We Asked Our Staff: What’s Your Favourite TIA Memory?

The Influence Agency is celebrating its milestone five-year anniversary on April 1, 2022. In just five short years, TIA has truly risen in the ranks to become one of the most sought-after digital marketing agencies in North America.

To celebrate, we asked our staff to share a favourite TIA memory—from our company culture, to finally meeting in person, and every campaign in between—we’d love for you to take a walk down memory lane with us!

My Favourite TIA Memory Is…

“Hands-down it was our team trip to the Bahamas at the start of 2020! Little did we know what the rest of that year would bring, so this was the last trip a lot of us went on for a loooooong time. Getting to hang out with the team before WFH life started in full force was such a privilege. From beach volleyball to all-you-can-eat buffets to exploring the local town, I loved every moment we spent there!”

“The Holiday Party in 2021. We hadn’t been together in a group environment in nearly two years, and it was so nice to see everyone and feel the energy in the room. There were some awesome moments of celebration that really signaled the spirit and cohesiveness of our group. I feel so fortunate to have such amazing people in my life, and that Holiday Party was a night I will always reflect on fondly. Really awesome moment in time!”

“Going to Pride together. We attended the shows of the drag queens that we worked with throughout the year and were able to meet them in person (I was starstruck!!!). It was such a fun and lively time and so nice to spend time with everyone outside of work! Second runner up for favourite memory would have to be, being swept off my feet by @reza_jax at the Notable Awards (thank you Steph).”

“Finally being able to come together for our holiday social. After working here for a year and a half, it meant a lot to me to feel the incredible environment we’ve cultivated digitally as an in-person experience. Not only so, but it was also a representation of the initiatives we take to be connected no matter the circumstances and make memories together.”

“To be able to work with a group who are not only talented at their jobs but also kind, generous, and appreciate a good meme is truly something special. My favourite memory at TIA is simply any time I get to hang out with the team, from road trips to Cambridge, office shenanigans, to social dinners, TIA is stacked with the best kind of people. I’ve made friends here that will last a lifetime and I look forward to making many more memes.. I mean memories.. together.”

“I have SO many favourite TIA memories; how can I pick just one!  When I look at the camera roll, Spring 2019 definitely stands out as a memorable ‘season’.  That Spring, we worked on a program where I had the chance to meet Andre DeGrasse, Penny Oleksiak and Max Parrot, amongst other incredibly well-known creators, which was an absolute honour! We also worked on Pride Toronto – from photoshoots to drag performances to VIP access at the Pride Parade – this not only goes down as my favourite TIA memory but possibly my favourite memory of all time!”

“There are literally hundreds of memories… I couldn’t even begin to name them all but, some of my favourite ones are as follows. Toronto Island Trip, and also, an Ice Cream Taste Test (ya’ll prolly never even seen this vid) my first week at TIA. Spirit Of York influencer event – hands down so fun, and loved seeing everyone dance, and drink and eat off of both hands. Hitting 10K on IG and getting the swipe up feature. Twinning Tuesday. Joy eating garbage on the daily at the old office. The greatest office PingPong showdown with Stephen Meng. Josh Filderman being confused for 1.5 years on if he worked for Consultus or for TIA, and what email he was supposed to use. Delivering TIA Swag like a Christmas Elf to all of the TIATeam. #TIATeamTries, Challenge Videos, Guess That Song. So many amazing blog posts and content pieces. Potlucks in the Geary office. Group photos when there were only like 15 of us, and we could fit around 1 couch. Having sooo many new TIATeam members join the crew. Moving offices. So many shoots. 2021 Christmas party – one of the best parties EVER. I could go on and on… but you get the picture. We are the best, and so happy to be celebrating 5 years for TIA, the memories, and everything that we’ve accomplished along with it!”

“My number one favourite TIA memory so far… “Canadians Trying Russian Food (Grandma’s Meal)“… If you have no idea what I’m talking about, go to our YouTube channel. Who doesn’t love trying new foods? My number two favourite TIA memory was bringing my daughter to the office for a client product shoot. I love watching our creative team in action, and seeing my own kid in photos on a client website will never get old. Lastly, a few of us attended a baseball game last summer. There was an incident on a patio involving pizza delivery. I’ll just leave it at that.”

