Je bois local, mon Donald: A look back at the viral sensation

On February 6, 2025, Bleublancrouge, a member of the Humanise Collective, launched an ad blitz for Brasseurs du Nord. Featuring the irreverent slogan, “Je bois local, mon Donald” (“I drink local, Donald”), a not-so-subtle jab at a certain someone who shall not be named, the campaign immediately struck a chord with Quebecers.

Beyond its success, this first collaboration between Bleublancrouge and the Boréale brand parent company shows how a message conceived here can truly resonate with Quebecers, using references and sensibilities that are unique to Quebec culture. Let’s take a look back at the campaign, which reminds us just how important it is to create, manufacture and buy local.

An interview with Sébastien Rivest, Executive Creative Director at Bleublancrouge.

Q: Were you surprised by the campaign’s success?

SR: We knew we had something because it got an immediate reaction out of everyone we showed it to. But to think that the ad would be shared so widely – that 50 minutes after it went live, we’d be on the news on TVA and the billboard would make an appearance on Tout le monde en parle – now that’s not something we could have predicted.

Q: How do you explain this success?

SR: Clearly, there’s something in those five little words that resonated deeply. It’s as if “Je bois local, mon Donald” expressed people’s emotions at exactly the right time and in the right tone of voice. Was it the slightly cheeky phrasing? The very “Quebec” sound of it? The fact that we didn’t shy away from calling out a certain someone? Maybe it was a combination of all of the above, it’s hard to say. But we clearly hit a nerve for it to be this popular. Plus, Boréale, a local beer, was the perfect brand to deliver this message. It wasn’t a stretch at all; in fact, it felt like a natural part of their brand personality.

Q: Timing must have played a role as well, no?

SR: We were hyper-reactive, and that clearly made the difference. With everything that was happening in the news, a local brand needed to step up. We had the idea, Boréale jumped on board and next thing we knew, in less than 48 hours we were in the market. Sold on Tuesday, launched on Thursday! Such a quick turnaround requires an agile structure and a team that really goes all in. And the timing was perfect: our message landed at just the right moment, putting a smile on people's faces while making a lasting impression.

Q: How do you plan a campaign like this?

SR: You don’t, it’s as simple as that. It’s the kind of situation where you have to trust your gut. We felt there was a golden opportunity to speak up, perhaps even to launch a movement. We knew that the message had that ‘je ne sais quoi’ aspect to it that would make it irresistible. And the idea wasn’t limited to a single billboard; it also included point-of-sale pieces to get the message across at the moment of purchase, and there was merch, too: hats and T-shirts. It wasn’t just a creative one-off; it was a business idea. You can bet that artificial intelligence wouldn’t have come up with that!

Q: Did the choice to go with OOH rather than social media come into play?

SR: We needed a medium that offered high visibility and immediate impact. I’m convinced the campaign wouldn’t have had the same success if we had reduced it to a social media post. Putting this message on a physical billboard, in real life, added to its audacity. Beyond taking a stand, it became a stunt. And that’s what caught the media’s attention.

Q: Do you think Donald Trump’s attitude toward Canada will change the advertising landscape?

SR: National advertising budgets have been shrinking for years. In Quebec and in Canada, fewer and fewer campaigns were adapted to our reality. Suddenly, the threat of tariffs and, even more so, the talk of Canada becoming the 51st state, served as a real wake-up call. Trump awakened a sense of national pride that had been dormant for some time. It’s like people have woken up and smelled the coffee: consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the impact of their choices. And they’re making the choice to buy local and support brands that invest in the Quebec economy and employ people from here.

Economically, this is likely to shake up the status quo where the most popular brands in our market are concerned. This means there are some great opportunities for local advertisers, because consumers are going to change their habits – for good.

For Quebec and Canadian advertisers, now’s the time to promote emotional and cultural resonance. And who better than local talent to build these new bridges between brands and consumers? The opportunity is ripe for the taking: it’s time to assert ourselves, to bet on our local creativity ("yes, Donald!") and to build strong brands rooted in our own culture and economy.