Does it seem like our industry has more second- and thirdgeneration players than others? A lot of kids look up to their parents and want to be just like them when they grow up. Maybe it’s the excitement of travel or the magnitude of a convention center. Maybe it’s all the goodies Dad brings home from the show, or the great vacations Mom gets from her “points.” And let’s face it, every kid who’s ever been to an exposition is awed by the sheer spectacle of the event. How cool to know that Mom or Dad is in charge.

And while there’s no statistical proof that we’re rife with more “kids” than other industries, our simple call for names uncovered nearly 100! There are sons and daughters, cousins and nephews, men and women alike. There are those who grew up always knowing they’d enter the family business, and those who tried other industries, but were lured back years later. Not meant to be all-inclusive, here’s a sampling of the kids in our business — both trade show and consumer.

Stephanie Selesnick
President
International Trade Information

Like many, Stephanie Selesnick started in the trade show business young — 10 years old. “My first job was putting out magazines in the bins,” she says. “It was up to me and my brother and sisters to make sure they were always full.” Her mother Denyse started the WAM Needle trade show in 1972. The business grew and eventually Denyse was working with groups as diverse as the American Feed Industry Association and the Consumer Electronics Show (CES), starting new shows, selling established ones and taking shows overseas.

By the time Stephanie was in college she was so well-versed in the industry that her mother would fly her as far as Mexico to manage shows during school breaks. The trade show business was like a language she spoke from infancy. “When you grow up in the business you learn by osmosis,” she says. ”You’re around it all the time. You see how it works. You see all the intricacies of putting on an event.”

Still, after college, Stephanie didn’t just settle into a career at her mother’s side. She forged her own path, first by working for other trade show companies. “I wanted to see how other companies worked and get a different perspective on how things are done,” she says.

Next she spent time working in concert promotion before having a heart-to-heart with herself about what she really wanted from her career. “In the early ’90s I wasn’t progressing the way I wanted to in concert promotion, so I made a list of all the things I wanted in a job.” At the same time, her mother’s company needed help launching CES Mexico. “It was a great opportunity. It fit all the things I was looking for in a job — travel, different stuff every day, live events.” She came on board. Now, she’s president of the company. Her mother is chairman. She became a partner in 1996 and took over as majority owner just this year.

From the beginning, Stephanie made it her mission to build a reputation for herself free of her mother’s shadow. “I didn’t have a choice,” she says. “My mom is such a huge icon in the industry that I had to go out and create my own identity.” She took advantage of every educational opportunity the industry had to offer, becoming a CEM and a CMP. Now she teaches the classes herself. “I’ve worked through every job there is in this industry,” she says. “I’ve helped start new shows, sold them and now we’re working on taking the company in a whole new direction.”

She’s come a long way since filling those magazine bins as a little girl. “When you’re the boss’ kid you’re being judged by a higher standard,” she says. “Your parents judge you because you’re their kid and possibly the future owner of the company. And you have to prove to the other employees that you’ve earned your place. Those two things can be challenging. But I think the people who have been successful in this industry understand that and accept it.”

Tim Muldoon
General Manager
Rhode Island Convention Center

Tim Muldoon got his first taste of the good life early. His father, Tom Muldoon spent the first 20 years of his career running hotel properties in New York City before packing up the family and moving to Philadelphia to run the CVB. In the early years in New York, Tim and his five brothers and sisters were treated to a trip into the big city at least once a year to stay in the fancy hotels his father managed and witness firsthand what life was like inside that world. “We were living this very middle class existence for 51 weeks a year, and then for this one week we would be living like kings,” he says.

Tim’s father would choose one child each night to take along with him on room checks. “We got to see all the things he was responsible for, and I think it gave us a feel for the things a person needs to do to be successful,” he says. It also gave Tim a love for the events industry that endures to this day. “When you’re a kid, it’s so much different than going to visit your dad at an office. There are different kinds of people coming and going from all different backgrounds. That’s something that drew me to the industry. It seemed fun and exciting — all the things you hope to get out of a job.”

