Mediaboss Marketing

Observers PR Power 50. Stephanie Novak for Observer

Welcome to the seventh edition of Observers annual PR Power 50. Its been a rollercoaster year for the industry, in the best possible way. Mergers and partnerships keep reshaping the business. Fearlessly creative campaigns are pushing brands out of their comfort zones and into the cultural consciousness. Agencies keep behaving more like news services, creating content that gets a life beyond marketing. PR firmsthough few still call themselves thathave become critical partners as brands navigate a world where social media seems to move faster than real-time.

Since we have room for just 50 firms on the Power List, youll see many more worthy agencies on this years Honor Roll that includes cannabis, tech, finance, real estate, visual arts, performing arts, food and spirits, travel and hospitality and architecture and design.Its our way of acknowledging great work across categories.

Youll also meet 2019s Rising Stars, 15 young PR pros to watch (but please, not poach). And so. drum roll

Peter Finn. Courtesy Finn Partners

1. Finn Partners Last Years List: 3Leadership: Peter Finn, founding managing partner

More, more, more, went the old disco tune. Peter Finn and his global crew should crank it up and have a twirl. The eight-year-old firm just had its best year, with stratospheric growth in financial services (100%), health (40%) and digital (60%). Revenues up to $115 million. Though NYCs the mothership, nonstop acquisitionsin Hong Kong, London, Shanghai, Boston and NYCadded boots on the ground. The work has followed, with category-dominating campaigns in travel (British Airways, Crystal Cruises, Turkey, KLM), arts/culture (Netflix, the Guggenheim, Qatar Museum, Museum of Natural History, the Getty), tech (Logitech, 2KGames, Brother, TiVo), health (GSK, St. Judes Childrens Research Hospital, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan) and God knows what else. For firing on all cylinders, across categories, wherever it plants a flag, Finn Partners is our agency of the year.

Valerie Berlin and Jonathan Rosen. Courtesy BerlinRosen

2. Berlin RosenLast Years List: 1Leadership: Valerie Berlin and Jonathan Rosen, principals and co-founders

A few firms on this list feel unstoppable. Berlin Rosens one of them. Last years #1 agency grew every possible way in 2019, from headcount (182, up from 144 last year) and revenue to space (it now occupies 24,500-square-feet in NYC) and service offerings. Same with clientsit ruled in politics, real estate, arts, and tech. Wed be here all day if we called out this years greatest hitsthe firms got 450+ clientsso heres a slice: the high-profile national bus tour for gender-equity org Supermajority; Disneys new Hudson Square campus; GPI Companies and Virgin Hyperloop, out of Berlin Rosens burgeoning LA office; Bloomberg Media, Samsung and Virginia Tech; the Public Theater and Brooklyn Public Library. The scaling back of Googles massive Sidewalk Labs project in Toronto was a rare retreat for the firm. Bonus: Berlin Rosen launched a full-service advertising operation in 2019. Trad agencies, time to get nervous.

Alison Brod. SaraJaye Weiss

3. Alison Brod Marketing + CommunicationsLast Years List: 36Leadership: Alison Brod, founder and CEO; Jodi Hassan, partner

Nothing captured 2019s weird zeitgeist like the mania around Popeyes chicken sandwich. Behind it was Alison Brod, whose indefatigable crew worked with Popeyes terrifyingly adept social media team to generate more than 10 billionwith a B!media impressions. An October sneak-peek tasting lured scores of media types, including Gayle King, to Brod HQ. And this months insane Popeyes Christmas sweater was their brainchild, too. Somehow, Brod also found time for game-changing campaigns like Krafts Kraft Now, Pay Later, Philadelphia Cream Cheeses Bagelgate and Burger Kings Whopper Detourthe latter snared four 2019 Cannes Lions for Brod. Along the way, the agency won clients like Bed Bath & Beyond, Hush Puppies and Volvic water; expanded its long-standing Walmart relationship; and launched a smokin cannabis division, with CBD clients like Acreage, WLDKAT and Rodial.

