Sound Story has acquired of The Comms Department, marking the next phase of growth for the independent business.
The move expands Sound Story’s capabilities across crisis and issues management, reputation advisory, executive communications and organisational change.
Founded by Bec Brown in 2012, The Comms Department advises brands, leaders and organisations through complex, high-stakes, and reputation sensitive moments across the media, entertainment, lifestyle, and corporate sectors.
The Comms Department will continue to operate as a distinct specialist brand alongside Sound Story. The two businesses retaining complementary positioning. Sound Story remains focused on strategic comms and reputation for creative industry leaders and challengers. The Comms Department has doubled down on specialising in crisis and issues, change and transformation, mergers and acquisitions, executive advisory and media training.
As part of the acquisition, Brown has joined as strategic advisor across Sound Story and The Comms Department. She will work alongside Sound Story founders and managing partners Jake Challenor and Brian Lawlor, and senior leaders Jane Elliott, Zanda Wilson, and Jono Harrison, who joined as general manager in May to oversee business growth and performance.
The move follows a year of collaboration between Sound Story and The Comms Department across several client projects.
“The role of communications has fundamentally changed over the last few years, with reputational issues sitting even closer to business strategy. Organisations are navigating more complexity, more scrutiny and faster-moving stakeholder environments than ever before,”
“This is an important next step in Sound Story’s growth and reflects where we believe the communications industry is heading – closer to business strategy, leadership and reputation.” Challenor said.
Brown added: “The Comms Department has always done its best work in complex situations where judgement, trust and communication genuinely matter,” Brown said.
“Joining Sound Story gives The Comms Department a bigger platform for the next stage of its work, while protecting the relationships, discretion and values that have shaped the business over the past 14 years.
“Having partnered with Sound Story on several client projects, this next step isn’t theoretical. The work has been strong, the trust is already there, and we genuinely enjoy working together. There’s real alignment in how we think about communications – commercially grounded, deeply human, and always connected to long-term reputation.” Said Brown.
