PR Adjacent

When she started her business, Julie McAllister was busy making sugar cookies for events around town — but what really lit her up were hyper-realistic, sculptural cakes. When she made the risky decision to niche down and fully own her creative lane, everything changed. That clarity led to Netflix's Is It Cake?, the Food Network, and clients like Reese Witherspoon. On today's episode, we're talking about the power of niching down, trusting your gut, and how clear positioning can fuel real growth.

Today's episode is all about what happens when you stop building for your customers—and start building with them. We're joined by Samantha Gold, founder and CEO of Motette, the elevated bamboo clothing brand for babies and toddlers that's quickly becoming a go-to for modern families.A former fashion exec and tech leader, Sam didn't just launch a brand—she created a community. In this conversation, we dive into what that really means: from the DMs that drove early traction, to how 80% of her launch day sales came from moms in her inner circle.We talk about the power of transparency, the value of listening, and why the smartest founders are inviting their customers behind the scenes. If you're thinking about how to grow your brand through real relationships, this one's for you.

What does it really take to manage a brand build from start to finish—without losing your mind or your message? In this episode, I sat down with Rachelle Saevil, founder of Saevil Row, to unpack the art (and science) of creative project management. With two decades of design experience and a decade running her own agency, Rachelle shares how to bring the right people in at the right time, make smart investments, and avoid common pitfalls in the brand development process. Whether you're building a brand from scratch or refining one, this conversation is full of insights on streamlining workflows, maximizing budgets, and making branding feel less chaotic—and a lot more strategic.PS, have you noticed the refreshed PR Adjacent podcast cover? That's thanks to photographer Sarah Cramer Shields and Rachelle and her talented team at Saevil Row!

Cheri Leavy and Whitney Long are the founders of The Southern C , a community that's redefining what networking looks like for creative entrepreneurs. They have built an ecosystem where relationships come first, and their approach to fostering meaningful connections has made The Southern C Summit a must-attend event for female business owners the country.Beyond their in-person events, they've also cultivated a thriving online membership, offering entrepreneurs a space to connect, collaborate, and grow year-round. In our conversation, we dive into how in-person experiences are a powerful driver of business growth and brand loyalty, how personalized marketing fosters deeper consumer connections, and how quality over quantity is always the move.

PR and marketing are shifting faster than ever—platforms change, media landscapes evolve, and what worked last month might already be outdated. "Touching Base" is your go-to monthly check-in for the latest trends, industry moves, and strategic insights you actually need to know to take your business to the next level.Join Nicole, founder of marketing consultancy Specio, and Ellie, founder of The Birdie Agency, each month as we break down the biggest shifts in PR & marketing, share our insider POV on what's working now, and help you cut through the noise to stay ahead. If you're looking for real insights, expert analysis, and actionable takeaways to grow your brand in an ever-changing landscape, this is the check-in you don't want to miss.

Ready to take your business to the next level—without drowning in the day-to-day? Kate Rosenow, founder of Work Well with Kate, is your guide to stepping out of the weeds and into a more streamlined, profitable business. Kate is a business systems strategist who shares proven strategies to simplify operations, optimize efficiency, and scale with confidence. Having helped thousands of women business owners transform their workflows, Kate knows that the key to sustainable growth isn't working harder—it's working smarter. In today's episode, we dive into what it really takes to transition into your next chapter of business growth, set up systems that work for you (not the other way around), and build a business that supports your life—without burnout. Whether you're stuck in the weeds or ready to scale with ease, this podcast gives you the tools to grow profitably while staying in your zone of genius. Featured in Forbes, Fortune, Real Simple, and Business Insider, Kate brings expert insights, real-life success stories, and actionable strategies to help you create a business that runs smoothly—so you can focus on what matters most.

Who knew a publicist and a dietitian had so much in common?! In this episode, I sit down with Cayla, a registered dietitian and founder of Nutrition Preferred to chat about breaking free from the “January reset” mindset. We dive into how small, consistent habits, realistic planning, and progress over perfection can help you stay on track all year long—whether you're working on your health or growing your brand. Tune in for actionable tips to start 2025 with purpose and momentum!

On this episode, Emily Heslin, founder of Carriage House Creative, joins us to explore how paid media and PR align for maximum impact. From Meta and Google to TikTok and Pinterest, Emily breaks down key platforms, shares tips for leveraging earned media in ad campaigns, and offers advice on planning for Black Friday and 2025. Perfect for founders looking to elevate their strategy!

On today's episode, I'm thrilled to have Erin Noël, a fashion stylist based out of LA  who specializes in helping female entrepreneurs and founders elevate their brand through their wardrobe. In our conversation, we discussed how the clothing and accessories we choose communicate far more than just style—they reveal who we are, what we value, and where we're headed. Erin shared her expertise on building a wardrobe that reflects both your personal and professional identity, how the right outfit can boost your confidence, and influence how others perceive you.