Amanda Lundberg, Allan Mayer and Leslee Dart. Courtesy 42 West

4. 42 WestLast Years List: 13Leadership: Leslee Dart, Amanda Lundberg, Allan Mayer, co-CEOs

Anyone who bet against this entertainment-marketing powerhouse after 2018s well-publicized defections now has lighter pockets. In a banner year, 42West repped 60+ movies; they included the years two most inescapable films, Martin Scorseses The Irishman and Fred Rogers pic A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood. Of 120 possible nominations at the 2019 Oscars, 42West handled client campaigns for 47. 42West was hired to tout Schitts Creek; Emmy noms followed, possibly not by coincidence. Docu clients included ubiquitous Wheres My Roy Cohn? and David Crosbys bio Remember My Name. The Hollywood Commission on Eliminating Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality, led by Anita Hill, tapped 42West for its PR, a huge assignment. Big-deal hires this year included Lionsgates Jodie Magid Oriol. Bonus: The idea for Billy Porter to sport a Christian Siriano gowna 2019 Oscars viral momentcame from 42West, which reps the designer.

Jeremy Fielding. Courtesy Kekst CNC

5. Kekst CNCLast Years List: n/aLeadership: Jeremy Fielding, co-CEO, partner

Whatever you think about Saudi Arabias post-Jamal Khashoggi whitewashing, the assignment to handle Saudi Aramcos IPOthe largest in historywas one of the decades plum gigs. As PR Week reported in July, the job went to Kekst CNC. It was just one of many cherries atop a very sweet year for the firm. On the client side, Kekst CNC landed LVMH (to announce its Tiffanys bid, the biggest-ever deal in luxury), Merck (for its acquisition of Versum) and Celgenes announced acquisition by Bristol-Myers Squibb for $74 billionthe largest pharma deal ever. On the personnel side, the firm snagged Robbie Gibb, onetime director of communications for former UK Prime Minister Theresa May, and Chris Giglio, the crisis wizard who built HL Groups burgeoning corporate practice. Bonus: As we put this section to bed, the Financial Times reported that post-earthquake WeWork has sought out Kekst CNCs counsel.

Jefrey Pollock and Jon Silvan. Danny Ghitis

6. Global Strategy GroupLast Years List: 9Leadership: Jon Silvan, CEO; Jefrey Pollock, founding partner and president

When GSG handles a hearts-and-minds campaign, its clients usually prevail. Locally, GSG messaged ConEds stories in a less villain-like fashion; supported the MTA on comms around the East Side subway extension; and, in possibly the most thankless job in PR, worked with the Port Authority on amplifying messages around the new LGA. Nationally, GSG brought it for clients like H&R Block, LEGO, Comcast NBCUniversal and Subaru. The firm ruled on political work, one of its bread-and-butter practice areas, with high-profile Democratic victories including Gov. J.B. Pritzker in Illinois and Sen. Jacky Rosen of Nevada. And on the personnel side, new recruits include Victoria (Vicky) Reing, former director of policy and deputy general counsel for the Bronx Borough President, and former CBS News and NY1 reporter John Schiumo.

Donna Imperato. Courtesy Burson and Cohn & Wolfe

7. BCWLast Years List: n/aLeadership: Donna Imperato, CEO

From the lumpy 2018 merger of Burson and Cohn & Wolfe, two firms with as much edge as a bowling ball, BCW has somehow managed to create a fast, fresh-thinking creative shop that moves like an indieone whose clients include FedEx, ExxonMobil, Novartis, Coca-Cola, Oracle, Accenture and Microsoft, that is. Though BCWs now the worlds third-largest PR agency, NYC is its engine. The agencys been on a tear for talent, snapping up players like former Obama and Clinton campaign pro Sam Myers, public-policy veteran Licy do Canto and longtime Edelman exec Ben Boyd. Bonus: A smash-hit campaign this year promoted Tengathe Japanese maker of Cup, Egg, and Flip male sex toyswith genius work around reclaiming masturbation.

