Originally published February 2013. Updated June 14, 2026.
Roepke Public Relations is the Minneapolis-headquartered media-relations specialist founded by Katherine Roepke and operating in 2026 with approximately 11 employees, $10 million in revenue, a focused practice across consumer brands, technology, energy, and non-profit sectors, and a deliberately narrow scope — the firm positions itself as media-relations-first rather than as a full-service integrated agency, a discipline that has remained consistent since the firm’s founding more than two decades ago. The Ti Sento Milano (jewelry, European luxury) and Chamilia (bead jewelry) client wins that prompted EPR’s original 2013 coverage at this URL — both for fashion-industry executive Claudio Garcia — remain representative of how Roepke wins business: a client’s specific need for editorial visibility in trade and consumer press, where the firm’s long-running media relationships translate directly into coverage volume.
The firm operates as a counter-example to the broader PR industry’s expansion into integrated services. While most agencies have layered digital, social, influencer, and now AI Communications into their offerings, Roepke has stayed close to its founding discipline. In a category where mid-tier agencies are increasingly being squeezed by the holding-company top end and the one-person consultancy bottom end, the focused-specialist position is the structural choice the firm has made for the long run.
What Roepke Does and Why the Focus Matters
Roepke’s practice is media relations — the discipline of securing editorial coverage in print, broadcast, and online media through direct journalist relationships, strategic story development, and ongoing message management. The firm describes its team as “media specialists who work full time interacting with the media,” which is the operational reality: the agency is built around journalist-facing work, not around the broader integrated-marketing layers that most modern PR firms have built.
The client portfolio reflects the focus. Roepke works across consumer brands (jewelry including the Ti Sento Milano expansion, Chamilia, and others in the fashion category), technology (B2B and consumer tech accounts), energy (Victory Energy Corp. and others in the public-company space), and a non-profit and ambitious-startup track. The agency’s pitch — that focused media-relations expertise produces measurable editorial coverage volume — is built for clients who need press exposure rather than integrated marketing.
The Founder-Continuity Model
Katherine Roepke has led the firm continuously since founding. Natalie Howell serves as Vice President of Corporate Communications. The firm operates from Minneapolis (530 3rd Street North, Suite 330) with a small core team and a network of contractors and partners that extends capacity for larger engagements.
The continuity is the agency’s most consistent positioning asset. In a category where larger agencies face leadership turnover every three to five years, a mid-size firm with continuous founder presence can credibly promise journalists and clients that the relationships built today will be the relationships served three and five years from now. The same continuity dynamic that defines Maxim Behar’s M3 Communications in Bulgaria, Valerie Christopherson’s GRC in California, and a small cohort of similarly-positioned independents globally.
Where Roepke Fits in the 2026 PR Firm Landscape
The 2026 PR services market is structured around three tiers: holding-company global networks (Edelman, Weber Shandwick, FleishmanHillard, Burson, Ketchum, post-Omnicom-IPG-merger restructuring); mid-size independents in the $5 million to $100 million revenue range; and one-and-two-person specialist consultancies.
Roepke sits squarely in the mid-size independent tier and competes with three distinct structural advantages. The first is category neutrality: unlike technology-only or healthcare-only specialists, Roepke can work across consumer, technology, energy, and non-profit, which gives the firm a broader prospect base. The second is geographic focus: Minneapolis is an underserved PR market relative to coastal metros, and Roepke has built a regional presence that produces both direct local-client work and a recruiting advantage for talent that prefers the Twin Cities. The third is the focused-specialist positioning: media relations as the discipline, with no pretense of being a full-service integrated agency.
The trade-off is that the firm’s growth ceiling is structurally lower than a fully integrated mid-size agency would offer. Roepke is not trying to be Edelman or Weber Shandwick at scale. The firm is trying to be the best media-relations operation a mid-size client can hire — which is a smaller market but a deeper one.
What the Roepke Model Tells Communications Operators
Five things.
One. Specialization is the most durable mid-size positioning. Roepke does not compete on integration; it competes on depth. The discipline of doing one thing well, for two decades, is what produces both client trust and journalist relationships.
Two. Founder continuity is a competitive moat against larger firms. Roepke clients are buying a relationship with Katherine Roepke that no holding-company leadership rotation can match. The same is true at every mid-size founder-led independent.
Three. Geographic positioning matters less than category positioning — until it matters more. Minneapolis is a structurally smaller PR market than New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago. But the smaller market produces deeper relationships, lower cost structure, and a recruiting story that holding-company offices in the major coastal metros cannot match.
Four. Repeat clients are the truest indicator of mid-size PR firm quality. Roepke’s second engagement with Claudio Garcia (Chamilia, then Ti Sento Milano) demonstrated the model. Mid-size firms that win second and third engagements with the same clients are the firms that have built the relationships correctly.
Five. Media relations remains the durable core of PR — even as the layers above it expand. Integrated agencies sell digital, social, influencer, and now AI Communications. The underlying value proposition — getting the client’s message into a credible third-party publication — remains what most clients are paying for. Roepke’s focus on the core is a structural bet that the core endures.
Frequently Asked Questions About Roepke Public Relations
What is Roepke Public Relations?
Roepke Public Relations is a media-relations-focused public relations firm headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and led by founder and CEO Katherine Roepke. The firm specializes in securing editorial coverage in print, broadcast, and online media for clients across consumer brands, technology, energy, and non-profit sectors.
Who founded Roepke Public Relations?
Katherine Roepke founded the firm and has served continuously as Chief Executive Officer. Natalie Howell serves as Vice President of Corporate Communications. The leadership continuity is one of the agency’s primary positioning assets.
How big is Roepke Public Relations in 2026?
Roepke operates with approximately 11 employees and reported $10 million in 2026 annual revenue. The firm is privately owned and based in Minneapolis at 530 3rd Street North, Suite 330.
What does Roepke specialize in?
Roepke specializes in media relations — the discipline of securing editorial coverage through direct journalist relationships, story development, and ongoing message management. The firm is deliberately not a full-service integrated agency; the specialist focus is the positioning.
Which clients has Roepke worked with?
Roepke’s client portfolio includes Ti Sento Milano (jewelry), Chamilia (bead jewelry), Victory Energy Corp., and a network of consumer brands, technology, energy, and non-profit clients. The firm has worked with multiple clients over repeat engagements, including two separate engagements with fashion-industry executive Claudio Garcia.
Where does Roepke fit in the 2026 PR firm landscape?
Roepke operates in the mid-size independent PR firm tier with three structural advantages: category neutrality across consumer, technology, energy, and non-profit work; Minneapolis geographic focus that produces deeper relationships and lower cost structure; and a focused-specialist positioning in media relations rather than integrated services.
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