Vice sells its cover to BMW; (but only after dark)

Magazine people who believe that the cover is sacrosanct (as set out in the advertising:editorial guidelines published by Magazines Canada and the Canadian Society of Magazine Editors) may blanch at the initiative taken by the current Canadian print run of Vice. While it looks like a normal cover, it is printed so that -- when the lights are out -- a glow-in-the-dark ad for BMW 1 Series automobiles appears superimposed with a number 1 where the "i" in Vice would be.

The ad is intended to create a buzz, although the audience of Vice isn't exactly the target group for these pricey cars.

In a story in Media in Canada, Esme Rottschafer, group account director at The Media Company, adding that Cundari developed the creative for the ad (both Toronto-based)."The media strategy for the 1 Series is all about short, intense experiences. We knew [this process] would be tough to do, but it was an innovative one-off that fit beautifully with the strategy." (No word on whether they thought it ought to be done at all.)

Shawn Phelan, director of sales & marketing at Vice's Toronto office, said:

"Maintaining the integrity of our cover - which is not usually for sale - while delivering a unique and rad brand message for BMW was an amazing challenge."

To pull off the challenge, the magazine had to be printed at one plant, then shipped to another to add the glow-in-the-dark element, UV coat them and then shipped back to the original plant for binding to the rest of the mag.