presence communications

Walsh:PR: Experts in telling a brand’s story

Fact File

PR agency: Walsh:PR

Established: 1984

Contact name: Maeve Governey

Phone: 086 805 7884

Email: maeve@walshpr.ie

Website: www.walshpr.ie

Social media: @walshpr

Client list: Current FMCG clients include: Flahavan’s, Mash Direct, Linwoods, Tirlán (formerly Glanbia) and Golden Bake

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: At Walsh:PR we say: the beauty of PR is that it’s contextual rather than mass media, so you can decide on your messaging depending on the target audience and choose the channel that best suits you. The good news for FMCG brands is that whether you are a start-up or a wellestablished brand looking to re-launch or re-focus, we can help you as we become an extension of your marketing team, assisting you in developing your strategy Currently that constitutes a lot of the work we do with our portfolio of clients at Walsh:PR.

Consumers are often interested in the story behind the products they buy so by sharing the history and values of our client’s brand, as well as any unique or interesting aspects of their production process or ingredients, we tell that story

In all of this, relationships are key We engage with journalists and other influencers regularly to build on those relationships and get our client’s brand featured. We provide them with unique content they can share with their audiences.

We’ve been at the forefront of responding to issues or crisis on behalf of clients, where success is often about staying out of the spotlight. We do this well and that’s why you’d never know!

Overall, effective PR for FMCG brands requires a combination of smart strategy engaging content, strategic partnerships and transparent communication. At Walsh:PR we do all of that and more, that’s why our clients trust us, stay with us and recommend us to others.

By Maeve Governey, deputy managing director and food PR strategist, Walsh:PR

Sustainable PR: Achieving impressive media reach

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PR agency: Sustainable PR

Established: 2019

Contact name: Fiona Donnellan

Phone: 085 2262789

Email: fiona@sustainablepr.ie

Website: sustainablepr.ie

Social media: www.instagram.com/sustainablepr.ie

Client list: Volvo Ireland, Minor Figures, reuzi, Jiminy, Nunaïa, V-Face, Foam Cafe, Shells Cafe, Etsy Ireland, Thanks Plants, Common Knowledge and Cairde Sligo Arts Festival

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Sustainable PR helped Minor Figures launch its expanded range with the addition of Everyday Oat and Everyday Oat Light. Focusing on traditional media, a free Oat M*lk coffees activation and influencer gifting strategy, we achieved impressive media reach.

We also worked with Irish beauty brand Nunaïa – in the last year, Sustainable PR helped the brand announce its partnership with Aer Lingus and also helped with PR when Nunaïa won big at the Cosmoprof Awards 2023, the “Oscars of the Cosmetics Industry”. Sustainable PR secured a whole host of regional, national and international press for the brand.

By Fiona Donnellan, founder, Sustainable PR

Murray: Navigating the most complex of issues to build the brightest reputations

Fact File

PR agency: Murray

Established: 1974

Contact name: Joanne O’Sullivan

Phone: 01 498 0300

Email: josullivan@murraygroup.ie

Website: www.murrayconsultants.ie

Social media: www.linkedin.com/company/murray-consultants

Client list: Bord Bia, Origin Green, Britvic Plc, Ballygowan, MiWadi, Ornua, Kerrygold, Dawn Meats, Liffey Meats, Meat Industry Ireland, Heineken Ireland, Irish Distillers, Kellogg’s

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: We have one of the deepest portfolios of agribusiness, food, and beverage in Irish PR: a combination of leading home-grown companies and leading international brands and exporters.

Our supply chain and stakeholder perspective is literally, farm to fork. This means we add real value with a depth of knowledge on policy and regulatory issues across the sector from Brexit to international trade tariffs and the lasting effects of the pandemic to climate impact.

By Joanne O’Sullivan, account director, Murray

Rob Kenny PR: A noticeably creative approach to answering client PR briefs

Fact File

PR agency: Rob Kenny PR

Established: 2020

Contact name: Rob Kenny

Phone: 085 1555746

Email: rob@robkennypr.ie

Website: robkennypr.ie

Social media: @robkennypr

Client list: The Handmade Soap Company, Hendrick’s Gin, Virgin Media Ireland, The Pygmalion Group, Miss Jones, Neurolinks, Lisboa, Pair Mobile, Theatre of Light, Virgin Media Television, Aperitivo, Tullamore Dew, Tapped, Audrey Hamilton Art, Audrey Hamilton Apparel, Skinmade, Brickyard, Eavanna Breen Skin & Laser Clinic

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Rob Kenny and his team at RKPR take a very creative and modern approach to consumer PR. Today PR campaigns need to be wholly different to the traditional approach that was taken by almost all, not so long ago, in order to really seize on all opportunities available to us today.

