Clarkston Nelson LLC

What Clarkston Nelson LLC does

Clarkston Nelson LLC (doing business as Clarkston Nelson Government Solutions) is a privately held, Missouri-domiciled government relations and advocacy firm founded in 2023 and headquartered at 235 E High Street, Suite 301 in Jefferson City, two blocks from the Missouri State Capitol. The firm delivers seven core professional services to clients operating in or affected by Missouri state government: Direct Lobbying, Strategic Communications, Relationship Building, Budget Advocacy, Monitoring Issues of Interest, PAC Planning and Compliance, and Procurement Services.

The firm is led by two founding partners — Heath Clarkston (20+ year registered Missouri lobbyist and former founding partner at Lathrop Gage Consulting) and Doug Nelson (former Missouri State Commissioner of Administration who oversaw 2,000+ procurement contracts) — and is staffed by a team of roughly seven professionals including Sherry Doctorian (former Armstrong Teasdale LLP partner recognized in Best Lawyers in America for Government Relations Practice), Michael Henderson (former General Counsel and Government Affairs Director of Missouri Insurance Coalition), Doug Crews (25-year former Executive Director of Missouri Press Association), Kim Akin, and Lindsay Walls.

Clarkston Nelson generates revenue through negotiated, retainer- and project-based professional services fees for government relations consulting, with go-to-market executed via direct client engagement and thought-leadership content (a CN Newsroom blog and Twitter presence). Its customer base spans businesses navigating complex regulatory environments, trade associations, and community-improvement organizations seeking representation before the Missouri State Legislature, Executive Branch, and state agencies. No external funding, parent company, or public listings have been disclosed.

Name

Clarkston Nelson LLC

Legal name

Clarkston Nelson LLC

Website

https://cnmissouri.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Clarkston Nelson LLC is a privately held Missouri government relations and lobbying firm founded in 2023 in Jefferson City, providing direct lobbying, budget advocacy, strategic communications, and procurement services to businesses, trade associations, and community organizations engaging with the state legislature and agencies.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Government Relations & Lobbying Consulting

NAICS

Social Advocacy Organizations (8133)

SIC

Services-Management Services (8741)

akta.pro primary industry

Consumer Rights & Public Interest Advocacy (BPAGAFAK)

akta.pro secondary industry

Government Accountability, Ethics & Anti-Corruption Advocacy (BPAGAFAN)

Keywords

• Government relations consulting
• State lobbying services
• Strategic advocacy communications
• Budget appropriations advocacy
• Government procurement consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Jefferson City

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Relations and Advocacy Services: Professional consulting services for governmental relations, lobbying, budget advocacy, and regulatory compliance for businesses and organizations operating in Missouri's complex regulatory environment

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Clarkston Nelson LLC (d/b/a Clarkston Nelson Government Solutions) is a full-service governmental relations and advocacy firm in Jefferson City, Missouri, that provides direct lobbying, strategic communications, relationship building, budget advocacy, legislative monitoring, PAC planning and compliance, and state procurement assistance. The firm represents businesses, trade associations, and non-profit organizations that need to influence Missouri state legislation, regulations, appropriations, and procurement decisions. Services are delivered by a partner-led team of former senior state-government officials and are tailored to each client's policy objectives.

