Jessica Mori, a copywriter at Saint Bernadine Mission Communications, believes that the male culture in the advertising industry can be off putting for young female creatives, who could use a boost from women already established in the business. That’s why 26-year-old Mori is spearheading AdGirls, a mentorship network for women in Vancouver’s advertising industry.
“When I first started in the industry, I’d flip through the ad books and you’d always see Bob this or Joe that,” she said. “There weren’t a lot of female copywriters I could draw inspiration from.”
Mori is joined by former Rethink partner and creative director Katie Ainsworth, Rethink designer Kim Ridgewell; Jennifer Reynolds, account coordinator and Sami Christianson, designer both at St. Bernadine’s.
“The goal is to mentor young women with hopes of entering the industry so that, little by little, we can even the odds of women in top positions,” said Mori. “We are reaching out to colleges and universities to find young women who would like to be mentored in either copywriting, design, art direction or account management.”
While the program is still in the design stage, Mori would like to see young women working with seasoned veterans on everything from case studies to creating campaigns and networking with others in the industry.
“It’s mostly a shadowing experience so they can know what’s it’s like to be in the industry,” she said, adding that eventually she’d like to see the concept branch out to other cities across Canada.
