 Daryl McCullough |
Citizen Relations acquired experiential and influencer marketing specialist The Narrative Group to bolster its strategic planning and creative functions
TNG will maintain its own brand name and continue to be led by agency co-founders Jackie Lann Brockman and Stacey Heuser. They will report to Jim Joseph, CR CEO.
The shops have an eight-year history of working together, noted CR chairman Daryl McCullough, who “realized a lot of synergy between the two agencies right from the beginning.”
 Jackie Lann Brockman |
 Stacey Heuser |
They collaborated on work for Duracell, Aflac and Swiffer, along with the 50th anniversary cruise of Princess Cruises that brought together the original cast from the TV series “The Love Boat.”
Heuser said the partnership would give TNG more opportunities to implement media strategy and digital work. McCullough said, “Our capabilities work very closely together. They take up where we leave off.”
The flexible nature of the partnership is intended to allow both firms to manage their concurrent growth plans. “The acquisition fits perfectly in our plans to scale up the agency,” said Heuser.
The firms are working on an integration program designed to best combine their strengths.
China's Blue Focus International owns CR.
DJE Holdings, parent of Edelman and Zeno, launches RUTH as an independent shop named after Ruth Edelman, mental health advocate, wife and longtime business partner of Dan Edelman.
New York City PR firms make up the largest slice of O'Dwyer's 147 firm overall ranking with 33 of 40 in the New York/New Jersey area either calling Manhattan their home or having a presence there.
Subject Matter+Kivvit, which joined forces in May, has rebranded as Avoq, an integrated shop with more than 200 professionals in Washington, New York, Asbury Park (NJ), Miami and Chicago.
While PR pros stationed at in-house comms. teams and those working for agencies share many of the same objectives, they also have markedly different top priorities, according to a recent report.
Edelman is cutting 240 employees or about four percent of its workforce to cope with the cooling down of the PR sector, according to a memo from CEO Richard Edelman.
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