Brian McKague grew up the son of Charles “Sandy” McKague who owned the family business Sanford Outdoor Advertising in Barrie, Ontario Canada. Back in the 1980’s, Brian’s first job was to count the cars that passed his father’s bus shelters in his lawn chair listening to his tape cassettes on his Walkman (a technological advancement at the time!) At the same time, his father Sandy was hand painting panels for all the billboards. Of course, Brian’s next job was to join the installation team and build the signs. Sanford grew and operated over 300 Highway Superboards, Transit Shelters, and Bus Benches in Central Ontario and became the largest independent outdoor advertising company in Ontario. His father passed away in 1990.
In 2019, Brian, and his brother Mike McKague, founded Sanford Outdoor that is one of the largest independent digital billboard companies in Ontario Canada. Built on the same family values that their father Sandy built Sanford Outdoor Advertising. In 2024, Brian founded Activate Outdoor that is the largest digital vending machine and billboard companies in North America. He prides himself in carrying his father’s legacy in the Outdoor Advertising Industry.