Sound Story

What Sound Story does

Sound Story is a privately held Australian strategic communications and reputation consultancy founded in March 2023 by Jake Challenor and Brian Lawlor with backing from UNIFIED Investments (the investment arm of Jaddan Comerford's UNIFIED Music Group). The firm operates four offices across Australia's east coast—Melbourne (Naarm), Sydney (Gadigal), Brisbane (Meanjin), and Sunshine Coast (Gubbi Gubbi)—staffed by a team of 11+ senior professionals. Its service offering spans corporate communications and brand PR, crisis and issues management, press office and publicity campaigns, government advisory and industry advocacy, executive communications and thought leadership, and change management.

The firm generates revenue through professional services engagements—structured as project-based fees, retainers, or hourly consulting arrangements—delivered to enterprise clients via a sales-led, relationship-driven GTM motion targeting senior leadership and business decision-makers. The company is not a technology product business; service delivery is human-led by former journalists, senior strategists, and industry practitioners. There is no disclosed proprietary technology, AI tooling, or platform architecture.

In June 2026, Sound Story acquired The Comms Department, a specialist firm founded in 2012 by Bec Brown, adding dedicated capabilities in crisis and issues management, change and transformation, M&A communications, executive advisory, and media training. The acquired entity continues to operate as a distinct specialist brand alongside Sound Story, with Bec Brown joining as Strategic Advisor. The combined group serves global organisations, ASX-listed companies, and category-defining brands primarily across the creative industries—music, media, entertainment, and adjacent sectors.

Name

Sound Story

Legal name

Sound Story

Website

https://soundstory.com.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sound Story is an Australian strategic communications and reputation consultancy founded in 2023, serving creative industry leaders and category-defining brands with corporate comms, crisis management, and executive advisory across four east coast offices.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Relations & Strategic Communications

NAICS

Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services (5418)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Reputation Management & Executive Thought Leadership (MPAAADAK)

Keywords

• Strategic communications consulting
• Public relations services
• Crisis management advisory
• Reputation management services
• Media relations consulting

Headquarters

HQ city

Richmond

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Strategic Communications Consulting: Professional services revenue generated through strategic advisory engagements, crisis management, corporate communications, and reputation consulting. Revenue is likely structured as project-based fees, retainers, or hourly consulting arrangements with enterprise clients.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Sound Story is a strategic communications and reputation consultancy that acts as both strategic advisor and embedded communications partner to creative industry leaders and challengers. The firm builds reputation deliberately, protects it under pressure, and leverages it as a strategic asset through corporate communications, crisis and issues management, press office and publicity campaigns, government advisory, executive thought leadership, and change management services.

Product overview

Sound Story operates as a unified strategic communications and reputation consultancy with two distinct service brands: Sound Story (core brand) focuses on strategic comms and reputation for creative industry leaders and challengers, while The Comms Department (acquired brand) specializes in crisis and issues management, change and transformation, and M&A communications. The company's core service offerings include Corporate Comms & Brand PR, Crisis & Issues Management, Press Office & Publicity Campaigns, Govt Advisory & Industry Advocacy, Exec Comms & Thought Leadership, and Change Management & Planning.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Comms Department: A specialist brand focused on reputation and influence, specializing in crisis and issues, change and transformation, mergers and acquisitions, executive advisory and media training. Operates as a distinct brand alongside Sound Story following its acquisition.

Products and services

• Corporate Comms & Brand PR Corporate communications and brand public relations services for creative industry leaders and challengers, including positioning, messaging, and stakeholder engagement.
• Crisis & Issues Management Crisis and issues management services advising brands, leaders, and organisations through complex, high-stakes, reputation-sensitive moments.
• Press Office & Publicity Campaigns Press office and publicity campaign services, providing media relations and earned media support for brands across music, media, entertainment and adjacent sectors.
• Govt Advisory & Industry Advocacy Government advisory and industry advocacy services leveraging Sound Story's access to government stakeholders and policy networks.
• Exec Comms & Thought Leadership Executive communications and thought leadership development services for senior leaders, leveraging former journalist and editor expertise to build executive positioning.
• Change Management & Planning Change management and communications planning services supporting organisations through transformation, restructuring, mergers and acquisitions, and periods of strategic change.
• The Comms Department (specialist brand) Specialist reputation and influence consultancy focusing on crisis and issues, change and transformation, mergers and acquisitions, executive advisory, and media training. Operates as a wholly owned but distinct brand alongside Sound Story.

Quantifiable outcome

• Building positioning that strengthens reputation and long-term industry influence

Named customers33 records

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• The Comms DepartmentcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 June 2026Sound Story acquired The Comms Department, founded by Bec Brown in 2012, marking a significant expansion of capabilities. The Comms Department brings award-winning expertise in crisis and issues management, change and transformation, mergers and acquisitions, executive advisory, and media training. The business continues to operate as a distinct specialist brand alongside Sound Story, with both businesses retaining complementary positioning.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• One Green Bean: Sydney-based creative communications and PR agency with strong consumer, lifestyle and entertainment credentials. Comparable in size, vertical orientation and emphasis on earned-media storytelling for ambitious brands.
• The Comms Department: Australian strategic communications firm specialising in crisis, issues, change and M&A. Acquired by Sound Story in June 2026 and retained as a specialist sub-brand; historically a direct competitor and now the closest comparable capability set.
• Thrive PR + Communications: Australian strategic communications and PR consultancy serving consumer, lifestyle and entertainment clients. Highly comparable as a domestic mid-sized agency with overlapping service lines and talent flows (Geoff Cope-Watts previously worked at Thrive).
• Haystac: Australian public relations and communications agency part of the Havas network, serving consumer, technology and entertainment clients. Closely comparable as a mid-to-senior Australian PR firm targeting brand and corporate communications engagements.
• Keep Left: Australian strategic communications and PR consultancy focused on corporate reputation, brand storytelling and integrated communications. Comparable as a domestic boutique competing for similar enterprise and ASX-listed clients.
• Bespoken Agency: Australian PR and communications agency with a creative, entertainment and consumer brand focus. Directly comparable given shared Australian geography, similar client mix and talent pool overlap (Nick Price previously worked at Bespoken).
• IVY PR: Australian lifestyle, hospitality and entertainment PR agency. Comparable as a domestic boutique with overlapping creative-industry client base (Nick Price previously worked at IVY PR).

Regional players

• Sequel Group: Australian communications and reputation consultancy. Comparable as a domestic reputation and stakeholder-management player but operating more in corporate and public-affairs verticals than Sound Story's creative-industry focus.
• Thinkerbell: Australian creative, PR and integrated marketing agency. Adjacent rather than direct, with a heavier creative/advertising orientation but a shared focus on earned attention and category-defining brand work for ambitious Australian companies.

Broad incumbents

• Edelman Australia: Global public relations firm's Australian operation. Comparable as a strategic communications provider for ASX-listed and multinational clients, but broader in scope, larger in headcount and less vertically specialised than Sound Story.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/soundstorypr
• Facebookfacebook.com/SoundStoryPR
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/soundstorypr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Sound Story