Lang, “the Guru of Canadian partnership marketing,” is being honoured posthumously for his innovation and progressive leadership in sponsorship.

“Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends is the longest-running industry program of its type,” says Jacob Kessler, VP, CMHOL, AMA Toronto. “Only a select few are inducted each year, making the award a highly-coveted badge of honour.”

In addition to their induction into Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends, award winners will participate in AMA Toronto’s popular Legendary Leadership Series of live events and the forthcoming video series “Legend’s Journey.”

Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends is made possible by AMA Toronto sponsors and partners that include: Lulu Marketing Communications, Mission Hill Family Estate Winery, and the Globe Media Group.

Founded in 2004, Canada’s Marketing Hall of Legends honours inspiring Canadian leaders who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of excellence in the field of marketing. The award, created to spotlight the stories, people, and brands behind Canada’s greatest marketing successes, recognizes a noteworthy body of work and a life-time of achievements and leadership. Nominations for induction are held annually.

The Toronto Chapter of the American Marketing Association (AMA Toronto) is a community of volunteer marketers who have been empowering leadership and business growth for more than 70 years in Canada. The AMA, with more than 30,000 members and 70 chapters across North America, is the largest not-for-profit marketing association in the world serving organizations and individuals who practice, teach and study marketing.