Having left a position as head of PR for one of Ireland’s biggest creative agencies before going solo, Rob Kenny always takes a noticeably creative approach to answering client PR briefs. It is this, combined with unbeatable press and influencer relationships, that has led the agency to grow so rapidly, in terms of both client list and reputation, in such a short period of time

The power of influencers to really move the dial for brands continues to amaze, but only when it is planned and executed correctly And so many continue to get it wrong. Rob Kenny and his team will always present a carefully considered influencer element to compliment nearly all campaigns, both paid and unpaid. It is Kenny’s insider knowledge here on what really works, combined with his personally close influencer relationships to so many, that allow these creator elements to flourish and drive real results. Particularly when planned to perfectly compliment all other communications. All retainer and project clients RKPR have ever worked with have all come directly to them, due to word of mouth and reputation. And reputation speaks for itself

ShelfLife spoke to Rob Kenny, founder, Kenny PR

Masonry PR: Ensuring products are seen by the right media

Fact File

PR agency: Masonry PR

Established: 2011

Contact name: Kathryn Mason

Phone: 01 906 5331

Email: km@MASONRY.ie

Website: www.masonry.ie

Social media: @MASONRYdotie

Client list: The Powerscourt Distillery, Irish Podcast Awards, IMRO Radio Awards, MCD Productions, Connick Ski and Sharon Shannon

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: In 2022 we were able to elevate the awareness and recognition plus reach brand goals for our client, The Powerscourt Distillery Earned media coverage was estimated to reach over 645,000 views and we landed over 130 pieces of coverage

We understand our clients want to see value for their spend; we become their partners in reaching their business goals by ensuring their products are seen by the right media.

By Kathryn Mason, managing director, Masonry PR

Jailbird Communications: Hardworking, creative communications solutions with heart and passion

Fact File

PR agency: Jailbird Communications

Established: 2019

Contact name: Julie Blakeney

Phone: 086 3420794

Email: team@hellojailbird.com

Website: jailbird.ie

Client list: HelloFresh, Insomnia Coffee, Tullamore D.E.W., Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann, Ballet Ireland, Other Voices

Julie Blakeney

Social media: @hellojailbird

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Jailbird is a communications company that delivers PR and social communications without faff or marketing jargon. We’re here to offer clients hardworking, creative communications solutions with heart and passion behind our ideas. We work with clients to break free from boring marketing campaigns – using creativity and culture to solve business problems.

Within the past year, Jailbird has collaborated with global heavyweights like HelloFresh, beloved Irish brands like Insomnia Coffee, and cultural institutions like Fleadh Cheoil na hÉireann. We work with each client to create creative, disruptive, content-driven marketing campaigns that truly make an impact.

By Julie Blakeney, founder, Jailbird Communications

Legacy Communications: Experiment and challenge the world of “same”

Fact File

PR agency: Legacy Communications

Established: 2013

Contact name: Kevin Moore

Phone: (01) 525 2544

Email: kevin@legacycommunications.ie

Website: legacycommunications.com

The team at Legacy Communications

Social media: @Legacy_Comms

Client list: Aldi Ireland, AIG, Amgen, Asics, Active Iron, Aviva, Break Through Cancer Research, Carr Golf, Dash, Dubarry, Dogs Trust, Energia, Exertis, Fastway Couriers, Glenisk, Hidden Hearing, Indeed, Krispy Kreme, Laya Healthcare, Lenovo, Lifestyle Sports, Lyre’s Non-Alcoholic Spirits, Mater Private Network, Molson Coors, NAOS NUK, Peptalk, Permanent TSB, Pieta, Polestar San Pellegrino, Screwfix, Summize, Teamwork, Tony’s Chocolonely, Total Processing, United Drug, Ubiquitous

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Legacy Communications consists of a multidisciplinary team of storytellers employed across three dynamic divisions: Communications, Brand and Sponsorship, and SEO Together we create impactful PR campaigns for our ambitious FMCG clients, harnessing consumer insights to understand the pulse of Irish consumers and leveraging the power of data to sell their stories and deliver results.

Over the past 10 years, and indeed over the past 12 months, Legacy has been at the forefront of driving consumer communications strategies for an impressive collection of FMCG brands. Our current roster of clients includes leading supermarket Aldi Ireland, Krispy Kreme, several brands within the Stafford Lynch family, plus multinational drinks company Molson Coors.