It's no secret that women in leadership positions often face burnout, with their mental load undermining the strategic thinking needed to continue advancing. At Birdie, we know that nothing compares to the power of a rested woman. When given the chance to recharge, women can invest in their communities, create jobs, and show up as their highest selves—free to channel their energy into leadership, innovation, and creativity. In this episode, I sat down with Elise Nicholson, Birdie's Senior Project Specialist, to discuss the intentionality behind Camp La Fontaine and all that's coming up at our retreat this fall in the Cotswolds and London. We provide women the space to disconnect, think big, take care of themselves, and form deep connections—so they can return to their work restored and energized with innovative new ideas.

In my first-ever solo episode (!) I took a minute to share the journey behind The Birdie Agency's exciting new rebrand. We are constantly consulting clients on their visual representation — matchmaking them with the perfect branding partners to land the positioning we carefully craft for them —  but rarely do we have time to focus on our own brand. Our new brand design honors where we started as Birdie Public Relations while embracing the future. Thanks to an incredible collaboration with Nolan from Studio Tarea, our refreshed identity truly reflects who we are today. Join me as I discuss the challenges, inspiration, and strategies that brought us here, and how you can guide your customers and clients through your own rebrand.

Brittany Schmid and Katy Doar are the founders of The Bunny Hive - a social club for little ones and their grown ups that is rapidly expanding across the country. Named “The Soho House for Kids” by Forbes, I took a moment to chat with them about ways to maintain brand consistency during a rapid growth period that's resulted from the announcement of their franchise program.

Jessie Gabriel is the founder of All Places – a law firm seeking to create a more equitable world by actively helping women from all backgrounds and industries grow their business without limits. They walk with women founders through every stage of development: conceiving their entrepreneurial aspirations, locking down funding, launching their businesses, and plotting exceptional growth. I had so many questions for Jessie on today's episode – everything from best practices to bringing on a co-founder to trademarking and even fundraising. She is a wealth of knowledge and I absolutely loved our conversation. I know you will too.

Lindsay Droz and Kristi Lord are the creators of L'AVANT Collective and their first wholesale account for their plant-based cleaning brand was with Goop! Since then, they have evolved their distribution strategy to an omnichannel approach, including selling DTC, with other national retailers like the Container Store and even Amazon. On today's episode they give tips on breaking into trade shows, finding Amazon third party sellers and sales reps, and how to started on TikTok shop.

Sophie von Oertzen is the founder of Sophie Williamson Design – organic table linens & home decor that prove sustainable living can be synonymous with vivid, joyful color. Sustainability has become such a loaded word – so many brands talk about their positive environmental impact without being able to back it up. It can also feel overwhelming as business owners to think about sustainability when we already have so much to think about, but that's why I love talking to Sophie. She always shares straightforward, simple tips that I feel like I can implement right away. So as we approach Earth Day this year, I encourage you to think about the impact your business has on the environment around you, and take a minute to listen to this episode to make sure your work has the impact you hope it does.

Our team recently had the incredible opportunity to join the Female Founder Collective in New York for a day of panels, workshops, and incredible connection with other female founders. We loved learning about how other female founders are growing their businesses across industries and took a minute to share some of our top takeaways live from the event. If you're interested in attending one of their future events, visit femalefoundercollective.com!

Today's episode is a little bit therapy, and a lot of clarity and tools that we can use to spend our time intentionally. So much can take up space in our day — from social media distractions to endless meetings and urgent emails. And as founders it's incredibly important to have a clear direction as to where you want to take the business and how to quite literally block out time for it. Tish Dignam is a global brand marketing consultant and clarity coach and walked me through all of this in our conversation. Her career has been spent with brands focused on redefining their category globally and past clients include ClassPass, a high-growth tech company valued at $1Bn, The Nue Co. and Gabar.

Susan Wojewoda is founder of The Concord Consulting Group and has spent the past 20 years developing brand strategies for brands in the consumer and retail space from Lacoste to Ted Baker, Keds, and everything in between. On today's episode, we talked about the difference between brand licensing and brand collaborations, the financial breakdown for these types of partnerships, and how to make sure they're successful for both parties!

Sarah Sebastian is founder of Rose Gold Collective and event planner extraordinaire. She's works globally creating experiences and brand events from product launches and pop-up shops, to large user conferences and much more. We chatted all about why to have events, what to expect out of them, and how to make sure they have the impact that you're looking for.