Shawn Sachs, Heather Lylis, Ken Sunshine and Keleigh Thomas Morgan. Courtesy Sunshine Sachs

8. Sunshine SachsLast Years List: 12Leadership: Ken Sunshine, Shawn Sachs, Heather Lylis, Keleigh Thomas Morgan, partners

Names in pop culture, advocacy, tech and entertainment get bigger every year in the Sunshine Sachs stable. New in 2019: Alicia Keys, Demi Lovato, Ryan Seacrest, Billboard, Spotify, Google, Mercedes, Postmates, Timberland; tons of film, TV and streaming properties; and the firms longtime clients arent exactly chopped liver. They include the Recording Academy, Hollywood Foreign Press Association, ESPN Films, MTV Movie Awards, MTVs VMAs, CMT Awards, iHeartMedia, Leonardo DiCaprio, Tyler Perry, Jane Fonda, Jennifer Lopez, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Justin Timberlake and Natalie Portman. And its vital social-good practice handled major campaigns for the NAACP, Press Freedom Coalition and LatinX.

Meghan McGinnis and Michael Tavani. Cou

9. M18Last Years List: 10Leadership: Meghan McGinnis and Michael Tavani, co-founders; Joey Arak, Anna LaPorte, Partners

Major? Massive? Mega? Whatever the letter stands for, M18 is having a killer year, repping bigger, costlier and more global projectsthink footprints in Paris, Rome, Mexico, even Namibia. Its 150+ clients in 40+ cities around the world include plum projects like the Bill Gates-backed Water Street Tampa development, Londons gargantuan Chelsea Barracks project and NYCs own Central Park Tower, the worlds tallest residential building. You name the developer, and theyve partnered with M18 on somethingExtell, Related, Silverstein, JDS, Macklowe, Lefrak, Solow and RFR among them. And we havent even mentioned the firms booming hospitality business, including cooler-than-thou brands like Freehand, The Line and The Nomad.

Cindi Berger, Shirley Owens, Mark Owens, and Alan Nierob. Courtesy Rogers & Cowan/PMK

10. Rogers & Cowan/PMKLast Years List: 5Leadership: Cindi Berger, chairman; Mark Owens, CEO; Alan Nierob, chairman, entertainment division; Shirley Owens, president, brands division

Entertainment marketing behemoth PMK*BNC crowned 2019 by merging with legendary LA operators Rogers & Cowan. A name change is coming; in the meantime, the combined firm now reps more than 500 starsin front of the cameras and behind themalong with 30 huge brands like Snap Inc., McDonalds, Airbnb, MasterClass and Verizon. The firm managed media around Avengers: Endgamethe highest-grossing movie everaligned MasterCard with the Jonas Brothers 2019 tour and, in a genius stroke, enlisted 98-year-old style icon Iris Apfel as the face of Magnum ice cream. In the debit column: Several top PMK*BNC execs bolted this year, including EVP/music-department head Kristen Foster, superpublicist Joy Fehily, and talent-PR maven Nicole Perez-Krueger, who launched her own firm.

Becca Parrish. Courtesy Becca

11. BeccaLast Years List: 47Leadership: Becca Parrish, founder/CEO; Helen Medvedovsky, Lauren Fonda, managing partner

ric Ripert. Tom (Thomas Patrick) Colicchio. Daniel Humm. Gabriela Cmara. Jean-Georges Vongerichten. Michael D. Symon. Enrique Olvera. Thats not our dining Power List; its a small part of Becca Parrishs client roster, and the reason her creative marketing agencydont say PR!has become the most trusted partner for the tastiest names in food. The firms hospitality roster grew this year, its experiential marketing practice exploded, and its LA presence mushroomed. Large-scale projects like the reimagined Rockefeller Center and Empire Stores tapped Parrishs team for their food/beverage components. In an era of too-muchness, you have to keep messages clear and consistent, Parrish says. Thats why longtime clients like Ralph Lauren, Brooklyn Brewery, Wagamama and Odeon wont go anywhere else.

