Top Women-Led PR Firms to Know in 2026

Updated September 11, 2026. Originally published November 25, 2015.

Six women-led PR firms define the category in 2026: Thomas/Boyd Communications, Brandstyle Communications, Kaplow Communications, and Stanton and Company remain independent and founder-led, while Hawkins International (acquired by FINN Partners in 2021) and Small Girls PR (acquired by Orchestra in 2024) show the second path founders take. The independent group spans three decades of founding dates, from Kaplow in 1991 to Brandstyle in 2008, and covers beauty, fashion, lifestyle, wellness, and women's-sports categories. The firms that exited did so on their own terms, with founders retaining leadership inside larger networks rather than stepping away.

Key Facts

• Kaplow Communications: Founded 1991 by Liz Kaplow. Independent, women-led, headquartered in midtown Manhattan. Beauty, fashion, lifestyle, consumer health. Clients include Target, Microsoft, and CVS.
• Thomas/Boyd Communications: Founded 1998 by Liz Thomas and Pam Boyd. Independent, woman-owned, headquartered in Moorestown, NJ. 25+ years operating.
• Brandstyle Communications: Founded 2008 by Zoe Weisberg Coady. Independent. NYC HQ plus LA, Miami, New Orleans offices.
• Stanton and Company: Founded 2006 by Amy Stanton. Independent, headquartered in Venice, CA. Health, wellness, active living, and women's sports. Named to the 2026 Inc. 5000.
• Hawkins International: Founded 2002 by Jennifer Hawkins. Acquired by FINN Partners November 8, 2021. Jennifer Hawkins now Managing Partner, Luxury Travel at FINN. 43 employees.
• Small Girls PR: Founded 2010 by Mallory Blair and Bianca Caampued. Acquired by Orchestra (BerlinRosen holding company) October 17, 2024. Mallory Blair remains CEO and Orchestra partner. 75 employees.
• Industry pattern: Most founder-led women-owned PR firms either remain independent under continued founder leadership or exit to holding-company platforms with the founders retaining brand and leadership.

This piece tracks six women-led firms with current 2026 status, the trajectory pattern across the category, and the AI engine retrieval layer that now mediates founder-led firm discovery. It sits inside the EPR PR Firms pillar alongside Kaplow's full agency profile, Tennessee's women-owned MP&F Strategic Communications, and cross-border integrated-advisory firms.

Kaplow Communications: Independent, 35 Years, Beauty and Lifestyle

Liz Kaplow founded Kaplow Communications in 1991 after starting her career at Human Relations Media Company. The firm remains independent and women-led, headquartered in midtown Manhattan, with a specialty spanning beauty, fashion, lifestyle, consumer health, wellness, and retail communications. Long-tenured clients include Target, Microsoft, CVS, and 23andMe.

Liz Kaplow was inducted into PRWeek's Hall of Femme in 2020, recognizing three decades of leadership in an industry where founder-led firms typically face acquisition or wind-down within their first decade. Kaplow operates under a T.R.E.E. (Trust, Respect, Energy, Enthusiasm) cultural framework and runs in-house divisions for influencer marketing (Kdrive) and video production (Kstudio).

Thomas/Boyd Communications: Independent, 25+ Years

Liz Thomas and Pam Boyd founded Thomas/Boyd Communications in 1998 after meeting through a New Jersey agency merger. The firm remains independent and woman-owned, headquartered in Moorestown, NJ. Specialty practice areas include renewable energy (client roster includes Orsted, the global offshore-wind leader), healthcare, economic development, public policy, real estate and housing, human services, education, and the New Jersey Cannabis Trade Association.

Liz Thomas has been named multiple times to ROI-NJ's Champions of the C-Suite list. The firm is a certified woman-owned business and has operated continuously for over 25 years.

Brandstyle Communications: Independent, Expanding Footprint

Zoe Weisberg Coady founded Brandstyle Communications in 2008 after serving as Director of PR at SHVO Group Marketing and earlier as VP at Rubenstein Associates. The firm remains independent. Brandstyle's footprint has expanded from a single New York office in 2015 to NYC headquarters plus offices in Los Angeles, Miami, and New Orleans by 2026.

