What Craft Public Relations does

Craft Public Relations is a Toronto-based, privately held public relations agency founded in 2015 by Lisa Pasquin, operating from a single headquarters at 507 King Street East. The firm delivers strategic communications, media relations, integrated marketing campaigns, and creator-partnership programs to enterprise consumer brands, with a publicly disclosed client roster that includes Nintendo, HelloFresh, Truly, Tim Hortons, Burger King, Hershey, Penguin, Pluto TV, and Zabiha Halal. Its service output has been validated by multiple regional and global industry awards, including CPRS Gold Awards, IABC Gold Quill recognition, and Sabre Award finalist placements in 2023, anchored by campaigns generating up to 23 million earned media impressions and 275+ pieces of coverage.

The business model is professional-services-based, with quote-based retainers and project fees that are not publicly disclosed. The agency has extended its offering beyond traditional PR through two adjacent assets: a curated Canadian Creator Roster that connects brands with influencers via paid programs, product seeding, and experience curation, and a consumer merchandise line (Craft Cap at $30, with 100% of proceeds donated to charity partner First Book Canada). The team has scaled to 40+ members across nine employment levels — from $40K interns to $180K+ Senior Vice Presidents — with quarterly internship cohorts starting in January, May, and September, and unusually transparent publicly disclosed salary bands. Craft's go-to-market is sales-led and reputation-driven, relying on direct relationships, case-study showcasing, and the visibility generated by its own award-winning campaigns rather than paid acquisition.

The firm is founder-owned and founder-operated with no disclosed outside investment, no parent company, and no M&A history. Geographically it is Canada-only with no international offices disclosed, and its operating geographies list Canada as its sole market. There is no disclosed technology product, AI/ML capability, or proprietary platform; the agency's moat is built on creative talent, campaign reputation, the Creator Roster channel, and a distinctive social-impact narrative anchored by its long-running pro bono partnership with First Book Canada.

Name

Craft Public Relations

Legal name

Craft Public Relations

Website

https://craftpublicrelations.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Craft Public Relations is a Toronto-based, privately held PR agency that delivers strategic communications, media relations, and creator-partnership campaigns to enterprise consumer brands including Nintendo, HelloFresh, Tim Hortons, and Hershey, operating with a 40+ person team and a curated Canadian Creator Roster.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Toronto

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. PR and Communications Services: Professional services revenue from developing and executing PR campaigns, media relations, and communications strategies for brand clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Craft Public Relations is a Toronto-based communications agency that develops and executes creative public relations campaigns, media relations strategies, and brand storytelling programs for consumer brand clients. The firm connects brands with Canadian creators through paid programs, product seeding, and experience curation, and supplements its service revenue with a branded merchandise line (Craft Cap) whose proceeds are donated to charity.

Product overview

Craft Public Relations is a public relations agency offering communications, marketing, and brand storytelling services. The agency's offerings include strategic PR campaigns, creator partnerships with Canadian influencers, and a merchandise line. The core service portfolio centers on creative communications strategies for brand clients, supplemented by community initiatives such as a student hackathon (Creative for a Cause) and a scholarship program (Craft Public Relations Creative Communicators Scholarship) at Humber College. The only named product in their merchandise line is the Craft Cap.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Relations and Communications Services End-to-end creative PR campaign development and execution for consumer brand clients, including strategic communications planning, media relations, earned media strategy, brand storytelling, and integrated marketing campaigns. Services are tailored to each client and delivered on a project/quote basis.
• Canadian Creator Partnership Program A curated roster of Canadian creators through which Craft Public Relations connects leading consumer brand clients with paid programs, product seeding, and experience curation. Creators can apply to join the roster via a Google Form, and brands access creators through Craft as the intermediary.
• Craft Cap A one-size, adjustable-strap baseball cap branded with the Craft Public Relations logo, priced at $30.00, with 100% of sale proceeds donated to First Book Canada. Sold via the company's online merch storefront.

Quantifiable outcome

• 23+ million earned media impressions for Sharing Halal campaign
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers9 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• First Book CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-standing charity partner for Creative for a Cause annual hackathon event. Craft provides pro bono communications support to First Book Canada, an organization on a mission to transform lives of children in need by improving access to educational opportunities. Additionally, 100% of Craft Cap merchandise sales are donated to First Book Canada.
• LegerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnered with Leger on a national survey exploring Islamophobia in Canada for the Sharing Halal campaign. Leger conducted research that provided data supporting the campaign's messaging about Muslim Canadians.
• Canadian Creators (Roster)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCurated roster of Canadian creators that Craft connects with leading brands through paid programs, product seeding, and experience curation. Creators can apply to be added to the roster via a Google Form.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Citizen Relations: Toronto-headquartered creative communications and PR agency of comparable size, serving Canadian and global consumer-brand clients with integrated PR, influencer, and social campaigns — directly comparable boutique positioning and service mix.
• Strategic Objectives: One of Canada's longest-standing independent PR agencies, based in Toronto with a similar mid-sized team serving consumer and B2B brands across earned media, influencer, and integrated campaigns.
• Energi PR: Toronto-based Canadian PR agency serving consumer, lifestyle, and tech brands with media relations and integrated campaigns — comparable boutique size and Toronto-headquartered, consumer-brand client profile.
• Veritas Communications: Toronto-headquartered independent PR and integrated communications agency of similar scale, focused on consumer-brand storytelling and earned media — direct Canadian mid-market competitor.
• APEX Public Relations: Canadian mid-sized PR agency with consumer-brand expertise spanning PR, influencer marketing, and social — comparable service portfolio and target client profile.

Broad incumbents

• Edelman: Global top-tier PR firm with a major Toronto office serving many of the same consumer-brand categories as Craft; competes for enterprise AOR assignments at a much larger scale and broader service breadth.
• Weber Shandwick: Global communications agency with significant Canadian operations serving consumer-brand clients on PR, influencer, and integrated campaigns — represents the larger incumbent alternative for the same RFPs.
• FleishmanHillard: Large global PR network with a Toronto presence and deep consumer-brand practice — competes with Craft for mid-to-large Canadian consumer-brand assignments at a broader service-scope level.
• Hill & Knowlton: Global public relations firm with established Canadian operations and a strong consumer-brand and corporate reputation practice — typical enterprise incumbent competing for the same Canadian brand budgets.
• Zeno Group: Global communications agency with a Toronto office focused on consumer, tech, and lifestyle brands with earned media plus influencer capabilities — broader-scale incumbent in Craft's category.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/craft-public-relations
• Instagraminstagram.com/craftpublicrelations
• Xx.com/crftpr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 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 Craft Public Relations