After graduating from college, Tim started out on his own parallel path when he took his first job with SMG as assistant box office manager at Knickerbocker Arena in Albany, NY. From there, Tim found his way to the Peoria Civic Center and eventually back to the East Coast to be an event manager at the Rhode Island Convention Center.

For Tim, it was a blessing in disguise to have ventured out of Philadelphia at the start of his career. “They didn’t know who Tom Muldoon was,” he says. “That gave me a chance to build my own identity. I was going to succeed or not based on my merits.”

After leaving Rhode Island for stints at Reed Expositions and George Little Management, Tim found his way back to the Rhode Island Convention Center as director of operations. “I always loved the facilities side,” he says. “I missed working in the building every day.”

Tim isn’t the only Muldoon in the industry. His brother Pat works for Freeman Decorating and they once had the opportunity to work together in New York City. “That was a lot of fun,” he says. “I was with GLM as opps manager and he was working a show for Freeman on their operations side. I got to see his side of things and spend a few days in New York together. It was kind of like the old days.” When the industry’s in your blood, there’s no point trying to fight it.

Karen Howe
Executive Director of Trade Shows and Meetings
National Safety Council

Try telling Karen Howe that having family connections in the industry gives you a leg up and she’ll just laugh. Her father, Jim Howe, was a titan on the contracting side, starting out with Exposition Furniture and eventually becoming general manager of Freeman’s Chicago organization. She and most of her six brothers and sisters worked at one time or another for their father. “He was always tougher on us, always paid us less,” she says. “He worked us hard.”

For Karen, that trial by fire has paid off in a career that has touched on every aspect of the industry. She started out at Freeman and then moved to Dallas to help United Expo build its satellite office. From there, she moved to “management” (as her family playfully accuses her), working on CES. “Most of my family in the business was in general contracting, so I was the first one that went to the other side of the fence,” she says. “I took a few knocks on that one.”

Since then, she’s worked for a number of for-profits and not-for-profits before deciding it was time to make her way back home to Chicago.

Now, as Executive Director of Trade Shows and Meetings at the National Safety Council, she draws on much of the experience she gained from her father and her time as a contractor. “It was helpful starting out on the contracting side because I have a greater appreciation for what those vendor partners have to do to make me look good,” she says.

She remembers marveling at the big spectacular spaces she’d visit at McCormick Place as a child. “I’d walk into the National Association of Music Merchants or the auto show with my dad and think, ‘Wow, how did this all get here?’” she says. “That was fun as a kid.”

Karen also credits her childhood experiences in the industry with giving her the perspective and confidence to deal with all different kinds of people. “Back in the ’60s we lived in a middle-class, white neighborhood, but we’d always have people of other races and ethnicities over — all people my father worked with. So you didn’t know about being prejudiced because everybody was always in your home. That part of it was really good for me as a person, and shaped the way I interact with people today.”

Those early experiences also help Karen deal with everyone from union workers to CEOs. “I’m as comfortable talking to men on the dock as I am in a boardroom talking with executives about strategy, budgets or finances,” she says.

And she wouldn’t give up the excitement of events for anything. “I like managing chaos,” she says. “I love having to think quickly on my feet and solve problems and having to do it when I’m tired and when there are a million distractions. Every day is different.”

Bob Kolinek
President and CEO
Helen Brett Enterprises

When Bob Kolinek decided to join the family business he knew he’d have some big shoes to fill — high heels, in fact. “When I entered the business out of college all the employees were women. I was the token male,” he says. His grandmother, Helen Brett, founded Helen Brett Enterprises in 1946, turning her job as a traveling saleswoman in the gift industry into a collection of regional gift shows. “She was a pioneer in a male-oriented industry, so she had to stand her ground and she stood it very hard and firm, which means she stood it very hard and firm on me as well.”

Bob’s mother also worked in the industry and both, he says, were tough employers. They had to be to make it as women in their time.

Bob still remembers the first time he attended a trade show out of state with his grandparents. He was 13 years old. “My grandmother took all seven of her grandchildren to two shows over the summer that they turned 13,” he says. “She was seeing who would like the business. It was all offered to us. I happened to be the one who decided I would do it.”

