Murphy O'Brien: Los Angeles Travel and Lifestyle PR Profile

Murphy O'Brien is a Los Angeles public relations agency founded in May 1989 by Karen Murphy O'Brien and Brett O'Brien, specializing in luxury travel, real estate and lifestyle brands, per the Palisadian-Post. Karen Murphy O'Brien is CEO and founder, and The PR Net's 2025 profile lists Allyson Rener as president and offices in Los Angeles and New York. The Los Angeles Business Journal ranked it fifth among best small companies to work for in 2024, per Yespress.

Originally published June 2021. Updated October 17, 2026.

How did Murphy O'Brien start?

The Palisadian-Post says Karen Murphy O'Brien and Brett O'Brien founded the company in May 1989, and in 2019 Karen called it the largest independent PR agency in Los Angeles. PRSA Los Angeles says they launched from their Century City apartment with a single client, the Sunset Marquis Hotel and Villas. The Los Angeles Business Journal reported that they were neighbors in their early 20s when they began, and that they expanded from hotels and restaurants into real estate in 2003 after noticing hotels selling fractional ownerships and villas.

What does Murphy O'Brien do?

PRSA Los Angeles described programs from luxury resort openings and brand launches to social media initiatives, including a campaign for the Nicaraguan Tourism Board that won the grand prize in the PR Daily Awards' 2013 PR Campaign of the Year category. The PR Net's 2025 profile highlights the launch of SHA Wellness Clinic in Mexico, with media outreach and experiential activations for journalists.

What recognition has Murphy O'Brien received?

Yespress reports the Los Angeles Business Journal ranked the agency fifth among best small companies to work for in 2024 and ninth in 2025, and that it won Bulldog Reporter's Gold Small Agency of the Year in 2016 and 2017. In 2019 Karen Murphy O'Brien told the Palisadian-Post the firm had amassed more than 300 client awards over three decades.

How does Murphy O'Brien compare with other luxury travel PR firms?

Murphy O'Brien is a large Los Angeles independent that pairs travel with real estate work. See EPR profiles of Hawkins International, Quinn, HL Group and The Berman Group, and EPR's luxury, hospitality and travel coverage.

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Related: PR agency profiles, Luxury PR, Travel PR, Los Angeles PR firms, 5W Public Relations