LatAm (Other Markets) PR Consultancies of the Year 2023

2023 LatAm (Other Markets) PR Consultancies of the Year

The 2023 LatAm PR Consultancies of the Year are the result of an exhaustive research process involving numerous submissions and meetings with the best PR firms across the region.

Consultancy of the Year winners are honoured at the 2023 LatAm SABRE Awards, taking place on 11 October as part of the Mexican PRORP’s annual RADICAL conference. Analysis of all Finalists and Winners can be accessed via the navigation menu or below:

Finalists

CCK (Independent/Central America)

Backstory

The Costa Rican market is still very much a developing one, so CCK’s 70-strong team and $5.4 million in fee income is impressive and establishes the independent firm as a market leader—as does its success in international awards competitions. Founded in 1988—a difficult time for Central America generally—entrepreneurs Carmen Fallas and Edgar Mata had a vision to create a modern, progressive communications firm and they have delivered, building a firm that can offer sophisticated data and digital capabilities to support its core PR expertise.

Locations

CCK is headquartered in Costa Rica but since its early days it has focused on the Central America region, with its own offices in Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador and Guatemala, as well as representations in Honduras and the Dominican Republic. Since 1996, the firm has enjoyed an affiliation agreement with Omnicom-owned global powerhouse Ketchum which provides it with access to overseas markets.

Performance

A year of solid growth (in the high single digits) saw CCK end the year with fee income of a little less than $5.4 million. There was new business from Cargill, Dos Pinos, Ecoflow, Evolution Free Zone, Coyol Free Trade Zone, CABEI, WEConnect International, Sandoz, Incae Business School, and L'Oreal, joining a client roster that includes big brands such as PepsiCo, Toyota, Walmart, Claro, ManpowerGroup, Banc Credomatic, Kraft Heinz, Fresh del Monte, Amanco-Wavin, and Philips.

People & Culture

CCK describes itself as a “life-centered company,” priding itself on the opportunity for employees to grow and to be their authentic selves. Fallas and Mata have brought a new generation of leaders to the fore over the past few years, while continuing to serve as chairman and CEO respectively. Layla Poveda joined in 1997 and was named regional COO in 2016; Marcela Alfaro now serves as Costa Rica general manager.

Thought Leadership & Work

CCK runs a survey “Leadership in Central America” in alliance with client Manpower Group to understand how people in Central America perceived leadership qualities. In addition, it has been a thought leader in the digital space, with products focused on the various kinds of video that succeed on Instagram to new digital influence tools. Its most celebrated campaign of the past 12 months was probably the “Que no te pele Costa Rica” initiative, focused on increasing voter participation in the country’s elections. But CCK received five Latin American SABRE nominations for work such as “Unveiling Costa Rica's Jewel of Innovation” for Fresh Del Monte and “Cultivating Growth and Nurturing Communities in Nicaragua” for Walmart and “Central American women drive change with impactful business leadership” for INCAE - Corporación BI.

— Paul Holmes

Edelman (DJE Holdings/Colombia)

Backstory

Founded in 2015, Edelman’s Colombia operation is the newest of its Latin American offices, but also one of the most dynamic, having invested in all of the cutting-edge capabilities that make its parent company such a standout in the global arena: data and intelligence, creative and digital in particular. In 2020, the firm launched its Colombia Studios, anin-house digital production facility that sets it apart from many of the other leading firms in a burgeoning market and now provides content to the firm’s offices throughout the region and as far afield as Canada.

Locations

Edelman now has close to 150 people operating from its Bogotá office, and—as part of the world’s largest public relations firm can draw on additional resources throughout the region and around the world.

Performance

Edelman’s Bogotá office more than doubled in size last year, a remarkable performance fueled in large part by the continued success of the Studios—which also doubled—and by expanding its portfolio of clients to include regional work for the likes of Booking.com, The Coca-Cola Company, and Mercado Libre, helping the firm establish itself among the top five in the market.

People & Culture

Juanita Barrios, who founded the Bogotá office in 2015, previously worked at ad agencies such as Grey and Y&R, and has more than 20 years of experience in marketing and communications. The firm’s strategic advisory capabilities, meanwhile, are strengthened by Daniel Quiroga, vice chairman of Edelman Global Advisory who formerly led public affairs and crisis practices for the firm, and byNatalia Villegas, head of digital LatAm and Colombia Studios. Globally, Edelman has been adapting to hybrid work in the post-pandemic era. For the Colombian operation, this transition was even more significant, because between 2020 and 2022, the agency experienced an amazing 364% increase of employees, many of whom joined at a time when offices were closed. So early in 2023, Edelman moved into new space, designed to support closer collaboration. In 2022, the agency also launched a local LGBTQ+ committee, Equal Colombia, and advanced in its commitment to citizenship.

Thought Leadership & Work

In a year of presidential elections, the Edelman Global Advisory public affairs operation in Colombia played a crucial role in keeping clients informed, providing comprehensive and timely reporting, and advice. The Colombia Studios, meanwhile, delivered more than 300 projects for clients such as AstraZeneca, BlackRock, Google, Microsoft, Starbucks, and Unilever, and received recognition from the Webby’s Anthem Awards 2022.

— Paul Holmes

Urban Grupo de Comunicación (Independent/Argentina)

Backstory

Our 2021 LatAm (other markets) SABRE Award winner, Argentina’s Urban continues to operate under the watch of CEO Verónica Cheja, who launched the firm more than 25 years ago and built it into a $9.3 million business. The agency is focused on consumer and corporate work, and is also a regional leader in crisis, reputation management and sustainability.

Locations

Urban has offices in Buenos Aires, Chile, Mexico and Spain.

Performance

Despite Argentina’s wild economic swings, including rampant inflation, Urban has clocked steady year-over-year growth, capping 2022 as a $9.3 million operation (up 8% from $8.6 million 2021). Ranking among Argentina’s top PR firms, Urban’s 120-person staff handles new business from a host of new clients drawn to Urban’s mainstay brand and corporate PR services but also digital, sustainability and data offerings. 2022 additions include AstraZeneca, Axion, Citi, Coty, Ericsson, INTAL-BID, NovoNordisk and Oracle. Urban, however, also had an impressive client roster before those additions. Coca-Cola, Unilever, Mercado Libre, Facebook, Instagram, American Express, General Motors, Adidas, Prime Video and Uber are among its key partners.

People & Culture

Amid the disruption of Covid, Urban company made what it calls a radical shift by turning the company into a people-centric operation, putting the wellbeing of employees and clients at the center of its work. Since then, Urban has continued forwarding the evolution of the company with additions like DEI programs and staff training on gender-related issues. Last year, agency leaders enlisted employees in helping create a new company purpose. CEO and co-founder Veronica Cheja specializes in business development. Cheja’s fellow co-founders — creative director Silvia Maggiani and director Gabriela Korovsky — focus on data-driven PR and sustainability respectively.

Thought Leadership & Work

Before Argentina’s national football team won the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Urban helped client Coca-Cola capitalize on the country’s passion for the sport by supporting the beverage giant’s ongoing World Cup Trophy Tour when it arrived in the agency’s home country in August. The tour, which included activations and was heavy on media relations, drew big coverage that reached 30 million consumers. The year’s other big initiatives included Urban’s multi-faceted “Always Original” campaign, which leveraged influencers, celebrities and live events, and supporting the latest Samsung Galaxy launch.

— Diana Marszalek

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