The Purple Penguin Art Company

What The Purple Penguin Art Company does

Purple Penguin PR (legal entity Drasnin Communications Group) is a privately held, founder-led public relations agency established in 1989 by Ray Drasnin and headquartered in San Diego, California. The firm operates as a progressive, narrative-driven boutique agency producing high-impact 'feel-good' stories for clients including celebrities, professional athletes, Fortune 100 corporations (GE Healthcare, American Express, Subway), franchise systems (1-800-GOT-JUNK?), startups (Mojo Pages, FlyDive, Kushly & PureKana), and nonprofit organizations (Truman National Security Project, Project Street Vet). Its core service lines are Public Relations Services, Media Training, Brand Building, Special Events, and Copywriting, delivered through direct consultative engagements with quote-based pricing and no proprietary technology stack.

The agency monetizes through professional services fees tied to media-relations campaigns, event execution, spokesperson training, and brand-building engagements. Distribution is entirely direct: founder-led client relationships supported by a content-marketing portfolio of case studies, blog content ('News You Can Use'), and earned media that simultaneously serves as sales collateral. The firm cites 1,682+ lifetime clients, 11,243+ projects, 20 industry awards (National Crystal Awards, Edward L. Bernays Marks of Excellence), and 162,435+ media placements as scale markers accumulated over more than three decades.

In 2024, the firm extended its product surface by launching Foundation Makers, a distinct sub-brand offering nonprofit foundation formation, 501(c)(3) compliance, board development, and fundraising strategy services targeted at founders, athletes, and changemakers. Headcount remains in the 1-10 employee band, the firm is uncapitalized (no institutional investors), and operations are concentrated in San Diego despite delivering national and broadcast media outcomes for clients.

Name

The Purple Penguin Art Company

Legal name

Drasnin Communications Group

Website

https://purplepenguinpr.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Purple Penguin PR is a San Diego-based, founder-led boutique public relations agency founded in 1989 by Ray Drasnin, serving celebrities, athletes, Fortune 100 corporations, startups, and nonprofits with media relations, brand building, media training, and special events services across national outlets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Public Relations Services

NAICS

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

akta.pro primary industry

Product & Brand PR (Consumer & B2B) (BPAFADAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Reputation Management & Online PR (BPAFADAN), Event PR & Communications Support (BPAFADAO)

Keywords

• Public relations services
• Media relations
• Media training
• Brand building
• Special events

Headquarters

HQ city

Thibodaux

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, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Relations Services: Full-service public relations agency providing media relations, brand building, media training, special events, crisis communication, and copywriting services to clients ranging from celebrities and athletes to entrepreneurs and Fortune 100 corporations.
2. Foundation Formation Services: Starting a Foundation service offering strategic guidance, compliance support, nonprofit formation (501(c)(3)), bylaws, board development, fundraising strategy, and branding for foundations. Part of the Foundation Makers brand.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Purple Penguin PR is a progressive boutique public relations agency that produces high-impact "feel-good" stories for clients through media relations, brand building, media training, special events, and copywriting. The agency also operates the Foundation Makers sub-brand, providing nonprofit formation and 501(c)(3) advisory services to founders, athletes, and changemakers.

Product overview

Purple Penguin PR operates as a progressive public relations agency offering a unified suite of communications services. The core offerings include Public Relations Services, Media Training, Brand Building, Special Events, and Copywriting. The company also operates a sub-brand called Foundation Makers, which provides nonprofit advisory and foundation formation services for founders, athletes, and changemakers. The portfolio is structured as a service-based agency model rather than a technology platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Foundation Makers: Nonprofit advisory service helping visionaries start legally sound, financially sustainable foundations with strategic planning, compliance support, and long-term planning for lasting impact

Products and services

• Public Relations Services
• Media Training
• Brand Building
• Special Events
• Copywriting
• Foundation Makers

Quantifiable outcome

• 96 dogs and puppies adopted in one weekend through coordinated campaign
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 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.

• Foundation MakerscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFoundation Makers is a related brand/service operated by Purple Penguin PR founder Ray Drasnin offering nonprofit formation, 501(c)(3) compliance, strategic planning, and foundation building services. It is positioned as a distinct service offering alongside Purple Penguin PR's main PR services, with shared leadership and branding connection.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Sunshine Sachs: Boutique PR firm specializing in celebrity, entertainment, nonprofit, and consumer brand PR. Direct overlap with Purple Penguin's personal-branding and feel-good storytelling niche, particularly for athletes and high-profile individuals.
• HL Group: Boutique PR and marketing agency with strong celebrity, lifestyle, hospitality, and nonprofit verticals. Comparable in size tier and client mix, with similar emphasis on storytelling-driven campaigns for high-profile individuals and brands.
• DKC Public Relations: Mid-sized independent PR agency with consumer, corporate, technology, and crisis practices. Comparable in operating as a privately held, founder-influenced firm serving similar Fortune 500 and celebrity/entrepreneur clients.
• Ruder Finn: Mid-sized independent PR agency with strong healthcare, consumer, and digital practices. Comparable founder-influenced culture and similar Fortune 500 client mix, particularly in healthcare and nonprofit communications.
• 5W Public Relations: Boutique-to-mid-sized PR agency offering media relations, crisis communications, and celebrity/consumer PR for similar enterprise and high-profile clients. Closely comparable in business model (services-led, founder-driven culture) and target buyer mix.

Broad incumbents

• Edelman: World's largest independent PR firm, offering full-service communications including media relations, crisis, brand, and digital. Competes for the same Fortune 500 brand-building mandates as Purple Penguin but at global, multi-office scale.
• Weber Shandwick: Top-five global PR network within IPG, with deep consumer, healthcare, and corporate practices. Overlaps with Purple Penguin on enterprise media relations and special events but operates at a scale boutique agencies cannot match.
• FleishmanHillard: Global PR network with healthcare, consumer, and corporate communications practices. Comparable in serving GE Healthcare-tier clients and running brand-building campaigns, but at multi-office institutional scale.

Others

• Brian Andreas / StoryBrand-style consultancies: Adjacent storytelling and brand-narrative consultancies (e.g., StoryBrand, marketing-focused narrative firms) that compete for some of Purple Penguin's brand-storytelling budget though they typically do not place earned media.

Emerging players

• The Hype Agency: Boutique personal-branding and PR firm focused on influencers, entrepreneurs, and creators. Emerging niche overlap with Purple Penguin's personal-branding work for athletes and founders, though typically serving a younger, digital-native clientele.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/purple-penguin-pr

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 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 The Purple Penguin Art Company