Sean Cassidy. Courtesy DKC

12. DKCLast Years List: 6Leadership: Sean Cassidy, president

Few agencies bridge hardcore business, pop-culture cool and tech savvy like DKC, and the agencys position as a potent PR partner was cemented even further in 2019. What other agency can claim Nick Cannon, Lady Gagas Born This Way Foundation and Spotify on one hand, and a stadium full of tech, esports, cannabis, health-tech and corporate clients on the other? Among its 2019 client wins: Chase Center/Golden State Warriors; Katy Perry-backed Bragg Live Food Products; Imagine Entertainment; NetSuite; St. Judes Childrens Research Hospital; and even the 50th anniversary of Sesame Street. Bonus: If you think about it, the firms new Maximizing Return on News positioning beautifully bridges the past, present and future of PR.

Joele Frank and Matthew Sherman. Courtesy Joele Frank

13. Joele FrankLast Years List: 39Leadership: Joele Frank, managing partner; Matthew Sherman, president

Were #1! Were #1! Forgive Joele Franks team if they wave pom-poms up Third Avenue. Its the #1 firm in M&A deals, according to Corporate Control Alert; the #1 global agency for M&As in terms of deal value, per Mergermarket; and #1 in league tables among PR firms in a number of deals every year since 2013, Corporate Control Alert reports. Whats behind those rankings? Think Raytheons pending $86 billion merger with United Technologies; Bristol-Myers Squibbs pending $74 billion acquisition of Celgene; and even teensy deals like Salesforces $16 billion acquisition of Tableau. A busy year with shareholder-activism defense bringing Papa Johns, Pernod Ricard, Gannett, Brookdale, L Brands and others into the fold. And a busy restructuring/bankruptcy practice includedsobBarneys New York.

Sarah Rothman, Amanda Silverman, Meredith OSullivan Wasson, Dvora Englefield and Christine Su. Courtesy Lede

14. The Lede CompanyLast Years List: 2Sarah Rothman, Amanda Silverman, Meredith OSullivan Wasson, Christine Su, co-founders and co-CEOs, Dvora Englefield, partner, music division

Its barely cooled off since the Lede Companys fireworks-generating debut last year (thats not just us talking; Marie Claire called Lede Company Hollywoods hottest PR firm in an October profile). Its all about boldface names, so lets just cut to new clients like Miley Cyrus, Russell Westbrook, Saquon Barkley, Jada Pinkett Smith/Will Smiths media company Westbrook Inc., Keds, Foot Locker, K-Swiss, Moose Knuckle, 88Rising, Ryan Tedder/Onerepublic, podcast powerhouse Luminary Media and more. All of its inaugural clientsLady Gaga, Pharrell, the Skimm, someone called Rihannahave stuck with the firm, along with original Lede-rs like Reese Witherspoon, Shawn Mendes, Jennifer Garner and Rami Malek. The firms already got 51 employees and counting.

Matt Polk. Courtesy Polk & Co.

15. Polk & Co.Last Years List: 16Leadership: Matt Polk, founder and president

Matt Polks firm is having a boffo year, as the trades would say. In 2019, Polk & Co. raised the curtain on Tina: The Tina Turner Musical, possibly the most-covered show of 2019; the firm also handled the ubiquitous media moment that was Judy, the Renee Zellweger-starring biopic. On Broadway, Polk also PRd the highly anticipated NY debut of gay epic The Inheritance; Arthur Millers All My Sons, starring Annette Bening; The Rose Tattoo, with Marisa Tomei; and Hannah Gadsbys long-awaited Douglas. Add Beetlejuice, Network and Pretty Woman: The Musical to the mix, and youve got an entertainment-PR powerhouse in the making.

