smart Canada goes topless at Pride Toronto

For the fourth consecutive year, smart Canada is thrilled to be celebrating alongside Pride Toronto as its Official Automotive Partner. Pride Toronto is one of the premier arts and cultural festivals in Canada, and one of the largest Pride celebrations in the world with an estimated attendance of more than 1.2 million. 2016 marks Canada’s first-ever Pride Month, a full month of festivities and programming that was launched on June 1 with the raising of the Rainbow flag at Toronto’s City Hall. smart Canada will also be showing its rainbow colours over the weekend of July 1 to 3, when Pride Month will culminate with a three-day street festival and a high-profile annual parade.

This year, the all-new next generation 2016 smart fortwo cabriolet will be making waves with a handsome new look that encourages festival-goers to be "open FOR anything." The smart fortwo cabriolet is actually three cars in one - a striking urban icon that embraces many identities. At the touch of a button the new smart fortwo cabriolet is transformed from a closed two-seater into a car with a large sliding canvas sunroof, then into a fully-fledged top-down cabriolet. The fresh-air driving experience can be adapted to all weather and any mood, from quietly confident to full-on fabulous. smart has always driven ahead of the status quo with a mandate to promote change in thought and action – a natural fit with Pride Toronto’s all-out enthusiasm and joie de vivre.

On Sunday, July 3, under the "open FOR anything" rallying cry, smart Canada will proudly march alongside the 2016 smart fortwo cabriolet in the annual Pride parade. The vehicle will also be on display that weekend at smart’s festival headquarters, located on Church Street between Maitland and Alexander, from Friday, July 1 to Sunday, July 3. Visitors will be offered "eye blacks"-style tattoos featuring various Pride-centric sayings, and will be encouraged to share photos from the smart booth with friends and family across a range of social media platforms. For every photo shared using the hashtag #openFORanything, smart Canada will donate $1 toward supporting Pride Toronto. Those who share photos will also be entered into a contest for a chance to win prizes throughout the weekend.

"smart Canada is incredibly proud to be once again supporting Pride Toronto in 2016. The event is driven by passion: to push boundaries, explore identities, and assert priorities, all while having a lot of fun," said Brian D. Fulton, President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Canada. "This is a truly global initiative, with visitors coming to Toronto from all over the world, allowing smart to share its scope of vision as a global leader in urban mobility. smart Canada is very excited to be involved in an event that embodies the enduring spirit that pervades this unique brand."

About smart Canada
smart Canada is responsible for the sales, marketing and service for the smart brand in Canada. Produced in one of the most modern and environmentally friendly plants in the world in Hambach, France, the smart fortwo is a safe, comfortable and extremely versatile vehicle. Since the launch of the smart fortwo in Canada in the fall of 2004, smart Canada's nationwide network of 57 dealers across the country have sold more than 27,000 smart fortwo vehicles.
Further information about the smart fortwo can be found online at www.media.mercedes-benz.ca, www.smart.com, facebook.com/smartCanada and twitter.com/smartCanada.

For more information, please contact:

JoAnne Caza 416-847-7550 joanne.caza@mercedes-benz.ca
Nathalie Gravel 416-847-7509 nathalie.gravel@mercedes-benz.ca