Main Street Brewing Miracle on Main Street

THE STORY

Tucked in a historic heritage building in Vancouver’s original brewery district, Main Street Brewing Company has been producing offbeat, outside-the-box and unconventional beers since its inception in 2014. The Mount Pleasant landmark is renowned for its craft beers and strong sense of community spirit. As a challenging 2020 drew to a close, the brewery team was looking for a way to spread some festive cheer in their community.

As part of our ongoing strategic partnership with Main Street Brewing, SMC Communications took the initiative to conceptualize and execute a one-of-a-kind promotional campaign for the holiday season. With COVID-19 restrictions in place across the city, many Vancouver charities were struggling to collect donations; SMC identified an opportunity for Main Street Brewing to inspire charitable giving within the community while also incentivizing people to visit the brewery throughout the month of December.

Our team developed the concept for Miracle on Main Street – a multi-faceted holiday initiative intended to give back to children in need, engage loyal brewery goers and drive support for local small businesses at a time when they needed it the most.

Strategic Planning

The SMC team reached out to the Lower Mainland Christmas Bureau (LMCB) to establish a partnership and arrange an on-site toy drive at Main Street Brewing from December 1 to 12. Brewery goers were encouraged to drop off unwrapped toys and gift cards and would receive a complimentary flight of Main Street’s ‘core four’ beers: Naked Fox IPA, Main Street Pilsner, Fruit Bomb Sour and Kingpin Pale Ale.
To further engage customers both in person and on social media, SMC proposed a three-week prize draw from December 3 to 25 for all individuals who contributed donations to the toy drive. Winners were announced every other day the Main Street Brewing Instagram account and received gift certificates to local Main Street merchants to help cross-promote support for independent businesses within the neighbourhood.

Media Relations

SMC prepared and distributed a press release to a targeted list of local Vancouver print, digital, radio and TV outlets, including beer-focused media and influencers.
We created a customized Media Kit complete with Main Street Brewing logos and campaign photos designed to equip media with eye-catching visuals.

Campaign Photography

SMC’s in-house photographer conducted a photoshoot at the brewery to capture compelling images of Main Street Brewing’s seasonal products, brewery staff and the toy drive set up.
Visual assets were shared with media and on the brewery’s owned social platforms and digital channels to support the initiative.

Digital Support

SMC worked with Main Street’s in-house graphic designer to create custom graphics and messaging about Miracle on Main Street to be added to the client’s website and social media channels throughout the duration of the campaign.
Our in-house graphic designer worked with the Main Street Brewing design team to create and print custom wrapping paper that was used as a festive gift wrap on brewery products during the holiday season.

“Thanks to SMC Communications, we had an amazing response to the Miracle on Main Street toy drive and fundraiser. The generosity of our community far surpassed our expectations, and we look forward to its continued success in the years to come. The excitement of walking into the brewery and seeing the number of toys being donated brought smiles and joy to all of our staff and customers alike.”

— Cameron Forsyth, Main Street Brewing Co-Owner

The Results

Following the successful implementation of the Miracle on Main Street campaign, SMC generated thousands of dollars’ worth of earned media coverage and strategically positioned Main Street Brewing as a leader within the community.

A true feel-good holiday campaign, Miracle on Main Street increased foot traffic at the brewery over the month of December and inspired a sense of comradery among the community and the brewery staff as they came together to make wishes come true for children across Metro Vancouver.

Main Street Brewing collected hundreds of toys and gifts as part of the Miracle on Main Street toy drive, with all donated items delivered to children in time for Christmas by the LMCB.
SMC secured an interview opportunity for brewery co-owner Cameron Forsythe on The Nosh podcast with prominent food writer and radio personality Anya Levykh.
Our media relations team secured dozens of positive-sentiment news stories for Main Street Brewing in beer-focused digital and print outlets such as Ale Sessions, What’s Brewing and BC Ale Trail, and in notable mainstream publications like Vancouver Magazine, Eat North and Vancouver is Awesome.
The brewery received hundreds of entries for its holiday prize draw and gave out $600 worth of gift certificates to Main Street merchants over a three-week period.

Following the overwhelming success of the Miracle on Main Street initiative, Main Street Brewing plans to make the charitable campaign an annual Yuletide tradition.