Bob gave up several higher paying offers with major corporations to settle into an entry-level position with Helen Brett after college. “I thought if I didn’t do this now, maybe one of my other brothers or my cousins would,” he says. “I was always intrigued about the business. I liked the travel aspect and the possibility of eventually being able to run it. I worked on and off in college going to some of the shows and got to know the exhibitors. It excited me and I saw a lot of growth potential.”

But running the business would only come after Bob learned the ropes by working his way up.

“I started out as the office clerk doing everything that the lowest person on the totem pole would do,” he says. “I learned from the ground up. I think that’s one of the best things my grandmother did was make sure I understood everything that there was about the industry. That doesn’t happen anymore. People are brought in and they don’t always understand the grassroots of how a show happens.”

Bob’s hands-on training has certainly paid off. The company had a staff of four when he started. Now it’s a global corporation that runs 12 trade shows and has expanded into real estate, printing and technology under his watch. For him it’s all a testament to the hard work of his extraordinary grandmother. “All I’ve done is build on the foundation my mother and grandmother left,” he says. “I’ve been lucky to be able to guide and nurture this company.”

Tom Noonan
CEO
Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Bureau

Tom Noonan began his career at the Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau, or as he and several of his colleagues jokingly referred to it, the Dallas Convention and Nepotism Bureau. “There were four of us who were all second generation, working for the same CVB at the same time,” he says. It’s no mystery to him why so many of those with parents in the industry find their way into it themselves. “There are so many great people who work in this industry — people who are social by nature. So once you get into it and get it in your blood you start to love it.”

Tom didn’t really understand what his dad did for a living when he was growing up. David Noonan ran the American Academy of Opthalmology for 38 years, handling the day-to-day operations as well as all the meetings and conventions. “As I got older, the light bulb came on,” he says. “I realized that planning those annual meetings is really like setting up a medical college. My dad was an association director, but he had a passion for conventions because he saw how much they impacted the association’s bottom line and the value they had to the members and to the community.”

By the time he graduated from college, Tom was already hearing the siren song. He took a position with the Dallas CVB and within two years, he says, he was officially in love with the meetings and events industry. “What I love about it from a CVB standpoint is that when you bring events to your city people have jobs,” he says. “You’re creating impact. And you get the pleasure of selling a great American city. That’s something you can really believe in.”

From Dallas, Tom moved to Washington, DC to run that CVB’s national sales office. Then it was back to Dallas as VP of sales until an opportunity arose in Baltimore to be CEO of the Baltimore CVB.

David Noonan retired this year, which has gotten Tom thinking about how his father influenced his career. “It’s nice to have someone with almost 40 years of experience to give you advice,” he says. “It was always a secret weapon that I had.”

Even now, Tom will call on his dad for words of wisdom, although somewhere along the line, Tom’s reputation began to give his father’s a run for its money. “When I first got into the industry everyone would say, ‘Oh you’re David Noonan’s son, I love him,’” he says. “Somewhere around 8 to 10 years into it, people started to say to him, ‘Oh my gosh, Tom Noonan’s your son?’ We joke around about it now.”

But Tom knows he’s got a lot to thank his father for. “He always gave advice with no strings attached,” he says. “It was — and still is — great to have that place I can go, to someone who loves me and really wants me to succeed. It helped me a lot to have my dad in the industry. That was always a positive thing.”

THE NEXT GENERATION

20-somethings following in family footsteps

Christopher Harar
Title: Account Executive
Company: CSG Creative, a division of NTP
Previously: Show Program Coordinator, The Vision Council
Family connection: His father Robert Harar is the Owner and CEO of National Trade Productions.
Most memorable industry experience: “I still remember, around six years old, getting dressed up and going with my family to visit FOSE (Federal Office Systems Exposition), a show my father created at the Washington, DC Convention Center. I always liked the feeling of having a ‘show management’ badge, and being able to walk in and out of the show with my dad.”