From strategic consultation on the challenges facing Irish consumers to creative campaign ideation, Legacy is a trusted partner to our clients. Our work with Aldi Ireland is a great example of this, from end-to-end campaign management and ownership of the national consumer press office to creating dynamic brand partnerships across radio TV and digital, plus our specialist work on influencer marketing, brand ambassadors, events and so much more. We explore everything because the most important campaigns are born from a willingness to take calculated risk; experiment and challenge the world of “same”.

Legacy’s work was celebrated by industry peers at the 2022 PRCA Awards as ‘Best Consumer Public Relations Campaign’ for the launch of Aldi Ireland’s cookbook in collaboration with IRFU Our SEO Division was awarded a European Search Award 2022 for ‘Best Use of Search

B2B’

for our client Teamwork.

By Aisling Newton, communications account director, Legacy Communications

Bannerton PR: Communications strategists who help great FMCG brands secure their niche

Fact File

PR agency: Bannerton PR

Established: 2006

Contact name: Sharon Bannerton

Phone: 01 612 1428

Email: sharon@bannerton.ie

Website: bannerton.ie

Social media:

Bannerton PR works closely with FMCG brands of all sizes to drive visibility and increase sales

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ bannerton/

Twitter: @BANNERTON_PR

Instagram: Bannerton_PR/

Client list: Bannerton provides communications consultancy for brands and businesses in consumer markets, and advises on strategic corporate PR and media relations, right across all industry sectors.

Consumer clients include the likes of Kilkenny Design, Des Kelly Interiors, Chupi, Hidden Hearing, Bluebird Care, Butlers Chocolates, Barilla and Tabasco, as well as Champion Green, the ground-breaking ‘support local’ SMEs campaign.

Primeline, CWM Wealth Management, Contracting Plus, BNP Paribas Real Estate, Compass Ireland, the Employment & Recruitment Federation, MentorsWork, Xtremepush, Elio Networks, JT Tech, B&Q and Euro Refrigeration Group are among the leading companies where Sharon Bannerton and her team support corporate communication strategy

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: FMCG brands operate in an increasingly competitive marketplace, making it essential to maintain and grow their presence through consistent, tailored PR initiatives that connect with both the trade and consumers. At Bannerton PR, we understand that good FMCG PR is about identifying a brand’s unique selling proposition and conveying it effectively to the market.

From identifying news angles and expert articles to securing sponsorships and brand associations, our team works closely with FMCG brands of all sizes to drive visibility and increase sales. We believe that social media is a cost-effective route to market and that consistently communicating a brand’s successes, whether it’s a new product launch, range extension or promotion, is key to driving engagement and sales.

While stunts and expensive ad campaigns can be great for major brands, we believe that issuing brand and business news regularly is a critical step in consolidating sales and marketing efforts, no matter the size of the brand. At Bannerton, we have worked with both big and small operators in Irish food, beverages, and distribution, including Primeline brands, Largo Foods, Butlers Chocolates, Muff Liquor, Oat in the City, and JJ Darboven.

In short, we’re the communications strategists who help great FMCG brands secure their niche and drive business. Contact us today to learn how we can help your brand succeed.

By Sharon Bannerton, managing director, Bannerton PR

Hunter Communications: Expertise is demonstrated by campaign success

Fact File

PR agency: Hunter Communications

Established: 2009

Contact name: Lynn Hunter

Phone: +353 (0)1 905 6350

Email: hello@huntercommunications.ie

Website: www.huntercommunications.ie

Lynn Hunter

Social media: Instagram: @huntercomms Facebook: Hunter Communications TikTok: @huntercomms

LinkedIn: HunterCommunications

Client list: Clonakilty, Frank & Honest, Hunky Dorys, O’Donnells, Popchips, Tayto, The Happy Pear, 67 Spritz, Bonne Maman, Boyne Valley, Bread 41, Bulmers, Coole Swan, Golden Bake, Kinetica, KP Nuts, Lakeshore, McDonnells, White Claw

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Hunter has worked closely with our clients to create conversations around their brand and to produce creative campaigns. Our team consists of experts in creative and innovative PR campaigns, content creation, social media marketing and event planning. We understand the importance of listening to our clients and making each campaign unique Our sister agency, The Collaborations Agency is the first Irish fullservice agency that connects brands with Ireland’s top creators, maximising the reach and efficacy of campaigns. This unique position as trailblazers in the industry has pushed us to continue innovating and learning, in order to deliver the best results for our clients.

