5 Christmases ago, IGA, one of the biggest supermarkets in Quebec, embarked on a mission: to give the public an animated film that would inspire togetherness, that celebrated love, food and above all, love of food. A holiday tale that would infuse some magic into homes for the season of family time.

In 2020, this family time got cut short. With gatherings prohibited our holiday tables became much smaller and the magic left. The era of large traditional dinners shared with the whole family was put on ice.

Luckily, the situation improved, and the hope of a more traditional holiday season re-emerged. It was time to make an impact.

For its fifth holiday tale, IGA wanted to highlight family traditions with love and humor.

In December 2022, IGA released a tale in two parts: “The Meatloaf”. The first film tells the story of a family and their beloved Aunt Lulu, who brings a meatloaf every year that everybody… hates. Out of love for Lulu, the family devises clever ways to distract her and pass the meatloaf off to the family dog. Then one year, the tradition ends. In memory of Lulu, the family recreates her dreaded meatloaf and eats the whole thing.

The sequel, released on Christmas, shows the family receiving a special delivery: a photo album and a letter from Lulu. As the family goes through the album, we hear Lulu revealing she always knew the truth about her meatloaf. Out of love for them and to continue to see their precious reactions, she played a trick on them all these years. Turning bad meatloaf into the most cherished holiday tradition.

Lulu’s two-part story has clearly struck a chord, becoming the most viewed and appreciated ad in the brand's history. The film cumulated over 4.6 million completed views and generated an impressive 5911% increase in social media interactions, compared to previous stories.