Dallas Collins
Title: Special Project Manager
Company: The Rebedeau Group
Family connection: Her mother Mary Beth Rebedeau is the President of the The Rebedeau Group, an exposition and association management company. Her grandfather, Bud, was chairman.
What was your first industry job: “I can’t remember exactly how old I was, but I do remember getting paid a penny a label for the mass mailers TRG would do in the late ’80s and beyond. It was a big raise to get a dollar a sheet a few years later!”

Keegan Poss
Title: Sales Team Administrator for the Global Supply Portfolio
Company: New Hope Natural Media, a division of Penton Media
Previously: Show Program Coordinator, The Vision Council
Family connection: Keegan’s father, Galen Poss, is the former President of Hanley Wood Exhibitions.
Why did you want to join the industry? “For as long as I can remember, my dad has been working in the trade show industry, and I had the privilege of going to a lot of shows with him. I loved going to see the shows, walking the show floor and watching how it all came together.”

Stacey Price
Title: Sales Account Executive
Company: Hanley Wood Exhibitions
Family connection: Her father Jeff Price is COO of Freeman.
Why did you want to join the industry? “As a student, I never saw myself getting involved in the same line of work as my father, and I think, like many people in this industry, I fell into it. But I love what I do. I thoroughly enjoy being involved in my current projects because it’s the future of this industry and taking our business to an exciting new level. Regardless of how I got here, it was the best life change I could have made.”

Ryan Brown
Title: Exhibit Sales Manager
Company: American Composites Manufacturers Association
Previously: Sales Coordinator, Consumer Electronics Association
Family connection: His father Chris Brown is the Executive Vice President, Conventions and Business Operations, for the National Association of Broadcasters.
What’s it like being in the same industry as your dad? “I didn’t realize how well my dad had done in the industry until I found a magazine (EXPO) sitting on our counter at home with him on the cover. The title of the article was ‘The Master Planner.’ I thought it was a joke at first, that maybe one of his guys in creative had made it up, but I found out later it was real. He just never talks about work at home, at least not to me. Seems my dad has left quite the shoes to fill.”

Kristy Corcoran
Title: Assistant Show Manager
Company: Corcoran Expositions
Family connection: Her father Tom Corcoran is the President of Corcoran Expositions. Her mom Debbie Corcoran and uncle, Jeff Sharko, comprise the accounting department at the office.
First industry memory: “Getting lost in the aisles at the Chicago Sports Show in 1991. I’m pretty sure my first words were, ‘trade shows work!’“

Kelly Scypinski
Title: Industry Meeting Coordinator
Company: Freeman
Family connection: Her father is Dave Scypinski, Senior Vice President of Conference Direct.
Joined the industry because: “I’ve spent my life listening to my father talk about the industry, the people, the places and the experiences. I look up to him and admire all that he has accomplished, and think that one day, I’d like to be where he is now.”

CLOSE RELATIONS: More "brats" who grew up in the biz

Jeff Little
Board Member
GLM (a dmg world media business)
Family connection: His grandfather started George Little Management in 1924. His grandfather had two sons — William and Donald — who started at the company in 1930 and 1945, respectively. William’s son, Will, joined the firm in 1967, followed by Jeff in 1971. Jeff is the only family member left today; his cousin, Will, left in 2007 when they finalized the sale of GLM to dmg world media.
First industry memory: “Distributing buyer registration lists when I was 12 or 13. Back then, we produced buyer registration lists every day of a show. So I would push a huge cart up and down the hallways of the Hotel New Yorker and through all six floors of the Trade Show Building across the street, passing out these lists to exhibitors.”
Favorite industry story: “Most people don’t know this, but my grandfather actually started in the industry as an exhibitor. He and some other New York importers traveled to Chicago twice a year and did a little show in a hotel without really calling it a show. This would have been in the early ’20s. They invited buyers from Marshall Field’s and other retailers to come look at their merchandise. My grandfather was an ‘organizing’ kind of guy and he’d get there ahead of the rest of them and start getting things set up. Eventually, they started depending on him, so they started paying him a fee. And the rest is history.”

