GZ Publicity, founded in 2018 and transitioning to full-time operations in 2025, specializes in providing public relations services for underrepresented voices in the creator economy. Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, the firm represents nonprofits, culinary chefs, filmmakers, and production companies seeking visibility that honors their identities rather than conforming to traditional publicity standards.

Founder Gardenia Zuniga-Haro established the company after witnessing firsthand how traditional PR firms often overlook creators from diverse backgrounds.

“I’ve seen media that doesn’t represent Black and brown voices authentically. They make them sound like someone else,” explains Gardenia. “If you’re going to be on air, be yourself. Be prepared.”

For Gardenia, effective publicity must center on truthful storytelling that connects creators with relevant audiences rather than chasing vanity metrics. Having orchestrated “publicity campaigns for prominent film festivals and Bay Area nonprofits,” she has a perspective on the difference between genuine publicity and superficial promotion.

“There’s a huge misconception about PR and getting a PR box,” she says. “People think that getting one means they’re working with a publicist. It doesn’t. It just means they’re on a list to get free samples to review.”

This distinction forms the foundation of GZ Publicity’s service model. Rather than simply arranging promotional product placements, Gardenia focuses on developing narratives that connect creators with media outlets where their voices can reach relevant audiences.

“When you have a publicist, make sure you’re getting visibility in relevant, newsworthy outlets that align with what you’re doing in the community,” she says.

Audience Expectations

Having worked across multiple sectors, including marketing at Yelp, journalism at The Guardsman newspaper, and PR for boutique hotels at White Swan Inn/Petite Auberge Inn, Gardenia knows a thing or two about audience expectations.

She observes a growing gap between follower metrics and actual business impact, particularly in the food influencer space. “A client told me, ‘Being a food influencer feels like it’s dying. They come, say the food’s great, take your money, and eat everything off the menu,’” she shares.

This critique reflects a broader shift in how businesses evaluate creator partnerships. “Another said, ‘The influencer ate all our food, left a nice review, but their fan base is in Colombia. We’re in San Francisco. How does that help us?’”

These experiences have convinced Gardenia that the creator economy is moving toward prioritizing community relevance over raw audience numbers. “Now restaurants are reaching out because they’re done with influencers focused only on food. They want organic, press-worthy coverage,” she explains. This trend points toward a future where meaningful community connection trumps follower count, precisely the approach GZ Publicity has championed since its founding.

From Personal Experience to Professional Mission

Before launching GZ Publicity, Gardenia experienced the frustration of being silenced in corporate environments, particularly during her tenure in the tech industry. 

“When I worked in tech, I didn’t have a voice. You just sit at your desk and do what you’re told,” she recalls, adding that after leaving one position, “The CEO even called to apologize and was ‘trying to avoid a lawsuit’ because of the way I was treated.”

These experiences shaped her determination to create a publicity firm where expression would be celebrated rather than suppressed. Gardenia’s path to founding GZ Publicity was further cemented by personal tragedy when she lost her best friend, Gabby, in a car accident more than seven years ago.

“I remember she’d tell me, ‘Gardy, one day we’ll have our own publicity agency,’” Gardenia shares. “That tragedy pushed me. I did my first big press launch to get the media to her parents’ house to honor her.” This formative experience demonstrated the power of publicity to amplify important stories, setting Gardenia on her current path.

Approach to Publicity

GZ Publicity’s service model centers on helping clients develop newsworthy narratives while maintaining their true voices. Gardenia begins with strategy meetings to establish clear goals and timelines with each client.

“I strategize with my clients monthly; we set goals, review progress, and plan interviews,” she says. “Setting standards in those meetings, what I’ll do, what they’ll do, and how we’ll collaborate, has helped maintain strong partnerships.”

This systematic approach includes identifying unique angles that make stories stand out, particularly those with community impact. “Right now, community is what gets you in the news. If there’s a community element, you’ll get coverage,” she says. “Many people don’t understand that.”

Gardenia emphasizes that effective PR requires more than just occasional social media activity. “You need to be active online. If journalists see an inactive page, they’ll move on,” she notes.

Case Studies

GZ Publicity’s approach has helped clients embrace their true selves rather than conforming to standardized expectations. Gardenia shares the story of representing a Polynesian singer who maintained his cultural identity during media appearances.

“I represented a Polynesian singer who spoke in his island language on air,” she says. “I told him, ‘Be yourself,’ and people loved it because they could relate.”

Another story involves an animator client whose work has received significant recognition through strategic publicity. “We’ve worked together for four months, and she’s already Oscar-nominated,” says Gardenia. “It’s her talent, but my job is to find every angle. Just saying, ‘She’s a filmmaker’ isn’t enough. I need to find what makes her story newsworthy.”

Growing While Maintaining Identity

As creators grow, they often struggle to maintain their identity while expanding their business models. Gardenia recently consulted with influencers addressing this exact challenge after acquiring a hotel property.

“They told me, ‘We don’t want to lose who we are as influencers. Now that we have a hotel, how do we merge both?’” she recounts.

This situation exemplifies a common tension in the creator economy: how to grow without losing core identity. Gardenia’s approach centers on developing partnerships that avoid this pitfall while creating new narrative opportunities.

“With a publicist, we can build partnerships that tell their story and how they’re creating new opportunities in the Bay Area while representing who they are as Black and brown women entrepreneurs,” she says.

What’s Next for GZ Publicity?

Looking toward the future, Gardenia sees growth potential for GZ Publicity while maintaining its core commitment to representation. Having made the leap to full-time entrepreneurship earlier this year, she reports, “In seven months doing solo PR, I’ve already surpassed what I made in a full year at a nonprofit.”

Her vision includes potential expansion into the tech sector, specifically with companies that share her values around diversity. “I want to represent a tech company that focuses on people of color,” she says. “Tech is a very white dominated field, but this one company’s hackathon was so diverse. It had people from every background.”

This potential partnership would represent a full-circle moment, allowing Gardenia to transform her challenging experiences in tech into an opportunity to change the industry’s representation from within.

For creators stuck in their career paths, Gardenia offers a perspective that challenges common assumptions: “It’s not just about numbers. It’s about what truly fits your brand. Not all money is good money.”

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