Boutique PR Agency vs. Large PR Agency

Which is better: A boutique PR agency or a Large PR agency? That’s a very good question and many prospective clients ask us this often. Both types of public relations agencies have their place in the beauty industry. Traditionally, larger brands such as Unilever and beauty labels stocked on drugstore shelves, work with large public relations agencies. Although sometimes, larger beauty brands also work with boutique agencies. It goes without saying that large public relations agencies have more account representatives compared to boutique PR. Beauty boutique public relations normally handle accounts from niche and smaller brands.

So which sort of agency should you work with? In short, it’s up to you and your budget. Most large PR agencies won’t take on small beauty brands. A large corporation such as Unilever has many different products within their beauty category and this serves bigger PR agencies well. Within a large PR agency, their account representatives work with each “brand” of a large corporation. This way the different product categories are under one ‘umbrella’ of the same large PR agency. A boutique PR agency would have a hard time representing every beauty category of a super-brand with that many beauty product categories. If you are a smaller beauty brand searching for beauty public relations, we recommend looking into a boutique PR agency.

Aboutique PR agency nurtures small and niche beauty lines. Boutique PR takes a hands-on approach in handling public relations - from formatting line sheets and lookbooks, to influencer outreach, and emailing pitches to editors and writers, they know what it takes to get a small beauty brand into the right hands and in the public eye. Large PR agencies represent brands already well known- these brands are usually sold in grocery stores, pharmacies, and in big-brand beauty outlets such as Ulta. The public already recognizes and knows big beauty brands and large PR agencies have the capability and manpower to manage their multiple accounts. These are big beauty brands that advertise in magazines - think full page layouts. Small upstarts in the beauty world don’t have the funds for such advertising and this is where a boutique PR agency comes into play.

Beauty editors online and offline are constantly searching new new and up-and-company brands. They often turn to publicists at smaller agencies to keep them in the loop on exciting new brands and launches. Let’s be honest, our favorite fashion and beauty print glossies often mention big beauty brands because they spend mega-bucks in advertising. Have you ever wondered why you see a full page advertisement for a certain facial serum, then flipping through the pages you also see it mentioned in a beauty column? Money. The big brand takes out huge amounts of advertising in said glossy and there is a hand shake that a beauty editor may also write or mention the product. This is very similar to influencers you see on Instagram. Brands of all sizes pay influencers to hawk their products online. There is a lot of money exchanged when it comes to promoting beauty brands.

As a boutique Beauty Public Relations agency, we know what it’s like to start a new brand - one of our co-founders created a brand for women. We have worked on the brand and client side of public relations. Smaller beauty brands have no need to get lost in the corporate shuffle of a large PR agency. Boutique public relations agencies often take an “all hands on deck” approach in representing all of their brands. It’s not unusual for the CEO or founder to work in tandem with another co-worker on your account. Working with a boutique PR agency often feels more personal than a larger agency. If you are a new beauty brand gearing to launch we recommend researching boutique PR firms.