Florence Quinn. Courtesy of Quinn

16. QuinnLast Years List: 22Leadership: Florence Quinn, founder and president

Florence Quinns acclaimed creative shop ended a gangbusters 2019 with a brag-worthy win: Sensei, the luxe-longevity clinic from gazillionaire Larry Ellison and celeb doc Dr. David Agus (its on Lanai, the Hawaiian island Ellison happens to own). Listing Quinns new clients would take hours, so heres a snapshot: Study Hotels; Steve Case-owned Exclusive Resorts; Kendall-Jackson Wines, VistaJet, Ripco Real Estate, XOJet, Hotel Le Majestic in Cannes, Le Naoura in Marrakech, Bloom on Forty Fifth condos and Hvar, CroatiaConde Nasts pick for #1 island in Europe this year. Media placements still matter here, but inventive executions really shine; a West Wing-themed promo for DC client the Jefferson Hotel went bonkers, and a Quinn-created craze of cow-cuddling in the Finger Lakes landed on the morning shows. Bonus: Quinns LA office doubled in size this year, and revenue from social media engagements quadrupled.

Marc Johnson. Courtesy APCO

17. APCOLast Years List: 4Leadership: Margery Kraus, founder and executive chairman; Kelly Williamson, president, North America; Marc Johnson, managing director, New York, and global digital practice lead

Lean, mean fighting machine isnt the phrase that comes to mind to describe APCO, with its discreet corporate clients and staid DC roots. But thats exactly where scary-smart managing director Marc Johnson has taken the firm, slimming down headcount while taking on even more daunting engagements. So while APCOs shepherding Chinese smartphone maker OnePlus to market stateside (in a complex geopolitical environment, Johnson says understatedly), its also conducting complex social listening for McDonalds and future-proofing giants like Estee Lauder. Longtime clients, like Ikea and Bloomberg Philanthropies, prove that APCOs long-game approach can produce big dividends.

Lois Najarian ONeill and Charlie Dougiello. Courtesy The Door

18. The DoorLast Years List: 11Leadership: Lois Najarian ONeill, co-founder and president; Charlie Dougiello, co-founder and CEO

Coming to a screen near you: The Inn at Little Washington, a documentary produced by the Door co-founder Charlie Dougiello. Its just one way this endlessly creative firm keeps expanding the boundaries of PR; a chef client got an animated TV special (created with sister firm 42West), meat purveyor Pat LaFrieda got a podcast and longtime client Rachael Ray got a streaming-recipe channel. The Doors not doing so bad on the business side, either, with covet-worthy clients like the Empire State Building, Venmo, Late July snacks and the Lower East Side and Meatpacking District as destinations. Revenue doubled this year, the teams up to 50 and the firm can barely keep up with incoming social media assignments (its trying, though; that division doubled to six people this year).

Frank and John Marino. Courtesy Marino

19. MarinoLast Years List: n/aLeadership: Frank Marino, CEO; John F. Marino, president

Normally, we wouldnt mention a PR firms rebrand. But Marinos sharp lookall Helvetica Boldreflects renewed clarity at this 26-year-old firm. From a regional player, Marinos mushroomed into a national force with even heavier-weight clients. Under president John Marino, son of founder/CEO Frank Marino, the agencys grabbed category-leading CBD brand Curaleaf, Knotel, National Grid and co-living brand Quarters. New York runs in the firms veins, so it still reps major local stories like JFK Terminal 4, ConEd, Chelsea Market, NYU and Industry City. And it still makes room for lifestyle/consumer brands, like Bono olive oil and Ros All Day wine. Bonus: New hires here include ex-Thrillist and Time Out New York honcho Andrew Zimmer and, boo-hoo, former Commercial Observer editor Lauren Schram.

