Story Partners

What Story Partners does

Story Partners is a Washington, D.C.-based public affairs and strategic communications agency founded in 2010 by Gloria Story Dittus, following the acquisition of her prior firm Dittus Communications by FTI Consulting. The firm delivers four core service lines: public affairs counsel, crisis communications, digital and social media strategy, and creative services, targeting Fortune 500 corporations, industry trade associations, and government entities. Its work spans high-stakes policy advocacy, issue campaigns, and reputation management, with case studies including the Trucking Moves America Forward campaign (running since 2013) and thought leadership work for the Animal Health Institute and Seafood4America. The agency generates revenue through retainer-based professional services engagements and project fees typical of B2B advisory firms, with quote-based pricing rather than standardized rates, and reports multiple client relationships that have continued for five, ten, and twenty-plus years.

The firm operates from a single Washington, D.C. headquarters and is led by Gloria Story Dittus as Chair, with Kristin Litterst as Managing Director, Natisha Dawson as Chief Financial Officer, and a senior team including Betsy Stephenson (SVP) and additional VPs, directors, and senior account executives. Leadership is staffed by veterans of Porter Novelli, Powell Tate, Ogilvy PR, and Dittus Communications. Distribution is driven by senior-level direct client engagement, supplemented by the monthly 'Inside Story' newsletter, thought leadership articles on policy topics, an active social media presence, and the annual Washington Women in Journalism Awards co-hosted with Washingtonian Magazine — now in its 13th year and drawing Fortune 500 sponsors including Amazon, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, and Toyota.

The business model is relationship-driven professional services with no proprietary technology, no AI/ML products, and no disclosed digital distribution channels. There is no evidence of external institutional investment, and the firm appears to be founder-controlled and privately held. Geographic reach is limited to the United States, and the client base is concentrated in industries with significant federal policy exposure including transportation, animal health, food and agriculture, cybersecurity, and manufacturing.

Name

Story Partners

Legal name

Story Partners

Website

https://storypartnersdc.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Story Partners is a Washington, D.C. public affairs agency founded in 2010 that provides public affairs counsel, crisis communications, digital and social media strategy, and creative services to Fortune 500 corporations, trade associations, and government entities, with client relationships often spanning 5-20+ years.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Washington

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Strategic Communications Consulting: Professional advisory services for public affairs, crisis communications, digital and social media strategy, and creative services. Revenue is generated through retainer-based consulting engagements and project fees with enterprise clients including corporations, trade associations, and government entities.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Story Partners is a public affairs agency that delivers strategic public affairs counsel, crisis communications, digital and social media strategy, and creative services to enterprise clients including Fortune 500 corporations, trade associations, and government entities. Revenue is generated through retainer-based and project-based consulting engagements focused on advancing policy objectives, protecting brand reputation, and shaping public discourse in Washington, D.C.-adjacent issue environments. The firm also produces the Inside Story newsletter and co-hosts the Washington Women in Journalism Awards with Washingtonian magazine.

Product overview

Story Partners is a public affairs agency offering a unified suite of communications services including Public Affairs counsel, Crisis Communications, Digital & Social Media, and Creative Services. The agency supports clients in enhancing brand reputation, achieving communications goals, and advancing policy objectives. Additionally, the company publishes the Inside Story monthly newsletter and hosts the annual Washington Women in Journalism Awards event in partnership with Washingtonian.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered flagship and core.

• Washingtonian MagazineflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2013Story Partners and Washingtonian magazine co-host the annual Washington Women in Journalism Awards, a prestigious ceremony celebrating women journalists during White House Correspondents' Weekend. This partnership, now in its 13th year, positions Story Partners at the intersection of journalism, policy, and corporate leadership. The event attracts Fortune 500 sponsors including Amazon, Microsoft, Johnson & Johnson, and major industry associations.
• Washington Women in Journalism Awards SponsorscoreGTM or Marketing PartnerAnnual awards event attracts sponsors from major industries including: Aflac, Alibaba, Amazon, American Beverage Association, American Council of Life Insurers, American Petroleum Institute, Association of Equipment Manufacturers, Consumer Brands Association, Delta, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, National Association of Manufacturers, National Retail Federation, PhRMA, Southern Company, Toyota, U.S. Chamber of Commerce. These sponsors represent potential client relationships and demonstrate industry access.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Mercury: Boutique public affairs and strategic communications firm headquartered in Washington, D.C., serving Fortune 500 corporations, trade associations, and advocacy groups on policy, reputation, and brand campaigns — a direct head-to-head competitor in the DC public affairs market.
• Powell Tate: Washington, D.C.-based public affairs and strategic communications firm with deep expertise in corporate positioning, crisis, and policy advocacy — same category, same client base, and even shares talent lineage with Story Partners (Betsy Stephenson previously worked at Powell Tate).
• VOX Global: Washington, D.C.-based public affairs firm (part of the Omnicom network) providing strategic communications, crisis management, and advocacy services to corporations and trade associations — directly competes for the same Fortune 500 and association client mandates.
• HDMK: Washington, D.C.-based boutique public affairs firm serving Fortune 500 companies, trade associations, and nonprofit clients on issue advocacy, crisis communications, and reputation management — a near-direct competitor at similar boutique scale.
• FP1 Strategies: Republican-leaning public affairs and strategic communications agency in Washington, D.C. serving corporate, association, and political clients on policy campaigns and crisis response — directly comparable in service mix and DC-centric client base.
• Targeted Victory: Washington, D.C.-based public affairs, advocacy, and digital marketing firm offering integrated campaigns for corporate, association, and political clients — closely comparable in combining public affairs with digital and social media strategy.

Broad incumbents

• Ogilvy Public Relations: Global public relations and communications network with significant public affairs and crisis capabilities. Competes with Story Partners on corporate advocacy and reputation work but offers a much broader global service portfolio and is part of WPP.
• Porter Novelli: Global public relations network with strong public affairs and corporate communications practice. Competes for similar Fortune 500 and association mandates; Story Partners' leadership includes alumni of Porter Novelli, indicating direct talent overlap.
• Edelman: Largest global public relations firm with deep public affairs, policy, and crisis communications capabilities. Serves many of the same Fortune 500 and association clients as Story Partners but at significantly greater scale and geographic reach.
• Burson (BCW / Burson Cohn & Wolfe): Global public relations and public affairs firm (formed via the BCW merger) within WPP, offering corporate affairs, crisis, and policy advocacy. Directly overlaps with Story Partners' service lines but at much greater scale and with international reach.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/storypartners
• Facebookfacebook.com/StoryPartnersDC
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/story-partners
• Instagraminstagram.com/storypartners

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 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 Story Partners