Hawke Media today announced it has acquired Ketner Group, which is rebranding as Aster Agency. The new brand builds on Aster Agency’s more than three decades of specialization in modern commerce technology while marking a broader evolution of its services and reach.
A New Name for the Communications Agency’s Next Chapter
Founded in Austin in 1990 by journalist-turned-PR professional Jeff Ketner, Aster Agency specializes in communications for B2B technology companies transforming the buying experience, from point of production to point of purchase. Catherine Seeds joined the agency in 2002 and became CEO in 2019. Today she leads Aster Agency with EVP Kirsty Goodlett, and Ketner continues to work with key clients as senior advisor.
“Aster Agency represents both what we’ve built and where we’re going,” said Catherine Seeds, Managing Director, Aster Agency, a Hawke Media Company. “Jeff built this agency on great storytelling and real relationships with reporters, analysts and clients. Now we can say ‘yes’ to more of what our clients ask us for. It’s the same team the industry has trusted for decades, with more ways to help executives grow their business.”
The name Aster draws from Seeds and Goodlett’s shared love of gardening. The resilient, late-blooming flower connects Seeds’ Texas roots with Goodlett’s home in Atlanta and reflects an agency that has continued to grow and evolve for more than 35 years. Derived from the Greek word astḗr, meaning “star,” the name also represents wisdom, patience and new beginnings.
Aster Agency’s new positioning carries the same idea: “Grounded in relationships, built for what’s next.”
One Connected Team for Communications and Performance Marketing
The decision to join Hawke Media grew out of what Seeds and her team kept hearing from clients and prospects. Companies were managing separate partners for PR, SEO, paid media, lifecycle marketing, branding and web, then spending time trying to get those agencies to work together. As part of Hawke Media, Aster Agency can now offer a full range of marketing capabilities through one connected team, all while keeping the communications expertise and relationships clients already rely on.
The acquisition expands what Aster Agency can offer B2B technology clients, including:
- Integrated PR and generative engine optimization (GEO), helping earned media strengthen visibility in AI search
- SEO, paid search, web and digital marketing from Hawke Media’s channel experts, coordinated by an Aster Agency team that already knows the client’s business
- Reporting tied to business outcomes, connecting communications efforts to pipeline and brand visibility
- Hawke AI, Hawke Media’s marketing analytics platform, which brings marketing data into one view so teams can better understand performance and make more informed decisions
Aster Agency’s experience already extends beyond retail into fintech, hospitality technology and supply chain, and Hawke Media’s scale gives the agency room to grow its work across technology markets.
Hawke Media Gains a Specialized Retail Tech Communications Practice
“Catherine and her team bring specialized expertise and long-standing relationships in the technology that powers how the world buys,” said Erik Huberman, founder and CEO, Hawke Media. “Aster Agency gives Hawke Media a specialized communications practice, and Aster Agency clients get a much larger marketing bench behind the team they already trust. When earned media, search, creative, paid media and analytics share one plan, companies get more from every one of those investments.”
To learn more about Aster Agency, visit www.aster-agency.com. For more information on Hawke Media’s services, visit www.hawkemedia.com.
Aster Agency and Hawke Media will be at NRF 2027: Retail’s Big Show, Jan. 10–12, 2027 at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City. Click here to schedule time to meet with the teams during the show.