Gail Heimann. Courtesy of Weber Shandwick

20. Weber ShandwickLast Years List: 14Leadership: Gail Heimann, president and CEO

Weber Shandwick now operates in rarefied air where PR, marketing and management consulting merge. Were talking big ideas for big clients with big results; new business in 2019 included Buick, Michelin, Kelloggs and GMC, with projects from megabrands like IBM, Sanofi, ABInBev and Mars. Though it should be a lumbering giant, the firms surprisingly nimble. Examples: Producing the Sundance-premiered documentary Railroad Ties for client Ancestry; opening a Victory Fridge store in Cleveland for Bud Light; and giving free Tums when Lebron left Cleveland. Even more impressive, digital-first engagements now account for 40% of the firms revenue. Bonus: An album of nature sounds produced for client the State of Michigan went to #9 on Billboards New Age album chart.

Evan Strome and Lisa Dallos. Courtesy of High10 Media

21. High10 Media (high10media.com)Last Years List: 25Lisa Dallos, founder and CEO; Evan Strome, president

Even if High10 didnt snag such notable new business this year, its foundation would be pretty potentNBCUniversal Telemundo, The Hollywood Reporter, A+E Networks, The Hill, and Trusted Media Brands have all been longtime clients. But Lisa Dallos decade-old firm bagged big-time brands like Yahoo! News, HuffPost, and NatGeo WILD in 2019, along with projects for the Jeffrey Katzenberg/Meg Whitman-driven QUIBI platform and Mission Resolve, which helps Hurricane Dorian victims. Were burying the lede, though; with all the activity, High10s standout assignments might have been The Education of Brett Kavanaugh Robin Pogrebin and Kate Kellys explosive book and Edwards Pottinger, the law firm that reps some of Jeffrey Epsteins victims.

Lynn Tesoro. Courtesy HL Group

22. HL GroupLast Years List: 8Leadership: Lynn Tesoro, founding partner and CEO

From its PR roots, HL Group continues to blossom into a broad-based creative communications firm with a never-boring client list. This year, the firm won business from The Private Suite at LAX, which it turned into a bona fide phenomenon; shirtmaker Untuckit; Shiseido; Klarna, the Swedish online-layaway pioneer; and giant K&N, which makes, um, air filters. They join a rarefied roster of longtime clients like Four Seasons, Tanger Outlets, Eataly, Charlotte Tilbury, David Yurman and Bergdorf Goodman. Beautys grown more than 20%; travels up 25%; digital and influencer work, which was already strong, more than doubled. The firm faced a setback in November, though, when Chris Giglio, president of its HL Strategic Solutions unit, bolted for Kekst CNC (see #5).

NEW YORK CITY, NY MARCH 13: Steven Stein and Howard Rubenstein attend LITERACY PARTNERS Launches An Evening of Readings May Gala Kickoff Reception at Michaels on March 13, 2007 in New York City. (Photo by PATRICK MCMULLAN/Patrick McMullan via Getty Images) Patrick McMullan/Getty Images

23. RubensteinLast Years List: 20Leadership: Howard J. Rubenstein, chairman; Steven Rubenstein, president

Rubensteins synonymous with PR in this town, and 2019 proved another banner year for the 65-year-old firm. Its forever clients include Noo Yawk institutions like the Yankees, News Corp., MoMA, Tishman Speyer, The High Line, Rockefeller Center and Jerry Seinfeld. This year, newbies in the Rubenstein stable include the Hospital for Special Surgery; Tiffany & Co.; Gagosian Gallery; and the sensational illusionist show Derren Brown: Secret. Rubenstein also handled Time magazines Time 100 event, the opening of the Statue of Liberty Museum and the Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree Lighting. Key hires this year included Jessie Lyons, director of communications for the office of president, and onetime deputy chief of staff for Senator Jeanne Shaheen, and Alexandra Merceron, a PhD candidate at Columbia whose title is, ahem, director of communications theory. Laugh, but does your firm have one?