Patricia Dwyer
Senior Manager, Convention & Trade Show Services
Smith Bucklin
Previously: Director of Trade Shows and Conventions, National Office Products Association and the International Dairy Foods Association; Director of Convention Services, Chicago Convention & Tourism Bureau
Family connection: Her parents Marty and Gail Dwyer owned their own trade show management company from 1961 to 1991. Gail also had a CVB background.
Most memorable industry experience: “Being part of the first All-USA exposition for the petroleum and gas industry — NEFTA-GAZ — in 1973. No one else had done a show in Moscow as a stand-alone organization before. Being on site in Moscow was an eye-opening experience and brought all of us — contractors and exhibitors — together in a shared experience. And being followed by the KGB one night after a party at the British Embassy was also quite a memory.”

Mitt Arnaudet
Member Services Director
Exhibition Services & Contractors Association (ESCA)
Previously: Sales Manager for Freeman
Family connection: His father Larry Arnaudet is Executive Director of ESCA. A favorite childhood memory: “I must have been around eight or nine years old and my dad took me to the GES office where he was working one Sunday. I made my way down to the warehouse while he was working and jumped on every scooter I could find. I drove each one until I wrecked it and then jumped onto the next one. By the time I left, I had wrecked the whole fleet and he didn’t know a thing at the time. Monday morning was not a good day for me!”

Walter Charnizon
President
Continental Exhibitions
Family connection: His father Jerome Charnizon started Continental Exhibitions after several years with industry pioneer Saul Poliak of Clapp & Poliak.
Most memorable industry experience: “The months leading up to my first show were also the months leading up to the company’s first show. I remember going into the show management office on the first day of move-in. There was a sixfoot- long hero sandwich that everyone shared as the day went on. What struck me about that was the constant ebb and flow of people into and out of that office, and the underlying sense of teamwork that was needed to get that first show off the ground. Somehow that sandwich made for a good symbolic representation of that teamwork.”

Randall Pekowski
Vice President and COO
The Expo Group
Previously: Staff Accountant, General Operations Foreman, Customer Account Manager, National Sales Manager, Project Manager, IT Director, Vice President of Client Services, all at The Expo Group
Family connection: His father Ray is the Founder, President and CEO of The Expo Group.
A favorite childhood memory: “In the late ’80s and early years of the company, my father asked me and my buddies from high school if we wanted to earn some extra money pushing a vacuum around for a couple of nights. Upon arrival, we were handed a small household- type push vacuum with a very long extension cord, then led to Hall C and instructed to begin there and work toward Hall A. We started at 5 p.m. and walked out of there with the sun rising the next day. I recall falling asleep later that morning with the feeling of my right arm moving forward and backward as I slept. I can’t help but laugh to myself now when I watch these large riding vacuums race up and down the aisles on the night before a show opening.”

Andrew Ortale
Vice President of National Sales
Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association
Previously:Account Executive, Brede Exposition Services; National Sales Director, Greater Pittsburgh Convention & Visitors Bureau; Senior National Sales Executive, Orlando Convention & Visitors Bureau; Vice President of Client & Industry Relations, J. Spargo & Associates; and Vice President of National Sales, The Expo Group
Family connection: His father Greg Ortale was President and CEO of the Greater Minneapolis Convention and Visitors Association (now Meet Minneapolis) and is currently President and CEO of the Greater Houston CVB.
A favorite childhood memory: “As a kid, my father often took me with him on work functions. While my friends’ fathers taught their sons how to fish, my father was teaching me how to eat standing up by balancing a plate on my glass.”

Mindi Cherry
Vice President
ConvExx
Previously: Operations Manager for ConvExx
Family connection: Her father Chuck Schwartz is Chairman of ConvExx. Her mother and step-mother also work there. Her older brother and sister have their own event company called Schwartz Event Group, and her younger brother works for the Affinity Group. Even her husband is in the business as Associate Director of Sales at Mandalay Bay.
First industry memory: “Coming to Las Vegas during the SEMA Show and running the message center with my little brother. We answered the phone, wrote up the message and if it was for an exhibitor, we delivered it to their booth. If it was for an attendee, we pinned it on a big corkboard behind us. This was in the days before people ordered phones for their booth and definitely before cell phones!”

