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| Lisa Gabor |
BPCM has launched a cannabis division. The division will be focused on advising and educating brands about how to position their products, as well as offering such BPCM core services as multi-faceted communication strategies, event management, celebrity and influencer engagement and digital services. It is led by Lisa Gabor, one of the founding editors of InStyle, who covered beauty, style and travel for the magazine before becoming editor of its digital division, Instyle.com. “The new cannabis division is dedicated to championing brands, products and people with purpose—as BPCM’s existing client roster does—and helping them to define their brand, promote sustainability and sync with today’s cultural ideals,” said BPCM co-founders Carrie Phillips and Vanessa von Bismarck.
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| Scott Widmeyer (left) and Ben Finzel |
RENEWPR, a Washington, DC-based energy and environmental communications consulting firm, and a member of The Change Agencies, a national network of independently-owned public relations firms focused on inclusive marketing to multicultural and LGBTQ communities, celebrated its fifth anniversary at a Jan. 23 event. RENEWPR was founded by Ben Finzel, who held executive posts at Edelman and FleishmanHillard in addition to serving as communications director at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. The honorary host committee for the event included Scott Widmeyer, founding managing partner and chief strategy officer/Washington at Finn Partners.
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Communications consultancy LLYC has acquired Barcelona-based tech public affairs firm Diplolicy. Terms of the acquisition were not publicly disclosed. Diplolicy, which was founded in 2016, specializes in public affairs, institutional relations and competitive intelligence. As part of the deal, Diplolicy cofounder and general manager Roger Montañola will join LLYC as senior director of public affairs in Barcelona. Executives Ignasi Belda and Xavier Salvatella will become senior advisors in the firm and will be based in Catalonia, Spain. Madrid-based LLYC, which staffs more 600 communications pros across Latin America, Spain, Portugal and the U.S., specializes in public affairs, financial communications, crisis and reputation management, media and investor relations.
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Celebrity Concepts founder Wendy Zipes Hunter has partnered with S. Cornell PR founder Suzie Cornell to launch Prana PR, a full-service public relations and talent booking agency, according to a report on deadline.com. Their current client roster includes include Los Angeles-based digital entertainment agency Loud Media, digital cancer care information site SurvivorNet, CNET and several films set to premiere at the 2020 Sundance and Tribeca film festivals. Before starting up Celebrity Concepts, Zipes headed the magazine department at Central Talent Booking and served as entertainment editor at Redbook. Cornell has worked with agencies including 42West, Strategy PR, Hill & Knowlton and Big Time PR theatrical releases, VOD and digital, web series and personal clients.
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. 
Why investing in public relations is ultimately about building bridges in a connected world.
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.