Richard Edelman. Courtesy Richard Edelman

24. EdelmanLast Years List: 19Leadership: Richard Edelman, president and CEO

As we were closing this section, The Holmes Report wrote that longtime client Cathay Pacific Airways handed Edelman a new crisis assignment. At the same time, we learned about Edelmans chicken-scented fire logs (for KFC), pledge for paternity leave (for Dove Men+Care) and truth campaign around MSG (monosodium glutamate, not Madison Square Garden). The point: the worlds largest independent communications firm is as versatile, formidable and potent as ever. If thats not enough, Edelmans also trying to reinvent the industry itself; it became Cisions exclusive agency partner for a whole mess of data and analytics that were still trying to understand, and an alliance with Harvard Business School will help clients understand how behavior changes can enhance brand success.

Steve Martin. Courtesy Nasty Little Man

25. Nasty Little ManLast Years List: 37Leadership: Steve Martin, founder/owner

Lets put together a fantasy playlist of Steve Martins clients at Nasty Little Man. Side A: Paul McCartney, Metallica, Foo Fighters, Beck, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire. Side B: Thom Yorke, St. Vincent, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Iggy Pop and LCD Soundsystem. Bonus tracks: Rammstein, Queens of the Stone Age, Broken Bells, Spiritualized and Supergrass. Beyond promoting his rosters sold-out tours and #1 releases, Martin is now trusted enough to run McCartneys blog and publicize Sir Pauls kiddie book Hey Grandude!, which became #1 in its own category.

Sara Fitzmaurice. Courtesy of FITZ & CO

26. FITZ & COLast Years List: 30Leadership: Sara Fitzmaurice, founder/CEO/president

A growing global footprint continues to make FITZ & CO a serious player for arty clients with worldwide profiles. About to enter its 25th year, Sara Fitzmaurices 20-person agency still reps Art Basel; Gagosian; Storm King Art Center; and brands like BMW and eBay, for whom FITZ & CO. builds artist partnerships. Equinox just tapped the firm to get closer to (real) art/culture influencers, and Mastercard engaged FITZ & CO to extend its Priceless campaign into the cultural sphere. Also in the agencys collection: ultra-blue-chip international gallery Almine Rech; Dubais Alserkal Avenue arts/culture district; Denmarks ARoS Aarhus Art Museum; ART021 Shanghai Contemporary Art Fair; and the Faurschou Foundation, which operates spaces in Copenhagen, Beijing and NYC.

Ken Makovsky. Courtesy Makovsky

27. MakovskyLast years list: 29Leadership: Ken Makovsky, founder and president

Stakes is high, De La Soul memorably declaimed. That might as well be Makovskys motto. Were talking clients like Mazars USA a.k.a. Donald Trumps accounting firm Hunt Companies, and Johnson & Johnson. The firm bandies about terms like scenario planning and range of circumstances, meaning they help clients emerge intactor betterthrough serious situations. But its not all crisis, all the time. Makovsky, this year, pioneered what its calling Innovation Relations to amp up cool things clients like Trident Health and TMRW are doingthink comms with a dash of management consulting. With an 87% client retention rate, an intimidatingly sagacious team of MBAs, JDs and Phi Beta Kappas, and its own high-profile speaker series, the firms looking smarter than ever in its 40th year.

Andrew Lister. Courtesy Purple PR

28. Purple PRLast years list: n/aLeadership: Andrew Lister, executive vice president

The British, apparently, dislike talking about themselves. Maybe thats why theyre so good at yakking up others. Six years after planting a flag in New York, this 22-year-old British firm has become a quiet force whose clients, generally speaking, are places you want to be and things you want to own. Newer wins like Bally, NeueHouse, jeweler Messika, The Faces reincarnation and the Kevyn Aucoin brand have upped an already-glittery roster, including EDITION hotels, the Ian Schrager Company, Milanese retailer 10 Corso Comos NYC outpost, L.A. Francophile apparel brand LAgence, and events like the Gucci x Paige Powell book launch, TAG Heuers 50th anniversary and the John Varvatos/Nick Jonas Villa One Tequila launch. To keep up, Purple added 16 people in NYC this year, for a team of 56 and counting. Purple opened a West Coast outpost last year, so look out, LA.

