‘Relaunch Hong Kong’ PR contract worth US$6.2 million goes to firm linked to controversy, raising eyebrows in industry
- Employees of winning bidder Consulum said to be from firm which collapsed in 2017
- With trouble looming over national security law, experts question timing of PR exercise
The Hong Kong government’s choice of a public relations firm to help rebuild the city’s shattered international image has raised eyebrows in the industry.
PR experts wondered why the government handed the plum US$6.2 million (HK$48 million) deal to Consulum, which is staffed largely by employees of an international firm that collapsed in 2017 after running a racially charged campaign in South Africa.
The immediate effect, they said, was that controversies surrounding the firm would now be associated with the Hong Kong government.
The Information Services Department announced on Monday that the one-year contract for the “Relaunch Hong Kong” campaign had gone to Consulum.
It said Consulum would develop a communications strategy as well as a marketing and advertising plan “to highlight Hong Kong’s recovery and help rebuild confidence in Hong Kong as a place to invest, do business, work and live”.
The company would conduct research to “shape an issues and crisis management programme” to deal with the information needs and perceptions of Hong Kong’s key global stakeholders, it added.
According to the tender document, the government also wanted a PR consultant to help “counter negative international perceptions”, including “views espoused by critics internationally”.