 Kerstin Diehl |
DeVries Global has opened up shop in Berlin. Headquartered in New York, DeVries also has offices in London, Beijing, Hong Kong, Singapore and Taipei. The new Berlin office already has an agency-of-record relationship with Zippo Manufacturing Company, an extension of the global service remit that the agency has handled for over a decade. Kerstin Diehl will be heading up the Berlin office. Diehl was previously director of lifestyle communication at Hamburg-based Nicole Weber Communication and head of international PR and marketing at jewelry and luxury goods manufacturer Philipp Plein. She will be collaborating with Helena Bloomer, who has led DeVries Global’s UK operations since 2012, and was recently promoted to regional managing director. “Given Germany’s position as one of the strongest performing markets in Europe, it’s no surprise that we’re seeing increasing interest in dedicated support there, both with existing clients and in new business,” Bloomer said.
 Adam Waitkunas |
Concord, MA-based Milldam Public Relations has launched its Mission Critical Crisis Communications Practice, which the firm says is the first crisis communications practice dedicated to the data center ecosystem. The service is intended to address the lack of preparedness in the data center industry with regard to negative events stemming from data center operations. “With MPR’s nearly fifteen years of experience in the critical infrastructure space, we are well positioned to assist data center operators and vendors with a plan, and have the bandwidth to navigate organizations through a crisis while appropriately engaging relevant stakeholders,” said agency president Adam Waitkunas.
 Tom Kivett (left) and Doug Sadler |
Kivett & Company managing director Tom Kivett has started Brightfluence, an integrated communications agency with a suite of services that includes earned and paid media, social strategy, digital marketing and visual content solutions. The agency is targeting the technology, consumer and health tech sectors, with the aim of making integrated comms and influencer marketing more accessible to startups and small to mid-size companies. Doug Sadler, head of the Pocket Media Group, will be the agency’s director of visual communications, leading its content creation, video and photography programs.
4media group completes its acquisition of Family Features Editorial Syndicate... Illumination PR, which represents lifestyle brands, influencers and celebrities, launches DR Media Group... EAG Advertising and Marketing acquires pay-for-performance firm INK inc. Public Relations. 
LLYC launches Signs of Pride, a campaign that revives the original protest banners of the first Pride marches... The Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry forms the Public Relations and Digital Marketing Working Group... Circle of One Marketing, a Miami-based, minority-owned marketing agency, is named official agency of record for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Miami. 
Vogel Group, a DC-headquartered government affairs and consulting firm, forms a strategic partnership with Montreal-based public affairs firm Boléro Stratégies... Matter Communications launches project-based offerings for B2C companies looking to increase brand awareness and visibility... Tucker/Hall, a Tampa-based PR and public affairs firm, opens a new office in Orlando. 
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Edelman is laying off 330 people (5.3 percent of its workforce) to cope with an anticipated eight percent shortfall in 2024 US revenues, and client demand for one-stop shopping for speciality services.
