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Slow growth continues for B.C.’s public relations industry

Lukewarm increase in the number of employees at top 20 firms over the past five years
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Bartolomiej-Pietrzyk/Shutterstock

B.C.’s largest public relations companies were already experiencing lukewarm growth in the lead-up to 2020 with a median increase in their employee base at around 7.7% over the five-year period from 2015 to 2019, but this year’s data suggests the temperature of that growth could be dropping further still.

The sluggish growth experienced last year is intensifying, according to data collected on Business in Vancouver’s Biggest Public Relations Companies in B.C. list (page 12).

The median employment change from 2016 to 2020 for the top public relations firms with data available fell to -4.2%, which indicates that employee numbers are dropping at more companies compared with a year ago.

The average five-year increase in the number of employees dropped to 12.7% from 20.8% the year before.

Over the past year, most companies on the list neither added nor subtracted employees, resulting in a median growth of 0%.

The average one-year growth for the top 20 public relations firms was 0.2% compared with 6.4% in 2019.

Stalled growth has created an opportunity for a new leader to emerge as the biggest public relations firm in the province, as Talk Shop Media (No. 1) dethroned Edelman (No. 2 ), which has held the top ranking since 2009.

In 2012, Spark PR rebranded as Talk Shop Media and ranked No. 8 on the list with 12 employees. Since then, Talk Shop Media has increased its staff 267% to 44 employees.

Talk Shop Media posted the largest one-year growth on the list, expanding by 25.7% from 35 B.C. employees in 2019.

Despite nearly doubling its workforce since 2016, Talk Shop had the fourth-largest five-year growth (76%). Jelly Digital Marketing & PR (No. 5) recorded the largest five-year employee growth on the list.

Its staff increased 144% to 22 employees in 2020 from nine in 2016.

Hill+Knowlton Strategies Canada (No. 12) had the largest five-year decline in employees, down 21% to 15 employees in 2020 from 19 employees in 2016.