bde&co.

What bde&co. does

bde&co. is a privately held, founder-owned communications agency founded in 1997 and headquartered in New York City that delivers public relations, social media, research, SEO, consulting, influencer marketing, and event management services to enterprise clients in the architecture, design, travel, culture, lifestyle, and hospitality industries. The firm was originally named 'bde & co.' and rebranded to 'bde&co.' on September 12, 2022 under the continued leadership of Founder & CEO Beth Dickstein. The client roster includes well-known design brands such as Heller, Ligne Roset, Flos, Louis Poulsen, Steelcase, Kartell, Humanscale, Haworth, Caesarstone, and Ethnicraft, indicating a focus on premium international design manufacturers rather than technology or consumer packaged goods.

The company operates as a service-based business with no proprietary technology platform, generating revenue across six formal service lines — PR & Communications, Social Media, Research & Consulting, SEO, Influencer Marketing, and Event Management — delivered through custom, quote-based engagements. Geographic reach is anchored in NYC with a 2018 strategic partnership with Agence 14 Septembre providing local presence in London, Paris, Lyon, and Milan. The firm actively participates in and produces events around major design trade shows (NYCxDesign, NeoCon, ICFF, Lightfair, Salone del Mobile, High Point Market, Fulton Market Design Days) and runs a content hub including the 'Why New York?' interview series, the 'Let's Talk' virtual panel series, and the Be Original Americas virtual fellowship, which reached more than 3,400 registered students across 30+ countries.

Leadership consists of Founder & CEO Beth Dickstein, Senior Vice President Karen Brooking, Vice President Beth Massey, and Associate Director of Digital Benjamin Meyers. The firm is privately held with no disclosed institutional investment, parent company, public listing, or external funding rounds. There is no app, API, or technology product; the entire offering is human-delivered professional services supported by standard third-party tools.

Name

bde&co.

Legal name

bde&co.

Website

https://bdeandco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

bde&co. is a New York-based, founder-owned communications agency founded in 1997 that delivers PR, social media, SEO, consulting, influencer marketing, and event services primarily to enterprise clients in the architecture, design, and lifestyle industries across North America and Europe.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Relations & Marketing Services

NAICS

Public Relations Agencies (541820), Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Technology & B2B PR (BPAFADAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Technology & B2B PR (MPAAADAC)

Keywords

• Public relations services
• Social media marketing
• Communications agency
• Event management
• Influencer marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. PR & Communications Services: Professional services revenue from public relations, media relations, brand storytelling, speaking opportunities, and awards generation for design industry clients.
2. Social Media Services: Content strategy, community management, social media analytics, advertising campaign management, and brand social media audits for clients.
3. Research & Consulting: Competitive analyses across market-specific, social media, quantitative and qualitative dimensions; strategic planning; media training; and internal think tanks with client teams.
4. SEO Services: Website performance auditing, SEO keyword analysis, list building, and web content recommendations and implementation.
5. Influencer Marketing: Handpicked and vetted influencer programs with curated micro- and macro-influencer networks; end-to-end campaign management including research, budgeting, and results measurement.
6. Event Management: Full-service event planning including concept ideation, venue selection, budget administration, guest list development, logistics, on-site management, and both in-person and virtual event execution.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

bde&co. is a PR and Social Media Marketing Agency providing Public Relations, Social Media Management, Research, SEO, Consulting, Influencer Marketing, and Events Management services. Its sole focus is the architecture and design industry, with deep media, blogger, and influencer relationships cultivated across more than 25 years of category expertise. Services are delivered as integrated, custom engagements for enterprise design brands.

Product overview

bde&co. is a PR and Social Media Marketing Agency offering a comprehensive suite of communications services. The company operates as a unified service offering rather than a software platform, providing Public Relations, Social Media Management, Research, SEO, Consulting, Influencer Marketing, and Events Management as integrated service modules. These services work together to deliver brand storytelling, media relations, and communications strategy primarily for the architecture and design industries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Public Relations Services Media relations, brand storytelling, speaking opportunities, and awards generation services for design industry clients.
• Social Media Services Content strategy, content creation, community management, social media analytics, advertising campaign development, and brand social media audits for design clients.
• Research Services Competitive analyses across market-specific, social media, quantitative and qualitative domains, plus surveys, focus groups, and market trend research.
• Search Engine Optimization Website performance auditing, SEO keyword analysis, list building, and web content recommendations and implementation.
• Consulting Services Think tanks with internal teams, strategic planning, media planning and buying, social media workshops, consultation, and media training.
• Influencer Marketing Vetted influencer programs with research, budgeting, curated networks of micro and macro influencers, end-to-end campaign management, and relationship building.
• Events Management Concept ideation, venue selection, budget administration, guest list development, logistics, on-site management, and execution of both in-person and virtual events.

Quantifiable outcome

• Virtual fellowship program reached 3,400+ registered students across more than 30 countries

Named customers22 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 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.

• Agence 14 SeptembrecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2018Strategic partnership formed in 2018 to better serve forward-thinking design clients. Extends bde&co.'s global footprint with partners in London, Paris, Lyon, and Milan, strengthening the company's local and global foundation for serving design industry clients internationally.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• 5W Public Relations: Large independent U.S. PR agency with dedicated Consumer, Lifestyle, and B2B practices; competes for the same enterprise design, furniture, and hospitality clients bde&co. serves, but at materially greater scale and with broader service breadth.
• Olson Engage: Mid-sized engagement marketing agency with consumer, design, and lifestyle capabilities; competes for project-based PR, influencer, and event mandates from design manufacturers.
• FrazierHeiby: Mid-sized independent communications firm offering PR and brand strategy across B2B verticals; competes for design and lifestyle adjacent client mandates and operates a similar integrated-services model.
• Edelman: Global communications giant with established design, architecture, and luxury practices; competes for marquee design manufacturer accounts (Steelcase, Haworth-type) and represents the upper bound on scale that bde&co.'s clients may grow into.

Regional players

• Giant PR: London-based design and architecture PR specialist serving European premium design brands; a strong comparable in vertical specialty and event-driven model, but with primary geographic focus on the UK and European market.

Emerging players

• Caliber Group: Integrated marketing and PR firm with lifestyle and design practice exposure; partial overlap with bde&co. in client type and integrated services model, with a slightly broader vertical mix.

Direct peers

• Evins Communications: Boutique PR and communications firm focused on luxury, lifestyle, hospitality, and design brands; highly comparable to bde&co. in client vertical, integrated services stack, and senior-led relationship model.
• Performa Public Relations: PR agency focused on home, design, and lifestyle brands; directly comparable in target client (furniture, textiles, lighting manufacturers) and event-driven GTM.
• Novità Communications: Long-standing New York-based PR and marketing agency specializing in architecture, design, and lifestyle brands — the closest direct competitor to bde&co. in vertical focus, client type (furniture, lighting, materials manufacturers), and trade show activation model.
• Think Communications: Marketing and PR agency serving architecture, design, and lifestyle brands with integrated content, social, and PR services — a comparable specialty competitor in the same design-industry vertical.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/bdeandco

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 bde&co.