Our expertise is demonstrated by the success of our campaigns. Over the past year our work has been recognised: the PR campaign we created for Tayto Fizzy Cola Limited Edition Flavour has been shortlisted for an All-Ireland Marketing Award. We have continued to see huge growth for our clients on social media, with the Instagram account we created for Popchips in 2021 reaching over 20,000 followers. We have perfectly matched clients such as Clonakilty with creators, namely award-winning chefs Lilly Higgins and Nathan Anthony (Bored of Lunch). Our innovative approach is evidenced by our eye for match-making, partnering brands that we work with to create and innovate, an example of this was bringing Bread 41 and Bonne Maman together to produce a new limited edition product.

We always keep an eye on new trends and developments in the industry, never settling for less than perfection.

By Lynn Hunter, founder, Hunter Communications

Conjure Communications: Creating loyal and lasting customers

Fact File

PR agency: Conjure Communications

Established: 2021

Contact name: Anthony O’Brien Bedford

Phone: 087 9322400

Email: anthony@conjurecommunications.ie

Website: www.conjurecommunications.ie

Social media: Instagram: @conjure_communications

Anthony O’Brien Bedford

LinkedIn: Conjure Communications

Client list: Conjure Communications works with brands such as Coole Swan Irish Cream Liqueur, Stoli Vodka, Gourmet Food Parlour restaurant group, Max Benjamin, The Wine Opener and more

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Conjure Communications’ point of difference is our focus on storytelling. Every brand and product has a unique story behind it and we create impactful PR campaigns that utilise these stories. We are savvy when it comes to budget management and we place an emphasis on our relationships with key journalists and influential creators to bring our clients and their stories to target consumers in an organic way Consumers don’t buy products, they connect with stories. The Conjure approach is designed to create loyal and lasting customers. Conjure has a particular interest in food, drink and Irish brands. Our managing director, Anthony O’Brien Bedford, has a decade of experience in creating brand magic for clients. From award-winning campaigns to disruptive activity, Conjure is adept at connecting brands with their consumers through the power of PR. Whether it’s launching a limited-edition bottle for Stoli Vodka around Pride season to creating event concepts for Gourmet Food Parlour restaurant group or sparking consumer conversations around new ways to use a classic product, as we have with Coole Swan, Conjure always delivers above and beyond for our valued clients. We don’t only do PR though, we manage ad buying, create market positioning strategies and more as part of our full-service communications offering.

In the past year Conjure clients have appeared across the entire Irish media landscape from the Sunday Independent to The Late Late Show and more. As a result, our smart PR strategies have driven mass sales for our clients.

By Anthony O’Brien Bedford, founder and MD Conjure Communications

Artisyn Communications: Finding the insight that makes clients stand out

PR agency: Artisyn Communications

Established: 2018

Contact name: Lucy Earley

Phone: 087 1234245

Email: lucy@artisyn.ie

Website: www.artisyn.ie

Lucy Earley

Social media: Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook: Artisynpr

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their audience?

A: At Artisyn, we pride ourselves in our ability to find that key insight about our client’s business that really makes their products stand out, and we are delighted to have achieved this for all our clients during the past year

That key insight might be about the FMCG itself or it might focus around the story of the brand or individual. To support this, we also offer a full range of additional services including, marketing, digital

Client list: Dublin Meat Company, Ely Winebars and loveEly retail, The Wicklow Street Clinic, Cosaintskincare.ie, Eminence Organic Skincare, Horizon Sports Management, concert promoter Selective Memory, the Beyond the Pale music festival, The Sweet Potato Pizza Company, Abair Linn Publishing, Recruiters.ie, Irish Spa Association, Equality for Children, Emma’s So Naturals Candles advertising, video editing and graphic design; all feeding into and supporting the PR campaign.

In terms of food FMCG and specialised retail we have worked with brands such as Dublin Meat Company and ‘loveEly’- Ely Wine Retail on various launches and seasonal gifting campaigns to key demographics. Our strategies incorporate interactions and partnerships with micro-influencers, celebrity endorsements as well as important press mentions. Our testimonials speak for themselves.

