What Burns Entertainment does

Burns Entertainment is a privately held, Glenview, Illinois-based B2B entertainment marketing agency founded circa 1974 (with positioning of "over 50 years" of industry experience). The firm specializes in connecting consumer brands and advertising agencies with celebrities, athletes, influencers, musicians, and sponsorship assets for use in advertising, PR, and social media campaigns. Its core service lines are Celebrity/Influencer/Athlete Partnerships, Spokesperson/Endorsements, Sponsorships, Influencer Strategy, Music & IP Licensing, and Personal Appearances/Performances/Speaking Engagements. Burns is not a technology company; it is a relationship-driven professional services intermediary, and its product is the negotiated match between a brand brief and the right pop-culture talent, packaged with strategy, valuation, contract execution, and post-deal management.

The agency generates revenue primarily through professional-services fees — retainers, project fees, and commissions on the talent deals and licensing transactions it brokers on behalf of clients. Its go-to-market is sales-led and dual-channel: direct engagement with major enterprise brands (e.g., Unilever's Hellmann's, Little Caesars, Intuit's TurboTax, Danone's OIKOS, Nissan, Crocs, KFC) and embedded partnerships with large creative agencies (VML, FCB Chicago, Havas NY, TBWA Chiat Day NY, R/GA, CYLNDR), which route celebrity-and-entertainment execution to Burns as a specialty extension. Operations are run from three full-service U.S. offices (Chicago/headquarters, Los Angeles, New York City) supplemented by affiliate offices in Asia, Europe, and South America, giving the firm effectively global sourcing reach for talent.

The team is led by CEO Doug Shabelman and President Marc Ippolito, with a C-suite that includes a Chief Business Officer (Jessica Abel) and Chief Growth Officer (Nicole Lowe), plus EVPs/SVPs running entertainment & sports partnerships, entertainment & music, and brand & agency partnerships. Headcount on the company website lists approximately 18 professionals, consistent with the "11–50" employee band reported. The firm has no disclosed funding rounds, no parent company, no institutional investors, and no identified M&A activity; ownership is management/founder-controlled.

Name

Burns Entertainment

Legal name

Burns Entertainment

Website

https://burnsent.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1974

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Burns Entertainment is a privately held B2B entertainment marketing agency connecting brands and ad agencies with celebrities, athletes, influencers, musicians, and sponsorship assets for advertising, PR, and social campaigns. It earns professional-services fees on negotiations and execution across three U.S. offices plus international affiliates.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Entertainment Marketing Agency Services

NAICS

Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (7114)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Partnerships & Sponsorship Sales (Brand Partnerships) (MPAAAHAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Athlete & Talent Representation (Agents, Managers) (MPAKAKAA), Licensing, Merchandising & Co-Branded Products (Sponsored Merchandise, Collabs) (MPAKALAE)

Keywords

• Entertainment marketing services
• Celebrity endorsement deals
• Music licensing agency
• Sponsorship strategy consulting
• Influencer partnership agency

Headquarters

HQ city

Glenview

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices6 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Entertainment Marketing Agency Services: Burns Entertainment generates revenue by serving as an intermediary between brands/agencies and celebrities, influencers, athletes, musicians, and sponsors. The company earns fees for facilitating spokesperson/endorsement deals, sponsorship strategy and management, influencer partnerships, music/IP licensing, and personal appearance bookings for TV, print, digital advertising, PR campaigns, and events.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Burns Entertainment is a B2B entertainment, sports, and pop culture marketing agency that connects brands and advertising agencies with celebrities, athletes, influencers, musicians, and sponsors for use in advertising, PR, social media, and event campaigns. It acts as an intermediary — strategizing, negotiating, and managing spokesperson, endorsement, sponsorship, influencer, music/IP licensing, and personal appearance deals on behalf of clients. Service revenue is generated through project and retainer fees tied to the scope of each partnership engagement.