Carrie Freeman Parsons
Vice Chair and CMO
Freeman
Previously:Account Executive and General Manager, Freeman Decorating; President, Freeman Exhibit and Vice President of Marketing, Freeman Corporate
Family connection: Her grandfather Donald “Buck” Freeman founded the company. Her father Don Freeman remains Chairman of the Board today. Her brother-in-law serves as CEO.
Joined the industry because: “Growing up, Freeman employees were extended family. Our summer vacations were tied to company meetings. A good deal of our family social activities were with other Freeman families and I really enjoyed my summers working with the company. I joined the company because I couldn’t imagine working anywhere else — no other company could provide the same sense of community or be as much fun.”

George Furman
Vice President/Account Executive
3D Exhibits
Previously: He owned his own startup company, Geo Design, that later merged with Dimension Works.
Family connection: His father George Furman started a portable exhibit firm called Escort Display.
Most memorable industry experience: “My first industry memory was seeing McCormick Place after it burned down in 1967. After the fire, a snowstorm hit Chicago and caved in several roofs. One was my father’s custom exhibit warehouse. The double whammy caused my father’s company to go bankrupt. But he rebuilt, and when dad started over, he had the support of every industry member he ever worked with and was up and running in no time!”

Mary Beth Rebedeau
President
The Rebedeau Group
Family connection: Her father Bud Rebedeau was Chairman of The Rebedeau Group, an exposition and association management company.
First industry memory: “Running amok in Calgary, Alberta, with the other ‘show’ kids, when my dad managed a big international convention there. I was 12, and our tribe roamed all over the downtown area and through the headquarters hotel. We all met up for the following two summers at this meeting and even sent letters back and forth.”

Jack A. Boyd III
Business Analyst, Corporate Sales
Freeman
Previously:Account Executive, Sales Manager, Assistant Director of Sales, Director of Sales and General Manager — all at Freeman
Family connection: His grandmother Bonnie Carson, father John A. Boyd Jr. and mother Jane Boyd all worked their careers at Freeman. The family has a combined total of 124 years with the company.
A favorite childhood memory: “I remember my dad coming home with another industry associate, Steve Mirsky, from Freeman AV. Steve resembled Larry from ‘The Three Stooges.’ My father told me and all my friends that Larry from ‘The Three Stooges’ was in town for an event and would be coming over for dinner. When my father and Steve rolled into the driveway, there was a crowd of 20 or 30 kids waiting for autographs.”

Mark Yuska
Owner and President
Alliance Exposition Services
Previously: Vice President of Sales, Champion Exposition Services
Family connection: His father Chuck Yuska is the President and CEO for Pack Expo/PMMI.
First industry memory: “My first memory of the trade show industry was going to my father’s show as a child and riding on the back of his scooter around the show floor. Some kids rode on the back of bikes with their fathers around the neighborhood. I think the show floor was much more fun.”

James Spargo
Senior Vice President, Expo Sales & Management
J. Spargo & Associates
Previously: Vice President of Exhibit Sales, J. Spargo & Associates
Family connection: His father John Spargo is the CEO of J. Spargo & Associates; his sister Judy Spargo is Vice President of Exhibit Operations for the company.
First industry memory: “Watching my grandfather and father drafting floor plans by hand in the early ’70s.”

Larry Karel
President
Karel Exposition
Family connection: His father Jules Karel produced the Housewares Shows at Navy Pier in Chicago. His daughter Jill Rosditsky works as Comptroller for the company.
Funniest industry experience: “One time at the Long Beach Convention Center a foreign exhibitor refused to move some very heavy furniture that was blocking the path to the ladies room, and the center would not let me open until it was moved. I went up to him, walkie-talkie in hand, and told him he had to move, but he refused. I don’t know what made me say what I said next, but I pretended to talk into the walkie-talkie and shouted: ‘DELTA FORCE, DELTA FORCE!’ That’s when he finally said he’d move the stuff. Good thing I saw the movie.”

