PSFK is an American

media company Mass media refers to a diverse array of media technologies that reach a large audience via mass communication. The technologies through which this communication takes place include a variety of outlets. Broadcast media transmit information ...

located in

New York, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The company follows and reports on trends.

History

PSFK examines trends in major corporations. The company does

innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed enti ...

research for corporate clients to determine trends and consumer behaviors. PSFK offers corporations the market research platform, weekly newsletters, and retail innovation strategy including trends research and store design. The retail strategy firm also has a library of many trends research reports. It was founded by Piers Fawkes in 2004. The name is from the mixed initials of Piers Fawkes and his friend Simon King. Fawkes ran his own website with a

blog A blog (a Clipping (morphology), truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in Reverse ...

. He relocated from London to New York and started covering technology and other trends on his blog, which formed the basis for PSFK. He worked as a

dog walker Dog walking is the act of a person walking with a dog, typically from the dog's residence and then returning. Leashes are commonly used for this. Both owners and pets receive many benefits, including exercise and companionship. Description ...

and other odd-jobs until he started his startup. His first client was

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. They had seven employees as of 2011. Clients include

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance bar, temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pembe ...

Target Corporation Target Corporation ( doing business as Target and stylized in all lowercase since 2018) is an American big box department store chain headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is the seventh largest retailer in the United States, and a com ...

, BMW and

Procter & Gamble The Procter & Gamble Company (P&G) is an American multinational consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio, founded in 1837 by William Procter and James Gamble. It specializes in a wide range of personal health/consumer he ...

. In 2009, PSFK created a list of the top 10 most "inspirational brands," which included

Google Google LLC () is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company focusing on Search Engine, search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, software, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, ar ...

Apple An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancest ...

Zipcar Zipcar is an American car-sharing company and a subsidiary of Avis Budget Group. Zipcar provides vehicle reservations to its members, billable by the minute, hour or day; members may have to pay a monthly or annual membership fee in addition ...

, and other major consumer companies. They gathered the list by reviewing the blogs that PSFK had written over a period of time and then had a panel of specialists review the subjects to create the list. They publish ''The Future of Retail'' report annually, which covers trends and documentation about

retail sales Retail is the sale of goods and services to consumers, in contrast to wholesaling, which is sale to business or institutional customers. A retailer purchases goods in large quantities from manufacturers, directly or through a wholesaler, and t ...

. Trends they have reported on include circular supply chains, chat-bots, Generation Z, metaverse and retail store technology. Their researchers also focus on omnichannel concepts in which customers that have a seamless experience across different “channels,” like social media, phone and in a physical store. In 2011, PSFK partnered with former Vice President Al Gore's

Climate Reality Project The Climate Reality Project is a non-profit organization involved in education and advocacy related to climate change. The Climate Reality Project came into being in July 2011 as the consolidation of two environmental groups, the Alliance for Cli ...

to host a competition seeking video games that could help combat climate change. The results of the partnership were announced at a "Gaming for Good" salon in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The idea grew out of a PSFK report on "The Future of Gaming

The company offices were located on Bond Street (disambiguation), Bond Street in New York City. In 2013, the company had 15 employees. The majority of their revenue comes from consulting, with the rest coming from conferences, special events, retail strategy reports, consumer research surveys and newsletter advertising.

Reception

Fortune Fortune may refer to: General * Fortuna or Fortune, the Roman goddess of luck * Luck * Wealth * Fortune, a prediction made in fortune-telling * Fortune, in a fortune cookie Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''The Fortune'' (1931 film) ...

'' called PSFK a "21st-century re-boot" of

McKinsey & Company McKinsey & Company is a global management consulting firm founded in 1926 by University of Chicago professor James O. McKinsey, that offers professional services to corporations, governments, and other organizations. McKinsey is the oldest and ...

. However, "despite its impressive client list and growing capabilities it's unlikely that PSFK will threaten McKinsey".

References

{{reflist Research and analysis firms of the United States Mass media companies established in 2004 Companies based in New York City