Hirsch Leatherwood

What Hirsch Leatherwood does

Hirsch Leatherwood is a New York-based strategic communications firm and content studio founded in 2021 by co-founders Steve Hirsch (CEO) and Evan Leatherwood (President). The firm provides corporate communications, brand strategy, media relations, investor relations, reputation management, crisis communications, and content creation services to a client mix spanning Fortune 500 enterprises and emerging challengers across technology, finance, healthcare, media, real estate, transportation, sports & entertainment, and non-profit verticals. Notable enterprise clients include GE Healthcare, Bentley Systems, DAZN, the New York Mets, JFK New Terminal One, Optimizely, Press Ganey, and Toronto Pearson Airport, while startup clients include Backstage, Sharebite, Primasun, Revela, and Evergreen.

The firm's product surface is organized around two core service lines — Strategic Communications and Content Studio — augmented by the HL Studios sub-brand, which functions as a media arm producing the Out of Scope Podcast, a portfolio of OOS Daily newsletters (CMO Edition, CCO Edition, Pop Culture Cheat Sheet), and quarterly industry events. The firm also publishes proprietary research including the 2025 Celebrity Influence Index and Worth the Hype study. The underlying technology stack is primarily a content/media operations platform rather than a software product; the firm notes "custom AI workflows" as part of its digital optimization offering, but no proprietary AI products, APIs, or technical platforms are disclosed.

The business model is classic B2B professional services: quote-based, project and retainer engagements with multi-year contract cadence, no public pricing, and direct enterprise sales motion. Client acquisition is driven by senior-led business development, industry events, and earned media visibility (Wall Street Journal, PRWeek, Fortune, Fast Company, Observer, LA Times). The firm is privately held, founder-led, with no disclosed external funding, parent company, or M&A activity.

Name

Hirsch Leatherwood

Website

https://hirschleatherwood.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Hirsch Leatherwood is a New York-based strategic communications firm and content studio founded in 2021, serving Fortune 500 companies and emerging startups with brand strategy, media relations, investor relations, reputation management, and proprietary content and research platforms across multiple industries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Revenue model

1. Strategic Communications Services: Professional services revenue from corporate communications consulting including brand strategy, media relations, investor relations, and reputation management for enterprise clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Hirsch Leatherwood is a strategic communications firm and content studio that delivers corporate communications, brand strategy, media relations, investor relations, reputation management, and multi-format content creation for Fortune 500 companies and emerging challengers across industries. Its practice combines best-in-class corporate communications with a modern approach to brand and reputation, branded as 'Smart Visibility', and includes an in-house content studio for video, podcasts, newsletters, white papers, executive visibility programs, and custom AI-enabled digital workflows.

Product overview

Hirsch Leatherwood is a strategic communications firm and content studio providing corporate communications and digital amplification services. The company operates two core service offerings: Strategic Communications (brand strategy, media relations, investor relations, reputation management, events) and Content Studio (brand content, executive visibility, creative experiences, digital optimization, market research). Their HL Studios media arm produces the Out of Scope Podcast, manages three newsletter products (OOS Daily: CMO Edition, OOS Daily: CCO Edition, and OOS: Pop Culture Cheat Sheet), and organizes High-Gloss Experiences. The firm also conducts proprietary research including the 2025 Celebrity Influence Index and Worth the Hype media properties study.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• HL Studios: Hirsch Leatherwood Studios is the company's new media arm built for a scroll-first, second-screen world, creating multi-format storytelling and real-world experiences.

Products and services

• Strategic Communications A strategic communications service providing brand strategy and positioning, media relations, investor relations, reputation management, and events and partnerships services for Fortune 500 companies and emerging challenger brands.

Quantifiable outcome

• Primasun achieved 55% awareness increase in key markets within 9 months
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers27 records

Segments7 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SonorominorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 February 2024Hirsch Leatherwood was hired by Hispanic media company Sonoro for corporate communications support to help expand its US footprint and increase consumer offerings and partnerships on both sides of the border.

Scale indicators2 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• BerlinRosen: Large independent strategic communications and PR firm based in New York serving Fortune 500 and high-growth clients across technology, real estate, consumer, and social impact verticals; the closest comparable boutique-to-mid-market agency competitor to Hirsch Leatherwood.
• M Booth: New York-based integrated communications and PR agency serving major consumer, health, technology, and corporate clients, with a strong owned-content and earned-media model comparable to Hirsch Leatherwood's content-studio-led approach.
• Inkhouse: Boutique public relations agency focused on technology, healthcare, and consumer brands, similar in size, vertical mix, and integrated content approach to Hirsch Leatherwood.
• Day One Agency: Boutique PR and communications firm serving venture-backed and enterprise technology clients, directly comparable in targeting emerging challengers alongside Fortune 500 brands.
• 5W Public Relations: Mid-sized independent PR agency headquartered in New York offering corporate communications, consumer PR, and digital services to enterprise clients; competes for the same corporate reputation and media-relations budgets.
• Zen Media: Boutique PR and communications firm with an integrated content, research, and thought-leadership model serving B2B technology and enterprise clients, closely comparable to Hirsch Leatherwood's HL Studios approach.
• RH Strategic: Boutique communications and public affairs agency with strong healthcare, technology, and association clients; competes for similar mid-market enterprise reputation and stakeholder engagement mandates.
• Walker Sands: Integrated B2B marketing and communications agency combining PR, content, and demand generation for technology and enterprise clients, comparable in offering mix and client profile.

Broad incumbents

• Edelman: World's largest independent PR firm with a full-service corporate communications, brand, and reputation practice; represents the global mega-agency alternative that enterprises weigh against boutique firms like Hirsch Leatherwood.
• Weber Shandwick: Global top-tier public relations and communications agency serving Fortune 500 clients across healthcare, technology, and consumer; the established incumbent competing for the same enterprise reputation-management spend.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@HirschLeatherwood
• Xx.com/hirschleather
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/hirsch-leatherwood

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Hirsch Leatherwood