Dan, Eric and Craig Hoffend
Dan is Senior Vice President, Sales/Corporate Accounts; Craig is National Sales Manager; Eric is Director of Business Development
Freeman
Previously: Dan was President of Hoffend Xposition; Craig was Executive Vice President, Chicago; and Eric was Executive Vice President, Las Vegas. Family connection: Their father founded Hoffend Xposition in 1960 as a spinoff to another family-owned company, Hoffend and Sons Stage Equipment, which their grandfather started in 1919. They also have a cousin, Jeff Hoffend, who works at Freeman. And their sister Patti Hoffend Cartwright works at Coral Productions.
Joined the industry because: Dan: ”The fast pace and ability to see your work come to life is enticing. This business has natural goals embedded in the work. You can achieve glory in each project as we make the impossible possible. We were also drawn in by the family ties — how fun it would be to work together on common goals.”
A favorite family childhood memory: Eric: “At my first IAEM meeting in 1992, Craig and Dan sat me down and gave me ‘the rules’ for attending. (1) Attend a session during every meeting block starting at 8:00. (2) Get to sessions 30 minutes early and sit in front. (3) Attend all lunch functions. (4) Attend all afterhours functions. (5) Be the last person up at night with our customers. Little did I know that while I was following the rules, my brothers slept every day until noon, and then came down for lunch and evening receptions. I never would have found out if Nancy Berg at SME hadn’t ratted them out. She’s been my friend ever since!”

Jeff Ducate
Executive Vice President
CMAC
Previously: Sales Manager, San Antonio CVB and Dallas CVB; Director of Strategic Alliances and Executive Director of Foundation, IAEM (now IAEE, the International Association of Exhibitions and Events)
Family connection: His father Doug Ducate is a longtime show organizer and currently CEO of the Center for Exhibition Industry Research (CEIR).
Joined the industry because: “I liked the people and the travel, as well as the benefits it brings to companies. It’s truly a key component for most small/startup businesses to grow and be successful.”

B. J. Enright
President
Tradeshow Logistics
Previously: Exhibitor Service Representative, Project Manager, Account Executive and Director of Sales, Andrews-Bartlett; Director of Sales and Vice President of Sales, The Aaron Group (sold to Champion); Account Executive, Director of Sales, General Manager and Regional Vice President, Southeast, GES
Family connection: His grandfather Harold E. Bartlett started Andrews- Bartlett, a general contractor, which was ultimately sold to GES. His mother Bonnie Aaron and father Toby Aaron were also in the industry.
Joined the industry because: “When I was three years old, I told my grandfather that I would run his company some day. I always had an interest in the trade show business for as long as I can remember.”

Chris and Kahle Williams
Senior VP of Sales & Service and Senior VP of Operations, respectively
CompuSystems
Previously: Chris has served as General Manager, Director of Sales and Vice President of Sales — all at Compu- Systems. Kahle has served as Director of Marketing, VP of Marketing and Senior VP of Operations at CompuSystems, and as National Reseller Manager and Sales Manager at Melissa Data.
Family connection: Their father Clark Williams is still President of CompuSystems.
Joined the industry because: “We thought it was an excellent opportunity to, over time, take the business from the first generation to the second generation.”
A favorite childhood memory: “We used to go to the sporting goods events CompuSystems serviced every year. We had a great time sampling all the latest equipment before it hit the market.”

Ellen Schwartz
Senior Director of Sales
Long Beach Convention Center/SMG
Previously: Trade Show Manager, Show Florist and Facility Sales
Family connection: Her father is Art Schwartz, formerly of Marketing/ Association Services Inc.
Most memorable industry experience: “As a child I appeared in publicity photos for the Arizona Home Beautiful Show, which my dad ran.”