“Although I recently started working at TIA, I wanted to share my favourite memory of the first shoot I assisted for Gabby and Kitty. The day started out with me saying hello to Kitty and Joy, as the doggo grabbed her bed and ran straight to the studio. Meeting many people for the first time, spending the day being creative, and seeing all the beautiful images Gabby shot at the end- it felt like such a rewarding experience!! I’m so excited to be a part of this team and celebrate TIA’s 5 year anniversary with everyone!”

“There are a lot of memories from TIA, but one that stands out is probably my second shoot with TIA as a freelancer at Harbour 60. Chef brings out $500 black caviar to take photos/videos of, after we done our pictures, Noah and Nancy grab the spoon and started eating the caviar, welcoming everyone to dig in. Five minutes later the chef walks by, sees them eating, he is in shock. “Why are you guys eating $500 caviar? No one told you that you can.” He goes away disappointed. And everyone had an “oh shit moment” hahah that was a funny moment for me.”

“There are so many unforgettable memories at TIA, it’s hard to pick just one. Our encounter with the Jonas Brothers in the Bahamas is one for the history books though. For context, one of our older staff members, Nancy, is a mega-fan – everyone in the office knew about her love for them. We even had their music playing in the background of our old office almost daily and Jonas Brother references and jokes were brought up in conversations regularly. Fast forward to our 2020 trip to the Bahamas – the group of us were wrapping up another fun night at the Atlantis Casino. We were standing right in front of the entrance when Kayla practically starts hyperventilating “THE JONAS BROTHERS, THE JONAS BROTHERS ARE HERE.” We all turn around and see them casually walking right by us with an entourage of their friends, famous wives (hello Priyanka Chopra and Sophie Turner!), and security. They walked straight through the casino without anyone noticing them except us. We were SHOOK. We all squealed and chased them down the casino (like literally ran) until they went behind these curtains to a VIP room. Committed to making Nancy’s meet n’ greet dreams come true, Josh enthusiastically volunteers himself to walk up to the security guarding the VIP room and pretend to be a high roller in hopes of interrupting a game and somehow getting the Jonas Brothers to meet Nancy. The funniest part is Josh would have done it too, but Nancy’s nerves got the best of her and we just left it there. Of all the celebs we could have run into (in the Bahamas no less!), it was unreal that the one at the center of so many inside TIA jokes would be the one we’d run into. What a small world, definitely a memory I’ll never forget.”

“In the short year I’ve been with TIA I’ve had so many memorable experiences! But there are three that come quickest to mind when thinking about it. First, our holiday party, when I finally got to meet most of the team in person for the first time! Second, is filming the Cannabis webinar.  This was my first time at the office and I remember having so much fun creating something we’d never done before as an agency- not to mention laughing more than I had in a long time! Finally, getting the (final) hardcopy of the 2021 Yearbook.  This was an agency-wide initiative and I was so excited to watch our team collaborate and bring it all together.  Not to mention, Max’s incredible vision for the commercial!”

“Although it’s only been a year with TIA, nonetheless during the pandemic, it has been incredibly memorable. My fondest memory is definitely our 2021 Holiday Party, where I got the chance to meet so many co-workers and friends I hadn’t yet! We danced the night away, bonded over a hilarious secret Santa (with shots), and got emotional over a surprise yearly recap video from the creative team. 1 year out of 5, but I can’t wait for so many more!”

“It’s hard to pick just ONE fav memory at TIA… I have truly made lifelong friends and am such a cheeseball about it. As one of TIA’s photographers, most of my memories are on-set being creative, silly, and honestly laughing way too much. From road trips to Barrie to fighting off squirrels in the park from stealing cannabis products, it’s always a fun time. Happy 5th Bday TIA.”

“Where do I start? There’s the trips to Google, the socials, the basketball team, the epic Mario Kart and ping pong sessions, the client meetings where our team just rocked it. It’s hard to choose one moment, but I do know this, the biggest and best moments are ahead of us. The best parties, the best deals, the best work and the best events are all just over the horizon.”

