Smarts

Founded in 1990 in the small town of Holywood, United Kingdom, Smarts began as a local public relations agency with a simple but ambitious goal: to help brands connect with people in ways that felt authentic and culturally relevant. Over three decades, the agency has grown from its origins in Northern Ireland into a global operation with offices in London, New York, and Amsterdam. Today, Smarts is part of the MSQ marketing group and employs over 200 people, focusing on building brands with cultural endurance—those that don't just survive trends but actively shape them. The agency's longevity in a fast-changing industry speaks to its ability to adapt while staying true to its core mission of placing clients at the heart of cultural moments.

Current Focus: Culture-Driven Communications

Smarts defines itself through a culturally-led approach to public relations and communications. Rather than simply reacting to news cycles or pushing out press releases, the agency works to embed its clients into ongoing cultural conversations—whether that means tapping into social movements, leveraging emerging platforms, or creating content that resonates with specific audiences. This philosophy extends across all their work, from employee engagement and internal communications to crisis PR and issues management. The agency's emphasis on "cultural endurance" suggests a long-term view of brand building, where short-term wins are balanced with strategies that build lasting relevance. Their client roster, which includes global names like Booking.com, British Airways, and Tommy Hilfiger, indicates a capability to work across B2C and B2B sectors with equal fluency.

Services and Specialties

Smarts offers a comprehensive suite of services that span traditional PR, digital marketing, and creative production. While the agency's core strength lies in public relations and communications, their offerings have expanded to include app development, website design, and video production—reflecting a full-service model that allows them to handle campaigns from strategy to execution. Below is a breakdown of their key service areas:

• Public relations and communications: Media relations, earned media, brand positioning, issues management, crisis PR
• Digital and social marketing: Influencer marketing, social media management, content development, marcomms campaigns
• Creative and design: Video production, website design, app development, creative strategy, advertising and marketing
• Internal communications and culture: Employee engagement, culture shaping, CSR initiatives, internal campaigns
• Strategic consulting: Brand positioning, cultural endurance planning, issues management, long-term campaign strategy

This breadth of services means Smarts can act as both a strategic partner for high-level brand direction and a hands-on production house for creative assets. Their expertise in video and app development, for example, allows them to create multimedia campaigns that extend beyond traditional media relations, while their focus on employee engagement and CSR helps clients build brand affinity from the inside out.

Who Benefits from Working with Smarts

Smarts is a good fit for organizations that want to move beyond transactional PR and build deeper cultural connections with their audiences. Companies looking to navigate complex issues, launch campaigns that resonate on social media, or reposition their brand for long-term relevance will find the agency's strategic approach valuable. The agency's experience with global brands suggests they can handle the scale and complexity of multinational campaigns, while their roots in Holywood, United Kingdom, give them a grounded perspective that larger city-based agencies might lack. Whether you're a well-established consumer brand or a B2B company seeking to humanize your communications, Smarts offers a blend of creative firepower and strategic thinking that prioritizes lasting impact over fleeting attention. Their recognition as Integrated Agency of the Year and Large Agency of the Year further underscores their ability to deliver results across multiple disciplines.