On today's episode I had the great pleasure of talking to Emily Bibb – Co-founder of Breef, which is the ultimate matchmaking platform for brands and creative agencies. We know how difficult it can be to find the perfect agency partner, and it's so important that brands and agencies can connect on a personal and professional level to create meaningful work for years to come. Emily is an expert at that matchmaking process and on today's episode she's sharing more about what makes for the most productive partnerships. 

The word “multicultural” can often be thought of as only surface level, but as marketing professionals, it's important to ask yourself — "what does culture mean to you?" Allyssa Munro, founder and CEO of MEG & MUNRO breaks this down further on today's episode as we think about how to authentically engage with multicultural audiences — “I think by asking that question, It allows marketers to put themselves in others peoples' positions and really think about the way they they want to communicate, she says. “Ellie, you and I share similar culture — we're both American — we can relate on so many different things, so it's important to zoom in beyond the physical appearance of someone and dive deep into cultural upbringing to begin to understand the ways in which we can connect with other cultures in a multitude of ways.”

Fall is one of the most important times for your PR and marketing planning and it's crucial to make sure your full communication strategy is working cohesively as one unit to tell the full story. Join Birdie Head of Marketing Nicole Noble to learn more about how to create a holistic marketing + PR strategy that builds both credibility and conversion.

Skimlinks, LTK, Rakuten -- what is affiliate marketing and how can it help your business? Talahi House founder Ashley Williams is here to answer all of our questions and covers everything from joining basic affiliate marketing platforms to comprehensive strategies to help your brand scale quickly.

Today I'm interviewing the interviewer! Emily Landers, host of the How'd She Do That Podcast was kind enough to come on to PR Adjacent to discuss all things podcasting – how she's growing the business, what people need to know when pitching their business for a podcast, and where she sees the podcast industry headed. Emily has been a great supporter of Birdie clients over the years, and we've loved getting to know her more on her Patreon channel where she shares more behind the scenes moments as she grows How'd She Do That.

It was such a treat to chat with Mallory Lucas -- founder of The Product Development Coach -- about all things manufacturing. So many of our PR clients are in the product space and we love helping them share their products with the world, but Mallory comes in before all of that. She helps people connect to the perfect manufacturer to turn their ideas into reality. On today's episode, we discuss mistakes to avoid when selecting a manufacturer, manufacturing domestically versus overseas, and how to coordinate lots of moving parts in the production process.

On this episode, I talked to fine artist Kiki Slaughter about the way she approached expanding her brand to include wallcoverings and textiles, while maintaining her credibility as an artist first and foremost. It can be a fine line, but Kiki has done it well! She talks us through working with a manufacturing partner, continuing to serve her most loyal customer base, and how she knew she was on to something.

On this episode I had the great pleasure of talking to In Kind Magazine co-founders Leah Melby Clinton and Hannah Weil McKinley. They have incredible backgrounds in fashion journalism and created In Kind to share slow, conscious content – capturing the conversations modern women are having as they navigate motherhood, career, and personal style. In our conversation we focused on the importance of content and community when building a brand – something they have done so well.

On this episode, I talked with content creator Samantha Varvel and influencer marketing expert Jules Hughes about influencer marketing as a whole, what brands need to keep in mind when working with influencers, and how to create partnerships that work and last. This episode was originally recorded in 2022, and influencer marketing is changing by the moment, but there are incredible tips here that will be applicable to businesses for quite some time.

Marion Blount is the founder of Eddis & Co. and joined me for this episode to talk all things social media strategy. She is an expert in her field and runs her social media agency from Charleston, South Carolina. I've been so lucky to have some of our clients partner with her for their social media needs which has worked to amplify our PR efforts. This episode was recorded in 2022, and social media is changing by the moment, but there are incredible tips here that will be applicable to businesses for quite some time.

Sally she is a talented web designer and understands the nuances that make a lifestyle brand stand out in a digital space, while also focusing on the functionality of a site in order to drive sales. I've loved working with Sally on sites for some of our clients and was so grateful to her for joining this conversation all the way from Germany. We discussed how to do a website audit, how to best present your brand in the digital landscape, and much much more!

Join Caitlin Hill -- Founder & Creative Director of C&C Consulting and Emma Bazilian -- Content Director of Frederic Magazine, as we discuss press strategies for interior designers. We discussed everything from what types of images you need to pitch, to how long the pitching process can take, plus ways to make your work stand out as a designer on the rise.

A sneak peek of the PR Adjacent podcast -- officially launching 6/14! Robin Verrier is the founder of Verry Robin & Co. and a talented prop stylist and photographer that creates magical worlds through her layered imagery. Her trained eye for color, pattern and texture allow her to create rich imagery that stops you in your tracks. In our conversation we discussed visual assets for PR and marketing — what types of images set your brand apart and what images you need to have to make a PR launch successful.