Product overview

Clarkston Nelson Government Solutions is a full-service governmental relations and advocacy firm offering professional consulting services. The company operates as a unified service practice rather than a software platform, providing seven interconnected lobbying and government relations services: Direct Lobbying, Strategic Communications, Relationship Building, Budget Advocacy, Monitoring Issues of Interest, PAC Planning and Compliance, and Procurement Services. These services are delivered by a team of experienced professionals and are designed to help clients navigate Missouri state government, influence legislation, and achieve policy goals.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Direct Lobbying Legislative advocacy services for businesses and organizations before the Missouri State Legislature and Executive Branch, including legislation and issue monitoring, public engagement counseling, public testimony, and coalition building to shape legislation and regulations from beginning to implementation.
• Strategic Communications Development of messaging and collaboration with clients to support advocacy efforts before the Legislature, regulators, or other decision-making bodies, often conveyed to media and the public to influence opinion, frequently aided by coalition building.
• Relationship Building Collaboration with legislators and department contacts to maintain professional and positive relations with state elected officials and decision-makers so that client issues are properly understood and considered.
• Budget Advocacy Navigation assistance through the Missouri state appropriations and budgeting process from early planning stages through legislative appropriation, gubernatorial action, and implementation by state departments, including ongoing monitoring of all state budget items and the state project procurement process.
• Monitoring Issues of Interest Constant monitoring of legislative, regulatory, and news stories with regular client reporting; review of all filed legislation and amendments (more than 2,000 bills per year) to assess client impact and identify advocacy needs.
• PAC Planning and Compliance Advice and strategies for political giving in support of elected officials, candidates, or ballot questions, including state reporting requirements, donation limits, timely filing, corporate registration compliance, and bookkeeping for continuing committees before the Missouri Ethics Commission.
• Procurement Services Assistance for clients seeking state contracts, including arranging meetings with state department leaders before requests for proposals, bid response assistance, onboarding, expectations management, troubleshooting, and coordination with the state budget process.

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Forbes Tate Partners: Government affairs and strategic communications firm providing lobbying, public affairs, and advocacy services to corporate and association clients. Comparable in combining direct lobbying with strategic communications and public affairs, though with national rather than Missouri-only focus.
• MultiState Associates: National government relations firm specializing in state-level lobbying, regulatory monitoring, and association management across all 50 states. Directly comparable in core lobbying, monitoring, and procurement services, though with much broader geographic reach than Clarkston Nelson's Missouri-only focus.
• Cornerstone Government Affairs: Bipartisan government affairs firm with offices in multiple states providing lobbying, strategic communications, and procurement services to corporate clients. Comparable in full-service government relations offering and direct lobbying model, though operating at significantly larger scale.
• Gallagher Consultants Inc. Missouri government relations consulting firm where Heath Clarkston previously worked as a registered lobbyist (2006+). Directly comparable as a Missouri-focused government affairs firm serving similar corporate and association clients with lobbying and advocacy services.
• Lathrop Gage Consulting: Missouri government relations/lobbying firm where Heath Clarkston was a founding partner before leaving in 2023 to form Clarkston Nelson. Directly comparable in focus on Missouri state legislative and executive branch advocacy, with overlapping service offerings in lobbying, monitoring, and budget advocacy.

Broad incumbents

• Greensfelder Hemker & Gale: St. Louis-based law firm with government relations practice serving Missouri corporate clients. Competes for the same Missouri state-level advocacy and regulatory work as Clarkston Nelson but operates within a broader legal services platform.
• Polsinelli: Kansas City-headquartered Am Law firm with a strong Missouri government relations and public policy practice. Targets the same Missouri state-level corporate and association clients that Clarkston Nelson serves, but with significantly broader resources and multi-state reach.
• Husch Blackwell: Major Kansas City/Missouri-based law firm with a public policy and government relations group that regularly engages Missouri state agencies and legislature. Directly comparable in target client base and Missouri-focused advocacy, though delivered as part of a broader full-service law firm.
• Bryan Cave Leighton Paisner: Major global law firm with a substantial Jefferson City office and public policy/government relations practice. Competes for the same Missouri corporate lobbying clients as Clarkston Nelson but offers a broader legal services portfolio.
• Thompson Coburn LLP: St. Louis-based law firm with established government relations practice serving Missouri corporate and association clients. Competes in the same Missouri regulatory and legislative advocacy market as Clarkston Nelson, with broader legal capabilities but a similar state-focused orientation.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CNMissouri
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/clarkston-nelson-llc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 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 Clarkston Nelson LLC