Reframing the Trades to Solve Labour Gaps

First Peoples Development Inc. (FPDI) partnered with Brandish to tackle one of the most pressing challenges in Canada’s labour market: the growing shortage of tradespeople.

Since 2020, apprenticeship applications have declined by 27%, while retirements among baby boomers continue to rise. The result is a critical talent gap across essential skilled trades. But attracting a new generation, particularly one that is more diverse, into a traditionally white, male-dominated industry would require more than a recruitment push. It needed a shift in perception.

That is where Take on the Trades began. Brandish worked with FPDI to launch a multi-audience awareness campaign that spoke directly to both sides of the equation: the workers the industry desperately needs, and the employers who must evolve to attract them.

For potential workers, the message was clear: trades offer stable, well-paying careers, and they are open to you. The campaign showed the industry through a new lens, one that reflected the next generation of tradespeople as inclusive, capable, and ready to build the future.

To reach these audiences, the campaign was deployed where they already were. Ads targeting future tradespeople appeared on buses, in social feeds, and on Spotify.

Meanwhile, messages for employers landed in home improvement stores, on the backs of transit vehicles, in radio spots, and across industry publications, encouraging them to create spaces where new talent could thrive.

The media approach was both broad and intentional. Brandish knew that driving awareness meant going beyond digital.

The impact was immediate. The response showed the message resonated, and most importantly, that people were ready to act on it. The agency brought together strategy, creative, and media to help reposition the trades as a future-forward industry, one that is not just in need of workers but worth joining.

For an industry in transformation, Take on the Trades was more than a campaign. It was an invitation. And thousands answered the call.