James Brodsky. Courtesy Sharp Think

29. Sharp ThinkLast Years List: 18Leadership: James Brodsky, founder and CEO

Jim Brodskys firm took the ball and ran with it when client CBDMEDIC snagged former New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski as spokesmodel. The result: Some of the years big media moments, with the Gronk on Fallon, Fox and everywhere else extolling CBD-infused pain relief. It was just one high point for this can-do-anything shop, whose insanely diverse clients range from BASF and Prudential to Hi-Chew and Mutti tomatoes grounding ultra-fancy franchises like 1stDibs, Chihuly, TEFAF and the Fine Art Print Fair. Revenues up 10%, staff just topped 50 and growth around social and events is exploding. Bonus: To design and furnish its glitzy new 12,000-square-foot Midtown offices, Sharp tapped its own clients, from Silestone and Kohler to Bertazzoni, Legrand and Benjamin Moore, whose color team created a Sharp Think blue.

Todd Fromer, Lewis Goldberg, and Jeffrey Goldberger. Courtesy KCSA

30. KCSALast years list: n/aLeadership: Todd Fromer, principal; Lewis Goldberg, principal; Jeffrey Goldberger, principal

With a management overhaul in 2015, this 50-year-old firm got a serious transfusion of fresh blood. Since then, KCSA has been gobbling clients PacMan-style, with long rosters in tech, life sciences and cannabis, which now includes 35 clients alone. Remember the hoo-hah over Acreage Holdings rejected Super Bowl ad? KCSA engineered it. The firms also behind smart, surgical campaigns for life-sciences players like Cryoport, Syndio and Samsung Ads. And how many firms can boast they rep High Times magazine and run a thriving investor relations practice? Bonus: Goldbergs Green Rush podcast has actually become a thing, with more than 100,000 downloads.

Sarah Berman. Courtesy Berman Group

31. The Berman GroupLast years list: 34Leadership: Sarah Berman, founder and president

Real estates where Sarah Bermans 15-year-old juggernaut of a firm has roots. And while the Berman Groups client roster sprouted faster than the skyline this year, the firm made big breakthroughs in new categories. Berman won a tough contest to rep French tech giant Lectra; got kicking for soccer franchise Queensboro FC; launched NYC Builds Bio+, a STEM-promoting non-profit; and scored King Street Properties $600 million LIC life-sciences development. In her spare time, Berman won new biz from Howard Hughes Corp., Durst, KKR, Colliers International and many more. Perhaps not surprisingly, both headcount (18%) and revenue (22%) shot up in 2019. Bonus: Berman maintains a healthy roster of non-profit clients, from Habitat for Humanity to Blue Card, which aids Holocaust survivors.

Susan and Allyn Magrino. Courtesy Magrino

32. MagrinoLast years list: 26Leadership: Susan Magrino, chairman and CEO; Allyn Magrino, president and chief revenue officer

Considering Magrino will soon enter its third decade, its an even bigger deal to claim 2019 as its strongest year ever. Digital business grew more than 40% this year, and Magrino continues to bring it for a swish stable of lifestyle, fashion and hospitality clients. In 2019, the firm snagged gold-star wins like a yet-unnamed Hudson Yards hospitality project, new Motto and LXR brands from longtime client Hilton, and Invest Hospitality, the money behind Jol Robuchons gilded NYC eateries. Wine and spirits clients keep pouring in, and celeb-connected brands like Scout and Drew Barrymores Flower wont go anywhere else. Bonus: Martha Stewart, Magrinos very first client, just handed the firm her digital influencer work.

Link:
The Most Powerful PR Firms of 2019 - Observer