“As part of the pandemic alumni, my favourite TIA memory has to be the virtual Sangria & Drag Airbnb experience. Hosted by Lisbon’s most fabulous drag queens, we were all taught how to make their secret sangria recipe while watching multiple drag performances (we were blown away, to say the least). As a virtual experience, they were experts at getting everyone to open up and participate in the activities, all while sipping some (very strong) cocktails. Plus, the AFTERPARTY — iykyk. It was a great way to really get to know my team on a more personal level, and now that we’ve all met IRL, I can’t wait to make more memories! Happy 5th birthday TIA!”

“SO many fun memories with the best team!! Every photoshoot, office shenanigans, first TIA social paint party! Sangria and secrets! Opening the products for a TNCC shoot and there being a 5-foot dank plant and every social after-party!! Can’t wait to celebrate 5 years of TIA with the best team and spend the whole night laughing and dancing!!!!”

“My favourite memory at TIA so far definitely has to be the 2021 Holiday Party! Truly one of the BEST holiday parties I’ve ever been to. After working remotely for so long and only seeing each other through our computer screens, it was so nice for all of us to get together to laugh, drink, eat lots of yummy food and dance the night away. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I am SO happy and honoured to be a part of the TIA team, everyone is truly so incredible and I’m so happy to that I get to be a part of TIA’s 5 year anniversary!”

“It’s hard to believe that 5 years have gone by so fast. I remember thinking about this idea for the first time, to taking the plunge to diving in and starting the business on our own without any real safety net or backing other than encouragement from our friends and family. Now after 5 years we’re a group of almost 50 people who are each so INSANELY talented, that complement one another and all work towards a common goal. Some days it seems surreal that we’ve made it this far and at the same time it’s so exciting to think about where we’re about to go with the foundation we’ve all built together as a team, those here today and everyone who contributed to this journey along the way. To me there’s not one single thing that I could ever label my favourite, I felt as excited about our first 400 sq ft office as the 5,000 sq ft one we built custom on our own, as thrilled about our first hire as our most recent one, every day is a new milestone and I’m just eternally grateful for the people I get to strap up and work for/with each day. I can’t wait for what the next 5 years will bring – all I know is the best is yet to come!”

“It’s so hard to pick just one memory from the past year, but I would have to say any scenario when we’re all together as a team! As a university grad who entered the workforce during a pandemic, I really appreciated being able to meet and hang out with my co-workers virtually, especially during a time when working on your own can get lonely. We’ve done cocktail making classes and solved hard riddles together online, but it’s been SO much better now that we’re able to meet up in person! From afterparties to office hangs, and the iconic Holiday party, every chance I get to spend with this magnificent team is always time well spent! TIA is an incredible place to work and I’m so proud and grateful to be a part of this magical team. Happy birthday TIA, and many, MANY more!”

Aaah, it’s so hard to nail down one favourite memory when you’re working with your favourite bunch of people every single day. Right from playing ping pong & Mario kart with the team to our Friday pop-ins, trip to the  Bahamas & all the socials, we’ve had sooo many memorable moments. But if I had to pick just one, this would date back to November 2019. Even before I joined the company. I attended a Content Marketing 101 session hosted by Tom. That hour was enough to give me a peek into the world of TIA — a talented bunch of individuals, kickass client roster, out-of-the-box creative ideas & happy vibes — I knew I was HOME! The rest is history and it’s been so amazing to grow with this Uber brilliant team!

I can’t imagine that a few months back I joined TIA and the love from all is incredible. 

All productive meetings with Eli, always motivating and encouraging me for my work. The party I attended at the end of the year was with the TIA family, and I met amazing people. These are my wonderful memories, which are unforgettable.

Happy 5 Year Anniversary, The Influence Agency!

Looking for a digital marketing team that works hard—and plays even harder—when it comes to getting you results? In just the last five years The Influence Agency has secured partnerships with notable brands such as Jamieson Vitamins, Universal Music Canada, Crave, Rakuten, Staples, Hello Fresh and Napoleon.

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