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Class Action: Chris Payne, Marketing assistant, Spectrum Brands

At Spectrum, I work in the global auto care division with brands Armor All and STP. It’s a holding company originally from the United States that operates in Canada as a consumer products company and supplier of packaged goods and small appliances. 

I work with our PR firm to get trials and demos out to influencers, radio stations and TV stations. I take care of our video and a lot of our graphics and photography, do budgeting and keep track of what money is spent where.

In high school, I was passionate about music. Everything I wanted to do was either visual or audio or something to do with making an impression on people. I went to the private college Metalworks Institute for audio engineering, but I didn’t graduate. After that, while working landscaping jobs and other jobs, I got interested in cameras. After a few years, I started shooting weddings and bands and began to make a name for myself as a photographer, eventually gaining a handful of impressive clients.

I had some money, so I thought taking a marketing program would be a good way to invest in growing my business. I chose Humber College‘s two-year marketing diploma. I wanted a crash course but while I was there it tumbled into much more than that.

School taught me the language of marketing, the terminology and theory. I didn’t do particularly well at microeconomics, but getting deep into supply and demand was useful for my job now. I learned about the elasticity of demand based on pricing, knowing your consumers, identifying your target segment and being aware of how they react, which all play a major role in what I do now.

When I started, I didn’t think I would get a job in marketing. I went to grow my own business, but when I was there I just got it. That was an exciting thing that I don’t think I would’ve figured out if I hadn’t gone to Humber. It was addictive, and I wanted to keep that ball rolling. 

The best part of my job is working on brands that have giant brand equity behind them. It’s like instant validation, so for example when doing PR, a smaller car care and appearance company might not have the same likelihood of getting a product on TV or on radio station pre-rolls. The greater the brand equity, the more opportunities to be creative.

I participated in the Ontario Colleges Marketing Competition, which pits marketing program students against each other. You get 15 minutes to present a case after having half an hour to make a PowerPoint. It’s super-intense and stressful, but the amount of reactive knowledge that you get from that is invaluable. I did it a couple years ago in the entrepreneurship category. It really teaches you how to think critically and on your feet. 

To do my job, you should have personality, initiative and tenacity to back up whatever knowledge you have. I go up against people with undergrad degrees all the time, and although they may have a more impressive credentials than mine, they still need that human aspect. You have to become part of the team and not view yourself as one unit of intelligence. 

You have to play the long game of getting along with everybody. 

Where to study marketing:

ALGOMA UNIVERSITY (Sault Ste. Marie) Marketing and communications: $6,940/year. algomau.ca

ALGONQUIN COLLEGE (Ottawa) Advertising and marketing communications: $8,155/year business administration marketing: $5,855/year. algonquincollege.com

CANADORE COLLEGE (North Bay) Advertising and marketing communications: $2,114/semester. canadorecollege.ca

CENTENNIAL COLLEGE (Toronto) Business administration – marketing: business – marketing: $3,717/year. centennialcollege.ca

CONESTOGA COLLEGE (Kitchener) Advertising and marketing business/business administration – marketing: $4,126/year. conestogac.on.ca

CONFEDERATION COLLEGE (Thunder Bay) Business – marketing: $2,818/year (plus fees). confederationc.on.ca

DEGROOTE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS/MCMASTER UNIVERSITY (Hamilton) Master ofbusiness administration: $38,000/program co-op: $43,500. degroote.mcmaster.ca

DURHAM COLLEGE (Oshawa) Advertising and marketing communications: $4,098/year marketing – business/business administration: $3,991/year. durhamcollege.ca

FANSHAWE COLLEGE (London/Woodstock) Business – marketing: $2,000 business administration – marketing marketing management: $2,050. fanshawec.ca

FLEMING COLLEGE (Peterborough) Business administration – marketing: $2,442/semester. flemingcollege.ca

GEORGE BROWN COLLEGE (Toronto) Business – marketing: $3,692/year business administration – marketing: $3,716/year Continuing education – marketing: $1,970/six courses. georgebrown.ca 

GEORGIAN COLLEGE (Barrie) Advertising and marketing communications: $4,040/year business – marketing: $3,990/year. georgiancollege.ca

GOODMAN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS/BROCK UNIVERSITY (St. Catharines) Bachelor of Business Administration – marketing concentration: $8,393/year (plus fees) master of business administration: $12,166/year (plus fees). brocku.ca/business

HUMBER COLLEGE (Toronto) Advertising and marketing communications: $3,937/year bachelor of commerce – marketing: $7,446/year business – marketing: $3,972/year marketing management: $6,163. humber.ca

IVEY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS/UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN ONTARIO (London) Honours business administration: $62,118/program master of business administration: $84,250/program (plus fees). ivey.uwo.ca

LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY (Thunder Bay) Bachelor of administration: $6,277/year master of business administration: $19,435/program. lakeheadu.ca

LOYALIST COLLEGE (Belleville) Advertising and marketing communications business sales and marketing: $4,040/year. loyalistcollege.com

MOHAWK COLLEGE (Hamilton) Advertising and marketing communications business – marketing: $2,836/year (plus fees). mohawkcollege.ca

NIAGARA COLLEGE (Niagara-on-the-Lake) Business administration – marketing co-op: $4,609. niagaracollege.ca

ODETTE SCHOOL OF BUSINESS/UNIVERSITY OF WINDSOR (Windsor) Business administration (honours): $5,189./year master of business administration: $5,645.06/year. uwindsor.ca/odette

QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY (Kingston) Bachelor of commerce: $16,764/year (plus fees) master of business administration: $79,000/program. smith.queensu.ca

ROTMAN SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT/ UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO (Toronto) Master of business administration: $98,424/two-year program (plus fees). rotman.utoronto.ca

SCHULICH SCHOOL OF BUSINESS/YORK UNIVERSITY (Toronto) Masters of business administration: $74,176/year. schulich.yorku.ca

SENECA COLLEGE (Toronto) Business administration – marketing business – marketing: $3,832/year marketing management co-op: $5,434/year. senecacollege.ca 

SHERIDAN COLLEGE (Oakville) Advertising and marketing communications: $4,066/year (plus fees) bachelor of marketing management: $8,270/year (plus fees) business administration – marketing: $4,236/year (plus fees) marketing management: $6,364/year (plus fees). sheridancollege.ca

SPROTT SCHOOL OF BUSINESS/CARLETON UNIVERSITY (Ottawa) Bachelor of commerce (marketing): $8,763/year master of business administration: $8,754/year. sprott.carleton.ca

ST. LAWRENCE COLLEGE (Kingston) Advertising and marketing communications management: $4,606/year (plus fees) business administration – marketing business marketing: $2,850/year (plus fees). stlawrencecollege.ca

TED ROGERS SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT/RYERSON UNIVERSITY (Toronto) Marketing management: $6,561/year. ryerson.ca/tedrogersschool

TELFER SCHOOL OF MANAGEMENT/ UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA (Ottawa) Honours bachelor of commerce (marketing): $4,363/year master of business administration: $9,085/year. telfer.uottawa.ca

UNIVERSITY OF GUELPH (Guelph) Bachelor of commerce (marketing management): $4,651/semester. uoguelph.ca

UNIVERSITY OF ONTARIO INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY (Oshawa) Bachelor of commerce: $8,151/year master of business administration: $33,067/program. uoit.ca

UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO (Waterloo) Honours arts and business environment and business: $6,420/year. uwaterloo.ca

WILFRID LAURIER UNIVERSITY (Waterloo) Honours bachelor of business administration: $8,300/year master of business administration: $30,040/program. wlu.ca

kevinr@nowtoronto.com | @KevinRitchie

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