What Westander does

Westander is a privately held Swedish PR and communications consultancy headquartered at Hammarbybacken 27 in Stockholm, founded in 2000 by brothers Patrik Westander and Henrik Westander. It employs approximately 30 people organised into business units covering sustainability, public affairs, climate and energy, and thought leadership, and serves large enterprises, industry associations, fast-growing startups, sustainability-focused firms, and nonprofits across Sweden. Patrik Westander serves as CEO and main owner; the Westander family (including Tim Westander in business development) retains partnership and ownership involvement, and the firm operates without external funding or a parent company.

The firm's core offering spans crisis communication, media training, public affairs and lobbying, brand and corporate communications strategy, sustainability and ESRS reporting, leadership development, and AI advisory. It monetises through ongoing advisory retainers, full-day open enrollment courses (SEK 14,850 per participant, capped at 12 per session) and custom corporate training (SEK 108,000 for up to 15 participants), 45-minute inspirational presentations (SEK 27,000 each), and a publishing business built around the annual Pr-handboken — now in its 22nd edition with over 280,000 copies distributed — plus specialised handbooks on crisis, leadership, brand, media training, public affairs, and digital communications.

Westander's go-to-market is sales-led and content-driven: it openly publishes all ongoing lobbying clients, runs a weekly newsletter and 28+ open courses per year (with recommendation scores of 9.0–10.0/10), and leverages named senior consultants with backgrounds in journalism (TT, Dagens Nyheter, Sveriges Radio), politics, and senior corporate roles as demand-generation assets. It holds a strategic partnership with Northwave Cyber Security for joint cyber crisis services and was inducted into the Årets Byrå Hall of Fame in 2025. The technology footprint is minimal; the firm is a professional services business whose primary intangible asset is its proprietary content library and senior consultant bench.

Name

Westander

Legal name

Westander

Website

https://www.westander.se/

Company type

Private

Founded year

2000

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Westander is a Stockholm-based, family-owned Swedish PR and communications consultancy founded in 2000, serving enterprises, industry associations, startups, and nonprofits with crisis, public affairs, sustainability, media training, and leadership services, supported by an annual handbook and open course catalogue.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Relations & Communications Consulting

NAICS

Public Relations Agencies (541820)

SIC

Services-Advertising (7310)

akta.pro primary industry

PR, Corporate Communications & Crisis Management (BPAFAAAL)

Keywords

• Public relations consulting
• Crisis communication advisory
• Media training services
• Public affairs consulting
• Corporate communications strategy

Headquarters

HQ city

Stockholm

HQ country

Sweden

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. PR and Communications Consulting: Advisory services spanning strategy, brand strategy, crisis communications, media training, public affairs, sustainability communication, opinion building, leadership coaching, and related areas. Billed as ongoing client assignments.
2. Open Enrollment Courses: Full-day courses (held at Westander's Stockholm office) priced at 14,850 SEK per participant excluding VAT. Topics include media training, crisis strategy, leadership, sustainability strategy, lobbying, public speaking, moderation, brand strategy, and communications strategy. Includes individual follow-up advisory sessions. Company-exclusive bookings available for 108,000 SEK for up to 15 participants.
3. Inspirational Presentations: 45-minute inspirational talks priced at 27,000 SEK excluding VAT (within Stockholm). Subjects include sustainability communication, climate communication, storytelling, leadership, public affairs, and media. Billed after the presentation.
4. PR Handbook Publications: Sale of printed handbooks including Pr-handboken 2026 (22nd edition), Krishandboken, Ledarskapshandboken, Medieträningshandboken, Varumärkeshandboken, and others covering various communications and leadership topics.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Westander is a Swedish strategic public relations consultancy that sells senior-level PR advisory services, including crisis communication, media training, public affairs, sustainability communication, brand strategy, and leadership communication. In parallel, the firm operates open-enrollment training courses, delivers inspirational keynote presentations, and publishes a catalogue of specialized communication handbooks for individual and corporate buyers.

