Why? Well, we believe it’s important to show up as you are—and to give the world that gift. Why should you marketing feel weird, and cringe-y? The answer is: it shouldn’t. You’re doing good work that matters. We want to help you make an impact.
A proud Certified B Corp, Forge & Spark connects good businesses with their audiences through authentic, intelligent communication and content—all while living the highest social and environmental standards ourselves, and helping our own amazing people to flourish and grow.
We put our values into practice. These values guide us in choosing each project, and in delivering consistently premium work. We believe that if we take good care of each other, we’ll all be better off.
We revere, celebrate, and deliver unique, premium-quality work.
We treat our team members, clients, audiences and partners with care, respect for their rights and needs, and empathy.
We apply our wits, will, and experience to deliver the best and smartest solution for our team, clients, and partners.
We join our clients to become a team, believing that together we are much more than the sum of our parts.
We represent authenticity, respect of others' time, talents, and perspectives, give credit where it's due, and learn openly from our mistakes.
You’re unique, and we celebrate that! We offer a few options for working together. What works best?
When you’re ready to get results, but not sure how to get them, we help. We work with you and your team to audit and refine what you’re doing, or we can start from scratch.
You get a plan or roadmap to lay out your goals, audiences, content and/or operations — plus the confidence that you’re doing content the right way for you.
When you’re a fit, you know it. Right?
We get to know the ins and outs of your business, brand, team, and content in Discovery and Strategic Planning. Then we get extra close when we set up your content operations and deliver your first batches of content.
We become family when we start to surprise and delight each other with content that truly sparks joy—and pride for us all.
Once you create the strategy, you — along with your teams and stakeholders — have to figure out the right way to work the strategy.
Whether you need a few consulting sessions where your team can ask questions or want to create the perfect IG Story template, we can help. We also offer a suite of content marketing courses that you or your team can take online any old time at all.
Our Team
With 20+ years experience in digital publishing, comms, and marketing for B2B, B2C and agencies, Shannon knows that it’s all about genuine connection. Stories, quality content, and sometimes whisky, helps.
Inspired by: Small acts of courage. Honesty. Compassion.
Lisa’s speciality is in crafting compelling and high-conversion content, whether for your website, blog, landing pages or your marketing and sales collateral. Her magic is firm questions, and transforming whatever you say into the right content.
Dreams of: Content that inspires positive change.
An Emily Carr University Communication Design graduate, Lara combines her talent for aesthetics with a deeply practical tech savvy. A true creative, Lara is a world traveller, musician, and pure delight.
Believes in: Glue guns and glitter.
From her 15+ years working both agency and client side in a multitude of roles, Colby has a knack for implementing process, organizing systems and bringing order to disorder. She plays bad cop to wrangle projects, but has a warm and beautiful heart.
Inspired by: Brainstorming new ideas to existing problems
Kirsten is an editor, writer and content project manager who is passionate about helping clients bring their stories to life across platforms. With a background in magazine editorial, she asks the right questions, and expertly gets to the heart of your story.
Inspired by: Finding the right words to connect with any audience.
Having joined us through the UBC Sauder School of Business Co-op program, Mewmew has become an indispensable part of our research, reporting, and digital marketing operation. An impeccable researcher, Mewmew supports our team and clients with research, reporting and analysis, and content production.
Wakes up to: Coffee and good food.
A storyteller at heart, Chelle has experience both brand-side and client-side developing robust strategies for digital comms, social media, influencers, email, editorial, and paid media.
Passionate about: Inventive beauty
With her master’s degree in communications and 7+ years of experience under her belt, Carli combines her education, experience, and endless ideas to help optimize your brand’s digital marketing. She’s currently working with us from beautiful Portugal.
Dreams of: Exploring faraway places.
Ren is a senior-level designer with a background in magazine and editorial design. She has a passion for all things Adobe and learning new skills. She is THE person we turn to for restaurant recommendations.
Dreams of: Exploring the world.
Sara is a graphic designer with a penchant for entrepreneurship (and tasty cocktails). She specializes in digital design and is obsessed with all things social media.
Dreams of: Seaside passionfruit mezcalitas with a bowl of fresh guac.
Passionate about social media strategy and execution, Bronwyn has worked with the Vancouver Aquarium and alive Magazine, and assisted international businesses to find growth opportunities in the Canadian market.
Believes in: Always smiling, compassion, and getting outdoors.
When not sailing BC’s coastal waters on her aptly named sailboat Zig-Zag, Kelsey is a Project Manager with 10+ years of PM experience across the digital marketing landscape. She is a champion of process and believes most problems can be solved with the right Excel spreadsheet.
Dreams of: Days spent at sea, as far away from cell reception as possible.
As an experienced Project Coordinator, Saranne brings many talents to the team. With a passion for fostering company culture, she is currently the B Keeper at Forge & Spark – ensuring that we stay on track for our B Corp goals.
Wakes up to: Snuggles with her family in their giant family bed.
With a master’s degree in Digital Marketing, Alisha excels in boosting organic reach through conversion-focused SEO and social media. She enjoys using her creativity to bring new ideas to life from the ground up. A recent fascination of hers is crafting fragrant wax tablets/sachets, adding a touch of aroma and beauty to everyday life.
Dreams of: Being in Europe, sitting in a cute cafe with a warm cup of coffee and a croissant
Esther supports F&S from Mombasa, Kenya, providing our clients with top-notch research, project coordination, copywriting, and social media support. She has won our internal ‘Kindest Spark’ award for infinite years running.
