LOS ANGELES—Multicultural marketing specialist Kim Hunter has launched KLH & Associates, a minority-owned-and-operated executive search firm specializing in the recruitment and placement of mid-to-senior level diverse candidates in the communications industry.

Hunter says the firm was created to respond to “the dismal demographics of professionals in the industry,” citing Madison Avenue Project and US Department of Labor statistics indicating that only 5.3 percent of managers in the communications industry are African American while 3.3 percent are Hispanic.

“This industry lacks diversity and the individuals who are underrepresented are people from ethnic minority backgrounds,” says Hunter. “For the last 20 years, I have been instrumental in more than 150 placements and I’ve decided to capitalize on my almost three decades of experience, relationships and needs.”

The firm has already worked with clients such as Sony Pictures Entertainment, Hill+Knowlton Strategies and Constituency Management Group (parent of Weber Shandwick Worldwide, DeVries Public Relations, Golin Harris, and more).

Hunter is also the founder of Lagrant Communications,, an integrated multicultural marketing communications firm specializing in the African American and Hispanic consumer markets, and the Lagrant Foundation, which is dedicated to increasing the numbers of ethnic minorities in the advertising, marketing, and public relations fields through scholarships, internships, career development workshops, and mentorships.