Product overview

Westander is a Swedish PR agency offering a comprehensive suite of consulting services centered on strategic communication, public relations, and opinion formation. The core offering includes the annual Pr-handboken (PR Handbook), open training courses with high recommendation ratings (9.0-9.8/10), and specialized service areas. Services span AI leadership, crisis communication, media training, public affairs, brand strategy, leadership development, campaign management, moderation, presentation techniques, and strategic board advisory. The agency also provides specialist expertise in sustainability, cybersecurity, corporate communications, business and human rights, climate and energy, health, circular economy, culture, and education sectors. Courses and inspiration lectures complement the consulting offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• PR and Strategic Communications Consulting Senior-level strategic PR advisory for corporations, public-sector bodies and other organizations, covering positioning, stakeholder engagement and ongoing counsel.
• Crisis Communication Services Specialized crisis communication advisory including preparedness, response and training for organizations facing reputational risk.
• Media Training Training services preparing executives and spokespersons for media appearances and interviews.
• Public Affairs and Opinion Formation (Opinionsbildning) Strategic public-affairs and opinion-formation advisory for organizations engaging with policymakers, regulators and other stakeholders.
• Sustainability Communications Communications advisory focused on sustainability positioning, ESG narrative development and stakeholder engagement.
• Brand Strategy (Varumärkesstrategi) Strategic brand and positioning advisory for organizations seeking to define or refresh their brand narrative.
• Leadership Communication (Ledarskap) Advisory and content services supporting executive leadership positioning, voice and reputation.
• Strategic Advisory for Boards Strategic communications and public-affairs advisory targeted at boards of directors.
• AI Search Visibility (Synlighet i AI-sök) Advisory service helping organizations improve their visibility and representation in AI-driven search and answer engines.
• Campaigns (Kampanjer) Design and execution of integrated communications campaigns for corporate and organizational clients.
• Moderation Services (Moderatorskap) Professional moderation of panels, conferences and events.
• Presentation Techniques (Presentationsteknik) Advisory and coaching on presentation delivery for executives and other professionals.
• Open-Enrollment Courses (Öppna kurser) Public training courses in PR, media training, presentation techniques, leadership communication and crisis communication, available for individual enrollment.
• Inspirational Presentations (Inspirationsföredrag) Bookable keynote and inspirational presentations delivered at corporate events and conferences.
• PR Handbook (Pr-handboken) Published handbook on public relations, sold as a standalone reference book to professionals and organizations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Open courses receive recommendation ratings of 9.8 on a 10-point scale for 'Bli en skicklig pressansvarig'
• +10 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 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.

• Northwave Cyber SecuritycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerWestander has a partnership with Northwave Cyber Security, a cybersecurity firm, and offers joint services within cyber crisis management including preventive crisis plans, incident response, and scenario exercises. This partnership enables Westander to offer comprehensive cyber crisis communication services to clients facing digital threats and cyber incidents.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Gullers Grupp: Swedish communications consultancy offering PR, public affairs, and corporate communications services. Inducted alongside Westander into the Årets Byrå Hall of Fame in 2025, indicating a directly comparable position in the Swedish agency market.
• EY Doberman: Swedish strategy, brand, and communications agency with a strong public affairs and corporate communications practice. Fellow Hall of Fame 2025 inductee, competing for the same enterprise clients and awards in the Swedish market.
• Kreab: Stockholm-headquartered public affairs and communications consultancy with Nordic and global reach. Overlaps directly with Westander's Public Affairs, opinion building, and corporate communications services.
• Rud Pedersen Public Affairs: Nordic public affairs and communications consultancy with offices across Scandinavia. Competes with Westander's Public Affairs unit for corporate, association, and government-relations mandates in the Nordic region.
• Narva: Stockholm-based communications consultancy offering PR, public affairs, and corporate communications to enterprise and public-sector clients, directly competing with Westander in the Swedish market.

Regional players

• Geelmuyden.Kiese: Norwegian-headquartered communications consultancy with Nordic operations in public affairs, PR, and crisis communications. Comparable in services but primarily competing in Norway rather than Sweden.

Broad incumbents

• Hill+Knowlton Strategies: Global public relations firm offering corporate communications, public affairs, and crisis services. Westander senior consultant Maja Stridsberg previously worked at H+K Strategies, reflecting overlap in the Swedish enterprise market.
• Burson: Global public relations and communications firm (formed from the merger of Burson-Marsteller and Cohn & Wolfe). Provides the same broad portfolio of PR, public affairs, and crisis services that Westander offers, but at global scale.
• Edelman: Global public relations firm with a Stockholm office providing corporate communications, public affairs, and brand strategy. Competes for the same enterprise clients as Westander but with substantially larger resources and proprietary tools.
• MSL Group: Global public relations and integrated communications agency within Publicis Groupe. Offers PR, public affairs, and corporate communications at scale, including Nordic operations that compete for enterprise mandates in Sweden.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/westander
• Facebookfacebook.com/Westander

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 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 Westander