Octagon Marketing and GolinHarris Create Octagon PR

Chicago : Octagon and GolinHarris have announced a partnership, creating Octagon PR, a unit focused specifically on sports public relations strategy, ideation and execution. The new alliance brings together two Interpublic Group of Companies (IPG) agencies that are leaders in their respective fields – Octagon, a long-respected pioneer in sports management and marketing, and GolinHarris, a top global public relations firm.

Gary Rudnick, Managing Director of GolinHarris’ central region and the firm’s Chicago headquarters office also will serve as President of Octagon PR. He will work closely with Octagon Marketing North America President Jeff Shifrin, supported by a team of public relations and sports management professionals.

“This partnership fills a void in the marketplace and greatly expands the communications offering of both agencies,” Shifrin said. “This alliance will create a sports-focused public relations capability that is unparalleled,” he added.

The Octagon PR team will include public relations professionals and sports marketing and management experts in major markets including: Chicago, New York, Boston, Connecticut, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Dallas, Columbus, Houston, London, Taiwan and Hong Kong, among other locations.

Octagon, whose clients include Allstate, BMW North America, The Home Depot, Bank of America, MasterCard and Sprint, was named “2008 Sports Agency of the Year” by The Sports Business Journal. The agency is a leader in sports representation and management and is the world’s largest sports content marketing consulting practice. Octagon’s break-through proprietary Passion Drivers(R) Research guides the sports marketing strategies and sponsorship activations of leading global brands.

GolinHarris has a wide-array of sports public relations experience including support of McDonald’s High School All American Basketball Game, World Cup and Worldwide Olympic sponsorships; Major League Baseball’s John Hancock All Star Fanfest; the Indianapolis Motor Speedway; and Amgen’s Tour of California bike race, to name just a few. In addition, the agency has worked with and/or media trained prominent athletes including Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, Michael Phelps, Mary Lou Retton, Alonzo Mourning and Jerry Rice, among others.

“For many years GolinHarris has been serving its clients with sports interests, while Octagon has offered public relations support to its clients — but this formal relationship will take it to a new level on all fronts,” said Rudnick. “We now have a team that spans the U.S. and key international markets, offering a wide-array of sports PR experience serving corporate sponsors. Together, we’ve worked with virtually every professional sports league, international sports body and within every major sport.”