Creative Powerhouse Rethink Launches Rethink PR

Rethink has officially launched a full-service public relations offering under the leadership of Sean McDonald, global chief strategy officer and Meredith Burns, head of public relations. 

Rethink is known for earned-first creative ideas that break through and make headlines, and the agency has developed a process for repeatable success. Rethink PR combines the creative and strategic power that Rethink is known for, with a national public relations team. 

Rethink is the most awarded agency in the world, and has already been highly recognised for best-in-class PR work including: 

• Strategy PR Agency of the Year, Gold 2024 
• Strategy PR Campaign of the Year for Molson Coors 'See my Name', 2024
• Cannes Gold PR Lion for Ketchup Fraud, 2024 
• CPRS’s Agency Team of the Year in 2023
• Strategy PR Agency of the Year - Silver,  2023, 2022

Rethink PR supports many of the agency’s clients including Molson, McCain, WestJet and Scotiabank on a project basis as well as Tangerine and A&W on an always-on basis.

“Rethink PR is both the name of our public relations practice and a call to action for brands and agencies alike.” said Sean McDonald. “We see an obvious opportunity to think beyond the conventional approach we see time and again. We’re excited to bring the kind of strategic and creative thinking to public relations that we bring to everything we do.”

Meredith Burns, head of public relations joined in August from Hill&Knowlton where she was vice president and deputy general manager in Toronto. “PR has always been Rethink’s superpower,” said Meredith Burns. “We have incredible talent that allows us to offer something different. At Rethink, It’s not just about earning an impression – it’s about leaving one.” 

Rethink launched Brand Narrative in 2022, a team within Rethink focused on the amplification of ideas. Under the leadership of Meredith Montgomery (now managing director at GroupSJR), the Brand Narrative team grew and expanded its capabilities. The pivot to Rethink PR represents a fundamental shift in thinking from a team that provides public relations support as an extension to the advertising business, to an offering built on the Rethink way (strategy, creative, public relations, production, and design) that offers end-to-end public relations support. 

The national PR team across Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver includes Matt Milne, group account director (formerly Weber Shandwick); Sara Lemmermeyer, account director; Chenda McKissick, account director (formerly Pomp & Circumstance), Kristel Dupont account director (formerly Sid Lee, and recognised as one of Campaign Canada’s Top 30 under 30 this year), Jacky Le, account director (formerly Citizen Relations), and an impressive team of specialists, coordinators and strategic advisors rounding out the team of almost twenty.