Kekst and Company

Kekst and Company is a public relations firm founded by Gershon Kekst in 1970.

The Holmes Report describes the firm as "focused on strategic communications consulting, as well as on traditional corporate and financial relations." The firm's experience includes communications around "mergers and acquisitions, restructurings, bankruptcies, litigation matters, management transitions and corporate governance issues, earnings surprises and other financial disclosures, demutualizations, labor disputes, regulatory issues, IPOs and listings." 

Change in Leadership
On July 29, 2010, Larry Rand was named chief executive officer of the firm, with founder Gershon Kekst stepping aside from daily management responsibilities while continuing to serve as executive chairman. According to a report by Bloomberg News, Mr. Rand indicated that the firm "aims to expand beyond its traditional work in mergers and acquisitions, crisis management and investor and media relations," and that the firm "will pursue more business in litigation support, restructuring and bankruptcy and corporate governance."

The Bloomberg report also indicated that Kekst and Company had opened a second office, in San Francisco, during 2010. 

Sale to Publicis
In July of 2008, Kekst and Company was acquired by Publicis Groupe, the world's fourth largest communications group. The announcement of the sale indicated that the firm "will operate autonomously under its name as a member of Publicis Groupe's Specialized Agencies and Marketing Services." 

Role in TXU Buyout
"The biggest leveraged buyout in history was notable not only for its finances, but also for its unusual feature of having multiple PR firms advising both sides of the deal simultaneously," PR Week wrote in February 2007. The Dallas-based energy company TXU will be purchased by three equity firms for $45 billion. The PR firm Public Strategies, Inc. advised both TXU and its purchasers, as did the firm Kekst and Company. Texas Pacific, one of the purchasers, also used Owen Blicksilver PR. 

O'Dwyer's PR Daily noted that "the buyout is expected to face regulatory, political and environmental concerns and the parties involved immediately moved to head off any immediate fallout," including by securing endorsements from Environmental Defense and the Natural Resources Defense Council. The companies promised "a $400M investment in conservation over the next five years," and appointed former Secretary of State James Baker as chair of an "advisory group on climate change." 

Clients
"Kekst represents corporations in virtually every major industry, ranging from financial services (banking, insurance, investment banking, private equity) to telecommunications, heavy manufacturing, defense, professional services, energy, food and agriculture, healthcare, retailing and consumer products," according to the Holmes Report. "The firm’s client roster includes a substantial number of non-U.S. companies, based in Europe, Japan and South America. As a matter of policy, Kekst does not publish a client list." 

Professional Staff
From the firm's website (accessed August 10, 2010):
 * Gershon Kekst
 * Lawrence Rand
 * James Fingeroth
 * Robert Siegfried
 * Jeffrey Taufield
 * Fred Spar
 * Lissa Perlman
 * Roanne Kulakoff
 * Thomas Davies
 * Ruth Pachman
 * Dawn Dover
 * Michael Freitag
 * Todd Fogarty
 * Wendi Kopsick
 * Mark Semer
 * Adam Weiner
 * Victoria Weld
 * Eric Berman
 * Michael Herley
 * Michal Chafets
 * Molly Morse
 * Kimberly Kriger
 * Andrea Calise
 * David Lilly
 * Micheline Tang
 * Lin Wu
 * Guy Celariste
 * Diana Postemsky
 * Douglas Kiker
 * Peter Hill
 * Lyndsey Estin
 * Sofia Mata-Leclerc
 * Paige Gruman
 * Brendan Syron
 * Melissa Sheer
 * Christine Gonzalez
 * Donald Cohen-Cutler
 * Yemi Rose
 * James David
 * Jeremy Fielding
 * Nathan Riggs

Contact Information
Kekst and Company 437 Madison Avenue New York, NY 10022

Website: www.kekst.com Phone: 212-521-4800

SourceWatch Resources

 * TXU