Our Story

Curzon was born out of curiosity and a friendship that developed between the co-founders Farzana Baduel and James Ollerenshaw.

On February 5th 2007, they met at the Institute of Directors in Pall Mall and started to work together as volunteers on the Young Director’s Forum at the IOD. James was already a PR veteran and introduced the world of communications to Farzana who had been running a tax firm. She was curious and he was kind. She wanted to learn more about Public Relations and he was happy to teach her.

They went on to co-found Curzon PR a couple of years later in 2009 and embarked upon an entrepreneurial adventure together. More than a decade later, curiosity remains a key value for our team as we believe in the importance of following your enthusiasm in life.

We hope for a future of work where technology unlocks pools of global talent and enables collaboration across cultures. We would like to see the world abandon outdated legacy ways of working and embrace innovative work practices such as agile teams and remote working for better social and environmental outcomes. We have the tools already. Our vision is that the world of work transforms by embracing a better way of working.

We believe in dialogue and as globalisation accelerates, so does the need for the global narrative to be shaped by a multitude of voices to bring unified understanding and cooperation. We are a diverse team based across continents working together to help our clients communicate with impact across borders by using the power of communication.

In an increasingly globalised world with an ever-evolving communications landscape, we exist to navigate our clients strategically; helping them to communicate with their stakeholders effectively to build, promote and protect their brands and reputations for a better world.

Over time we have expanded our capabilities in terms of the markets and services that we specialise in due to our growing community of expert consultants. We continue to look for ways to meet the needs of our clients in a rapidly changing media and communications landscape. As we continue to evolve and adapt, we remain true and committed to our values.

We live and work by our long-held set of core values:

• We work with purpose. We partner with clients who share a common purpose to bring meaning to our work; to enable our teams to be fully engaged to create value for clients and society.
• We believe in the power of diversity. As we face a future of unknown complexity and accelerated change, we build on the strength of our differences to help our clients navigate strategically. Our knowledge networks of experts tap diverse talents across disciplines, cultures and industries to rise to communication challenges.
• The pursuit of excellence and innovation. We harness continuous feedback culture to support professional growth and build insight. We embrace innovative digital technologies as they continue to disrupt industries to be early adopters at the forefront of paradigm shifts.
• Curiosity keeps us moving forward. We keep forging ahead, exploring new avenues, and trying new things, because we’re curious and curiosity leads us down new paths and helps us to discover better ways of working.
• We will treat our clients as we would wish to be treated. We are in the business of relationships and trust is the ultimate currency.
• We value the professionalism of the public relations industry and follow the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) Code of Conduct governing good practice around integrity, honesty, capability, capacity, competence, confidentiality, transparency and conflicts of interest.

We believe in the power of communication. Previously, the PR world was limited as journalists were the only gatekeepers to communication. With the advent of digital media, PRs can now easily create, curate and orchestrate communication directly to a global audience.

Advancements in disruptive technologies such as AI are moving us into a low-trust society in a complex multipolar world. Now is a time when we need to come together to tackle global challenges, and we realise the need to step up.

Whilst digital communication has been democratised and brought many benefits to society, it has also brought harm through disinformation and misinformation. With this rapid power shift comes a greater need for communicating responsibly. For 15 years, we have been working on the principle that everyone has a right to communicate. However, we are now shifting to a values-based approach to our client portfolio.

Curzon PR believes in connecting words across sectors as well as cultures. Our North Star is to connect worlds for good. Whilst we do not always get it right, we will endeavour to align ourselves with work driven by a shared purpose of doing good. Our principles below will act as a compass towards our North Star.

1. We have always valued the professionalism of the public relations industry and follow the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) and the Public Relations and Communications Association (PRCA) Codes of Conduct to maintain the highest standards of integrity, professional endeavour, confidentiality, financial propriety and personal conduct. We are active members of both trade bodies.
2. We now wish to use our penchant for storytelling and curiosity to amplify good, and our lenses are built around purpose and profit.
   When we consider ‘who’ we work with, we will also think deeply about the nature and impact of the specific project we are amplifying. Our decision-making lens will need to be mindful of global sensibilities and the contrasting value systems across the world.
3. We strive to be respectful of diverse values and perspectives. We endeavour to work on projects that are inclusive and bring people together.
4. We now decline to work with companies exclusively operating in industries such as tobacco and gambling that are proven to cause harm.

If you have any concerns about our work, please reach out, as we are keen to listen, learn and walk the talk in our journey of connecting worlds for good.