Passionate about: Digital literacy and helping others learn.
With 25+ years experience in content strategy and marketing for brands and agencies, Shannon knows that it’s all about genuine connection. Shannon founded Forge & Spark in 2012 to unite her passions for storytelling and social impact, seeing the agency become a Certified B Corp in 2022, and a Women Business Enterprise (WBE) in 2023. She has served as a strategist and storyteller for brands including L’Arche International, Amy’s Organics, Electronic Arts, Genus Capital, Science World, London Drugs, and CPA Canada. Shannon teaches and speaks on purpose-driven content strategy and messaging, and is the author of Content With Purpose: Messaging and Marketing With Impact, publishing in 2024.
Electronic Arts | Science World | L’Arche International
Genus Capital Management (B Corp) | Spatial Research & Design | Reid’s Automotive Recycling (B Corp) | Fisher Investments | Canada Wide Media / BCBusiness / BCLiving / GardenWise | BCAA | The Giustra Foundation | London Drugs | CPA Canada | Minerva BC (Non Profit) | Canterbury Coffee | ONE Coffee | Christie Stoll Fitness | B2Gold | Calibre Mining | Grupo Bimbo
Magazines Canada / Magazines BC | Geist Magazine | Rulesware | Active Patch Technologies | Kristian Domingo Foundation | fit52 | Hanx101 | Vancity | YMCA of Greater Vancouver | Hospital Show | Help Texts (formerly Grief Coach) | BC Alliance for Arts | VancouverMom.ca | CharliAI | Within People | Galiano Conservatory | TrendTex | The Cut | Omorfia Medical Clinic | Avante POP Displays | E.B. Horsman & Son | Albrite | Alinker | Amy’s Kitchen / Amy’s Organics (B Corp) | University of the Fraser Valley | Imme & Cycurid | ReWeaving Wealth / Renewal Partners | JOEY Restaurants | ECHO Storytelling
Lisa is the Editorial and Story Director for Forge & Spark, and oversees content creation and editorial quality for clients in a wide range of sectors, ensuring that strategy translates to implementation and results. A former instructor of web writing and SEO for Simon Fraser University and Capilano University, she has worked as a content strategist, writer and editor for 20+ years. She has developed content and strategy for a range of clients, including London Drugs, Vancity and the University of the Fraser Valley.
London Drugs | Canada Wide Media | SFU | UBC | Capilano University | Vancity | BCAA | BC SPCA | Central 1 Credit Union | Magazines Canada | Mags BC | Editors Association of Canada | Science World | PARC Retirement Living | Genus Capital Management | University of the Fraser Valley
Editorial direction, content strategy, multimedia storytelling, writing/editing, content ideation and planning, SEO
Bachelor of Applied Science in Communications
Lisa’s background is in magazine publishing, and she has been lucky to work on many cool magazine projects throughout her career, including launching a bilingual magazine for youth that was distributed to every college and university in Canada, as well as a 2010 Vancouver Olympics Games digital publication, which subsequently became a popular BC lifestyle magazine.
Lara is Forge & Spark’s Creative Director, and is an Webby award-winning visual storyteller, designer/developer and strategist who has worked with clients like CBC, Vancouver 2010 Olympics, Canada Wide Media, and Douglas Coupland. Lara is a graduate of Emily Carr University in communication design and has worked as a designer, developer, and creative director on big and small teams for the last 20 years. She has worked with nonprofits and environmental organizations such as Innovation Africa, The environmental youth alliance and the Canadian Labour congress; with artists like Douglas Coupland; journalists like Neil Macdonald from CBC News; and with broadcast TV like the Down2Earth Series on APTN and Green Heroes on TVO. She ensures that our clients work tells a consistently compelling story online, creating visual narratives and optimal user experiences across platforms and channels.
Douglas Coupland | Project Inside Out | CBC | Down2Earth TV Series (APTN) | Green Heroes Mini Series (TVO) | Vancouver Olympics | Orato | Innovation Africa | Canadian Labour Congress | Environmental Youth Alliance
Visual storytelling, design/developer, content strategy, creative director, user experience
Communication Design from Emily Carr
A project Lara is most proud of is building two solar powered wells in Tanzania where she worked over the course of five years. The wells are still pumping water today.
Colby Spencer is the Director of Operations at Forge & Spark and brings 20+ years of experience in marketing, advertising, digital and creative production agencies, including four years at one of the largest advertising agencies in Canada. She also has overseas experience in London, UK and Melbourne, Australia. She’s worked across a vast client base at both agency and client-side, from start-ups to CPG and blue chip brands from telecom to food service. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Communications and a Liberal Arts Certificate from Simon Fraser University, as well as a Marketing Management diploma from BCIT. Colby leads all things process at F&S, championing agency best practice and overseeing the Project Management team along the way! She plays bad cop to wrangle projects, but has a warm and beautiful heart.
McDonald’s | Daiya | LikeMeat
Harmless Harvest | POM | Wonderful Pistachios | South by Southwest (SXSW) | Concord Pacific | BOSA Properties | Vega | Hardbite Chips | VRX Studios | FortisBC | Miyoko’s Creamery | The Little Potato Company | Revered Cinema | TELUS | Cisco
Director of operations, senior project management, client management, creative resourcing, business development and growth,
Bachelor’s Degree in Communications and Liberal Arts Certificate (SFU)
Marketing Management Diploma (BCIT)
Colby is a podcaster! She’s both the creator and host of Vantropolis, a podcast of conversations with the various folks working in Vancouver BC’s booming film and television industry.