Product overview

Burns Entertainment is a pop culture marketing agency offering a unified suite of services centered on connecting brands with entertainment talent. The core offering combines Celebrity/Influencer/Athlete Partnerships, Spokesperson/Endorsements, Sponsorships, Influencer Strategy, Music & IP Licensing, and Personal Appearances/Performances/Speaking Engagements into an integrated service model. The agency leverages data-driven precision and industry expertise to strategize and negotiate partnerships for advertising, PR, and social media initiatives.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Celebrity / Influencer / Athlete Partnerships Connects brands and advertising agencies with celebrities, influencers, athletes, and music talent for use in advertising, PR, and social media campaigns.
• Spokesperson / Endorsements Manages spokesperson and endorsement deals for brand clients, including TV, print, and digital advertising, voiceovers, and event appearances.
• Sponsorships Provides sponsorship strategy, partner identification, valuation and negotiation, partnership management, and tour sponsorship services for brand clients.
• Influencer Strategy Offers multi-talent amplification, micro and regional influencer programs, events, and measurement and analytics for brand influencer campaigns.
• Music & IP Licensing Handles music licensing, movie and TV IP licensing, and master and publishing rights for popular and original music used in brand campaigns.
• Personal Appearances / Performances / Speaking Engagements Secures corporate and private events, music and comedy performances, and speaking engagements for celebrity and athlete clients.

Named customers32 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Wreaths Across AmericaminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 9 June 2026Wreaths Across America, a nonprofit honoring fallen veterans through wreath placements, partnered with Burns & Co. Entertainment to support the feature film JIMMY based on the life of Hollywood legend and World War II hero Jimmy Stewart. Under the partnership, WAA directs $5 of every $17 wreath sponsorship to the film's Give Back campaign, which provides donated movie tickets to active-duty military, veterans, and their families through Vet Tix. The film opened nationwide on November 6, 2026.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Branded Entertainment Network (BEN): BEN is the most direct comparable — a celebrity-and-talent partnership agency that connects brands with A-list celebrities, musicians and influencers for advertising campaigns. Like Burns, BEN sits between brands/agencies and talent to negotiate endorsements, product placement, music sync and personal appearances.
• The Lede Company: The Lede Company is a talent management and brand partnerships firm representing actors, musicians, athletes and creators for endorsement, licensing and appearance deals. It directly mirrors Burns' celebrity/influencer partnership and licensing services for brand clients.
• ID PR: ID PR is a celebrity and lifestyle public-relations agency that brokers talent partnerships between brands and entertainers for campaigns, endorsements and events — a closely overlapping service set with Burns' spokesperson, endorsement and PR campaign work.
• BWR Public Relations (now LionsRane Stuntbusters): BWR is an entertainment-led PR and talent partnerships agency representing celebrities and managing brand endorsement deals. Its celebrity-PR-plus-brand-campaign offering is highly analogous to Burns' model.

Broad incumbents

• MKTG (Dentsu): MKTG is Dentsu's global sports and entertainment marketing network that connects brands with celebrities, athletes and sponsorship properties at scale. It competes with Burns for celebrity/sports partnership briefs but operates as part of a much larger holding-company portfolio.
• Octagon: Octagon is a global sports and entertainment marketing agency (owned by IPG) that manages athlete representation, sponsorship and brand endorsement campaigns. It overlaps with Burns' sports and athlete endorsement work but is part of a much broader holding-company portfolio.
• Endeavor (WME): Endeavor, parent of WME, is a global sports and entertainment company representing talent and brokering brand partnerships at massive scale. While much larger than Burns, it competes in the same celebrity/sports endorsement and licensing market.
• Creative Artists Agency (CAA): CAA is one of the largest talent and sports agencies globally, representing artists, athletes and brands across entertainment, endorsements and licensing. Its brand-partnerships work competes head-to-head with Burns for celebrity endorsement briefs from major advertisers.
• United Talent Agency (UTA): UTA is a major global talent and entertainment agency representing actors, musicians, athletes and digital creators for endorsements, appearances and licensing. It is a broader incumbent in the same celebrity-partnership space where Burns operates.

Emerging players

• Carusele: Carusele is an influencer marketing agency focused on data-driven creator campaigns for enterprise brands. It overlaps with Burns' influencer strategy offering but is more technology-led and concentrated in mid-tier creators rather than A-list celebrity endorsements.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/burnsent
• Xx.com/burnsent

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Burns Entertainment