By Lucy Earley, founder, Artisyn Communications

Cirkle: An obsessive focus on insight-centric work

PR agency: Cirkle

Established: 1998

Contact name: Amy Searle

Phone: 01494731750

Email: amy.searle@cirkle.com

Website: www.cirkle.com

Social media: Instagram: www.instagram.com/cirklepr/

TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@cirklepr

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/cirkle

Client list: Ferrero UK & Ireland, Fox’s Burton’s Companies, PepsiCo, Birds Eye, Britvic, Heineken, Mars Petcare, Premier Foods, Haleon, Urban Foods, Dreams, Honda, Dyson, AkzoNobel, Energizer

Amy Searle

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: With an obsessive focus on insight-centric work, we don’t just tell stories. We make them. Through this lens, we have a track record of successfully shifting the dial of all our clients’ communications campaigns. Whether that’s building brand fame with shoppers and consumers, impacting stocking decisions amongst the trade or sparking intrigue and conversation across social media, our integrated eye is applied to every communications brief that enters the agency.

Cirkle’s unique structure, with three clear divisions – consumer brands, retail trade and corporate reputation – allows our clients the benefit of cohesive touch-all strategies covering specialist PR teams, creative & design, B2C & B2B social, digital & influencer and advertising & media buying teams. This collaborative approach has resulted in multiple award-winning campaigns that span many audiences.

Time is taken to carefully dissect clients’ briefs and decipher what success looks like. We ask the big questions: Who is the audience? What do we want them to think, feel or do following our campaign? We underpin this with success measuring metrics, resulting in laser-focused return on investment.

A clear correlation between campaigns and commercial results is the real beauty of retail trade communications.

We are seeing huge growth in B2B social/influencer and community-centric campaigns. As an example, our nationwide ‘Roast & Ramble’ campaign for Aunt Bessie’s was bedded on a B2B influencer strategy, which helped to deliver an increase in core line distribution rate of sale within convenience.

Cirkle was awarded SABRES EMEA Creative Consultancy of the Year 2023.

By Amy Searle managing director - retail trade at Cirkle

Harris PR: Stellar media relationships and creative approach leads to superb results

Fact File

PR agency: Harris PR Ltd

Established: July 2009

Contact name: Sonia Harris Pope founder and managing director

Phone: 0877979703

Email: sonia@harrispr.ie

Website: www.harrispr.ie

Social media: @harris_pr on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook and TikTok, and Harris Public Relations on LinkedIn

Client list: Boulder Media, Capitalflow Dingle Distillery (whiskey gin and vodka), Domino’s Pizza, Fáilte Ireland’s Púca Festival, Fresh Cuts, Holland & Barrett, iDonate.ie, Irish Haemochromatosis Association, Kärcher, My Expert Midwife, Odeon, Petmania, Porterhouse Brew Co, ReMark, The Bump Room, The Purty Kitchen

Sonia Harris Pope

Q: In the past year, how has your company demonstrated your expertise in enabling FMCG brands to get their message across to their target audience?

A: Harris PR is a member of the PRCA and a full-service agency, led by founder Sonia Harris Pope working with a team of dedicated PR specialists delivering impactful communications campaigns for brands in the FMCG, health & wellness, food & beverage retail, hospitality tourism, parenting, and charity sectors.

We understand what makes consumers tick and our stellar media relationships and creative approach has led to fruitful relationships and superb results for many household brands over the years, including Domino’s Pizza, Dingle Distillery, Holland & Barrett, NUK, AYA Supplements, and many more.

We are passionate storytellers, equipped to manage all aspects of client briefs from creative ideation, media and influencer relations, and social to corporate, recruitment, and ESG initiatives, operating as an extension of our client’s teams. Aligning with global best practice in the PR industry, we use the Barcelona Principles to measure and evaluate campaigns so that clients see the impact of our work on their business, not just the outputs in coverage terms.

Harris PR was recently highly commended at the annual PRCA Awards for Excellence in PR for our work with Domino’s, NUK and The Wicklow Escape, and is shortlisted across seven categories for four campaigns in 2023. Recently we have executed impactful campaigns for Domino’s Maynooth store opening, launching the ‘short shorts’ uniform, Fresh Cuts new season collection of sustainable apparel, an experiential approach for Dingle Distillery’s Bealtaine Single Pot Still Whiskey, the Irish Heart Foundations ‘Her Heart Matters’ campaign with Glenda Gilson, and a domestic and international campaign for Fáilte Ireland’s Púca Festival. Recent client wins include Boulder Media, Petmania, ReMark, The Odeon and The Purty Kitchen.

2023 is set to be our most exciting year yet and we look forward to welcoming more brands to the Harris PR stable

By Sonia Harris Pope, founder and managing director, Harris PR