HUNTER grew its business across all major practice areas over the past year, and subsequently made the move to restructure its leadership team to properly support its growth. One key move was elevating Gigi García Russo to the newly created position of Chief Innovation and Growth Officer to help practice leaders enhance their services to new and existing clients – especially those who are looking to connect with multicultural audiences. The agency also augmented its most senior leadership ranks to include a C-suite of specialists in social and digital media, influencer and entertainment marketing and insights and strategy. Plus, they elevated eight leaders with a combined 85 years of service to HUNTER to become managing directors of the firm. With this structure in place, HUNTER has been thriving to say the least, working with clients across food and bev, health and wellness, fashion and home. HUNTER shares the wealth of data their team works hard to collect and interpret to boost client initiatives; earlier this year, they began publishing their Digital Digest – an early 2020 initiative they started to keep clients informed of the fast-changing consumer reaction during the pandemic – to external channels, sharing with the industry the latest insights into what’s earning social conversation and influencer marketing news.
Leadership team:
Grace Leong, CEO
Jon Lyon, COO
Gigi García Russo, Chief Innovation and Growth Officer
Notable long-term clients:
TABASCO Brand, Johnson & Johnson, Amazon, Smithfield
New client wins:
Post Consumer Brands, Danone, Jelly Belly, Sub-Zero Group, The Shade Store, Victoria’s Secret PINK, Love, Bonito, New Chapter, Abbott Diagnostics
How is the agency advancing DEI in the industry?
“HUNTER’s conscious efforts to address the lack of diversity in the PR industry as a whole, as well as within our ranks, dates back to Barbara Hunter herself, who equalized pay between men and women as her very first move as Chairwoman of D-A-Y in 1959. Led today by DEI Manager Daniela Acosta, HUNTER works within our own organization, our industry and with our clients to establish new benchmarks for BIPOC representation, support organizations fighting for equality and representation, create programs that uplift marginalized voices and so much more. In June 2020, HUNTER established an Action Group with the mission of developing strategies and actions that make anti-racist efforts a prominent part of our permanent culture. Being an anti-racist agency means we’re continuously educating ourselves, having uncomfortable conversations, putting in the work, time and energy to create new practices, and tirelessly advocating for positive change. With over 50 percent of the agency volunteering, the Action Group has provided ongoing opportunities and resources to create an environment of diversity and inclusion at HUNTER.”
Head & Hand PR specializes in design and luxury lifestyle public relations, representing top names across these industries. This year, the agency signed on over 10 new clients, and expanded their repertoire to represent a luxury fashion brand. To better serve these new – and the many existing – clients, the NYC-based agency promoted four team members and brought on a new executive director. Head & Hand PR also expanded their service offerings, adding marketing strategy, social media analysis, industry surveys and content ideation to the mix. Under president Katharina Plath’s leadership, the agency added integrated media buying as a service to their standard PR package, resulting in a more holistic earned and paid media marketing approach for clients. This service has already proven to be successful in helping the internal team determine KPIs and the measurement for success based upon the client’s specific needs and goals.
Leadership team:
Katharina Plath, President
Notable long-term clients:
Dedar, Roche Bobois, Stephen Burks, Gaggenau, Modernist Cuisine
New client wins:
GRAFF, The Deermar, Luna Benai, Zanotta, David Hewett, The Opera Gallery, The Edison Gramercy, John Pomp, Rachel T. Hicks
How are you innovating and moving the industry forward?
“We are focusing all our efforts on active and 360 PR. We make sure to leverage all channels – social media, website content, email newsletters and customer surveys – to engage with the press and directly with consumers. This approach requires strategic measurement and deliberate brand messaging and positioning, thus driving the idea of PR forward into a more integrated and crucial marketing role.”