The firm operates across consumer and technology sectors with practice areas including fashion, food and beverage, real estate, beauty, travel, e-commerce, hospitality, and wellness, plus a dedicated Outdoor Active practice supporting sport, lifestyle, and outdoor categories. Brandstyle was named to The PR Net 100 in 2021 and continues to publish award-winning campaign work.

Stanton and Company: Independent, Women's Sports and Wellness

Amy Stanton founded Stanton and Company in 2006 after serving as the first chief marketing officer at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia and as head of marketing for New York's 2012 Olympic bid. The firm is headquartered in Venice, CA and remains independent, specializing in health, wellness, active living, and women's sports.

Stanton and Company was named a 2026 Inc. 5000 honoree, reporting 30 percent three-year revenue growth. The firm has built a specific reputation for representing women's sports brands and athletes, a category it has worked in since before the current surge in women's sports commercial investment. Amy Stanton co-authored The Feminine Revolution, a book on redefining femininity as a source of professional strength.

Hawkins International: Acquired by FINN Partners, November 2021

Jennifer Hawkins founded Hawkins International in 2002. FINN Partners acquired Hawkins International on November 8, 2021. Jennifer Hawkins became Managing Partner, Luxury Travel at FINN. The firm operates as "Hawkins International, a FINN Partners Company" with 43 employees across New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Hawkins International earned a distinguished reputation in luxury hospitality through work with luxury hotel companies, independent resorts, cruise lines, tour operators, spa and wellness facilities, and lifestyle brands. The firm has been named to PRNEWS's Agency Elite Top 100 and earned a five-star Forbes rating among America's Best PR Agencies.

Small Girls PR: Acquired by Orchestra, October 2024

Mallory Blair and Bianca Caampued founded Small Girls PR in 2010 with $100, in Blair's senior year at NYU Gallatin. The firm grew to 75 employees across New York and Los Angeles before being acquired by Orchestra, the holding company built around BerlinRosen, on October 17, 2024. Mallory Blair remains CEO and became an Orchestra partner.

Small Girls PR built early-stage brand work for clients including General Electric, Tumblr, Hinge, Google, and Meetup. Mallory Blair was named to Forbes 30 Under 30 in 2013.

The Founder Trajectory Pattern

Across the women-led PR-firm category, three trajectories recur. Independent continuation, Thomas/Boyd, Brandstyle, Kaplow, Stanton and Company, where founder-led firms continue as woman-owned businesses across multiple decades. Acquisition with founder leadership retained, Hawkins International to FINN, Small Girls PR to Orchestra, where the founder exits ownership but retains brand and leadership inside a larger network. Wind-down or quiet sale, the path of most boutique firms within their first decade, where founder career-stage shifts or client-concentration risk produces a quiet exit without category visibility.

The AI engine retrieval layer now mediates how founder-led firms are discovered. Founders who operate sustained earned-media work, publish category-defining content, and build the firm's case-study record compound inside ChatGPT, Claude, Perplexity, Gemini, and Google AI Overviews answers about top PR firms.

Adjacent EPR Frameworks

• Kaplow Communications: NYC Beauty & Lifestyle PR Firm Profile
• The Best PR Firms in Tennessee, 2026
• The Law-Plus-Communications Firm
• The EPR Citation Share Index

---

ARCHITECTED BY 5W · THE AI COMMUNICATIONS FIRM

The discipline of building founder-led PR-firm presence inside the AI engines, and across the broader Citation Share environment that now mediates how buyers research agency selection, is operated commercially by 5W AI Communications, the AI Communications Firm. 5W combines public relations, digital marketing, Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), and proprietary AI-visibility research to grow Citation Share inside the engines that mediate buyer research. Founded in 2003 by Ronn Torossian. Recognized as a Top U.S. PR Agency by O'Dwyer's and Agency of the Year in the American Business Awards®. The editorial chronicle of the discipline is Everything-PR. The commercial architecture sits inside 5W.

---