Mark Bailey
President
Oscar Einzig
Previously: Operations Manager, Cahners Exposition Group; National Sales Manager, National Sporting Goods Association; Advertising Director, Miller-Freeman; self-employed floor manager; and Sales Manager Loews Hotels Regional Office
Family connection: His stepfather Jerry Smolka was President of Oscar Einzig. Joined the industry because: “I attended the now-defunct National Office Products Show at McCormick Place East in 1984. I was so caught up with the big exhibits, the people in attendance and the overall event excitement. I knew from that day forward this was an industry that I wanted to be a part of.”

Chad Chappell, CMP
Director of Sales
Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association
Previously: Bellman, Front Desk Manager, Convention Services Manager, Food and Beverage Manager (all in hotels); Sales Manager, Director of Sales (in hotels and CVBs)
Family connection: His father Wayne Chappell was President and CEO of the Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association and is currently Vice President of Tradeshow Relations and Portfolio Sales at the Greater Houston Convention & Visitors Bureau.
Joined the industry because: “I think it was in my blood. I spent so many years in convention centers and hotels as a child, I just felt at home going into the industry.”

Grant Bailey
Assistant General Manager
Donald E. Stephens Convention Center
Previously: A Teamster, Rigger, Account Executive and Vice President of Rosemont Exposition Services
Family connection: His father Howard Bailey was a Vice President with Freeman Decorating.
Joined the industry because: “In this industry, no two days are ever the same and we never have a dull moment. What more could you ask for in a career?”

Jay Atherton
Executive Vice President, Operations
Freeman
Previously: He’s been with Freeman since graduating from college.
Family connection: His father Jack Atherton is with the Construction Specifications Institute.
Most memorable industry experience: “Skirting and delivering tables for 12 hours on my very first day, and thinking that was a good day’s work!”

Carla Hargrove-McGill
President
Hargrove Expositions
Previously: Receptionist, sign shop worker, painter, Assistant to the Production Manager, Sales Accountant, Vice President of Special Events Sales and Vice President of the Special Events Division
Family connection: Her father and mother owned Hargrove until just last year.
A favorite childhood memory: “The first thing all my brothers, sisters and I learned was how to use a staple gun. I can’t imagine how many petal papers I’ve stapled onto floats and skirting onto staging and tables. One summer my entire job was to test 3,000 pieces of simultaneous interpretation equipment. I had a solder gun to test each piece and fix any that didn’t work. That took me all summer.”

Dena Carr Rambo
Associate Director of Sales
Dallas Convention and Visitors Bureau
Previously: Front Desk Clerk, Catering Assistant, Sales Assistant, Member Services Assistant, Sales Coordinator, Sales Manager and Director of National Accounts
Family connection: Her mother Susie Carr was a meeting professional for the Annuity Board of the Southern Baptist Convention.
Joined the industry because: “Being exposed to the industry for so long — it just seemed like a natural transition. I always enjoyed attending events, fams and site inspections with my Mom, so it just made sense to be a part of the industry.”

CONSUMER BRATS

Kristie Gonsalves
President
North East Expos
Previously: Intern during college at a TV station in the promotions department
Family connection: Her father George was a well-known consumer show producer and her mother also worked at the company. She eventually bought her shows from her dad and started her own firm. Her brother Joe produces an RV and camping show in Hartford, CT.
Joined the industry because: “I realized at an early age my other career choice as a veterinarian wouldn’t always have a happy ending. When I no longer produce shows, I’ll work with animals. They won’t complain about parking or ticket prices.”
A favorite childhood memory: “I used to tell all my teachers and friends that my dad actually owned the Civic Center where our shows were held. They were impressed!”

Les Grey
Vice President
Southeast Productions
Previously: Hotel Desk Clerk, Night Auditor and Front Office Supervisor
Family connection: Les is the youngest of three boys to follow his father into his consumer show business. Their father Edward, at 78, is still active daily in the business.
A favorite childhood memory: “The features my father would bring in for the events — Victor the Wrestling Bear, Skipper the Porpoise and the Cliff Divers of Acapulco.”

Lee Ann Murphy is a freelance writer. She is the former managing editor of Event Marketer magazine.