EACA Year in Review
EACA Board Meets / Elects New Directors & Officers. The EACA Board held its annual end of year meeting at EDPA ACCESS on Amelia Island, Florida on December 2, 2025. The agenda for the end of year meeting included elections for new Board Directors and Officers. The EACA is proud to announce its new Board for 2026 with a special shout out to our newly elected Directors.
Officers
President Matthew Little, Nuvista
Vice President Bob Dobinski, Corp. Events I&D
Treasurer Glen Ruggiero, JL Exhibit Services
Secretary Bill Muller, Nth Degree
Immediate Past President Rick Bellerjeau, Momentum Management
Current Directors
Director Steve Riches, Laguna Displays
Director John O’Shea, Czarnowski
Director Bruce Green, Coastal International
Director Noelle Webster, Willwork
Director Bernie Massett, Exhibit Marketing Specialists
Director Chris Casconi, Willwork
Director Jason Eisenhut, Employco USA
Director Scott Roemer, Eagle Management
Director April Hurley, The Expo Group
Newly Elected Directors
Director Mike McGuckin, ACES
Director Brian Kearns, LABORinc.ca
Director Jen LaBruzza, Love Your Show
Director Robby Stolte, Fusion Expo Services
2025 Annual Member Salary Survey The EACA conducted its Annual Salary Survey in 2025. All members were encouraged to participate as results are broken down by company size and service category. All responses were kept completely confidential. Any member who participates in the survey receivd a complete copy of the results once the survey concludes.
EACA Exhibited at ExhibitorLive. The EACA exhibited and sponsored Exhibitor Live in San Antonio last March. In addition the EACA Board met the day before the Expo Hall opens. Members were encouraged to forward any issue of concern or opportunity that you’d like the Board to review and discuss at that meeting.
EACA Hosted AI Webinar for Members. EACA hosted an AI Webinar for members last April. Jordan Walker and Hunter McKinley, cofounders of Backtrack and AI in Events experts covered the most practical and tactical ways to use the best AI tools of today. The 1-hour session covered actionable strategies to save time, speed up processes, and recommended AI tools—designed specifically for EACA members ready to embrace the future of technology. The AI Webinar was recorded and is available on the EACA website.
EACA Participated in ECA Legislative Day. The annual ECA Legislative Day took place on May 29 in Washington DC and EACA was in attendance. ECA’s 2025 Legislative Action Day brings leaders and advocates from across the business and professional events industry like you to Capitol Hill in Washington, DC to meet with their elected officials in support of ECA’s top public policy priorities, including tax reform and helping the industry attract and train its next generation workforce.
EACA at ECEF. Prior to ECA Legislative Day EACA was present at ECEF produced by Lippmann Connects. ECEF is the annual Exhibition & Convention Executive Forum. ECEF provides an opportunity for those who attend to develop top-to-top relationships with 255 executives sharing insights and opportunities.
EACA Member News Year in Review
EACA Welcomed New Members in 2025. The EACA proudly welcomed the following new members:
Company Principal Contact Service Category Location
Boom Transport Kulbir Bhangoo Freight Forwarder Ontario, Canada
Love Your Show Jen LaBruzza Program Mgmt Las Vegas, NV
JL Exhibit Services Jimmy LaCour I&D Covington, LA
RTM Expo Svcs. Jimmy Spinello I&D Las Vegas, NV
J.M. Sollami, Inc. Jim Sollami I&D Frankfort, IL
USA Displays Robert Martin Exhibits/I&D Romeoville, IL
NADA 2025 Blizzard Shuts Down New Orleans <Exhibit City News> New Orleans isn’t supposed to get snow. And certainly not a record-breaking blizzard that would shut down the city, cripple its infrastructure, and leave tradeshow crews battling the cold, hunger, and exhaustion just to get the job done. But in January 2025, that’s exactly what happened….and yet EACA members persisted and, working with show management and the general contractor, opened the show on schedule.
Nuvista Celebrates 25th Anniversary EACA congratulated Amanda Helgemoe, Matthew Little and everyone at Nuvista on the occasion as they celebrate their 25th Anniversary. Nuvista has been a proud member of the EACA for more than 20 years. Amanda is a former President of the Board and Matthew is the current Vice President.
Nth Degree Acquires Lancaster Management. The EACA learned by way of the industry pipeline that Nth Degree has acquired Lancaster Management.
Passings
Tony Barras Passes <Exhibit City News> Tony Barras, a respected figure in the tradeshow labor and exhibit services community, passed away following a battle with nasopharyngeal cancer. Tony served as Vice President of the Labor Division at EWI Worldwide/TERM Group for more than 27 years. Prior to that, he worked at GES Exposition Services as Director of Exhibit Services. Over the course of his decades-long career, he became known for his steady leadership, operational expertise, and commitment to professionalism on the show floor.
Lee Knight Passes <Exhibit City News> Lee Knight was a prominent figure in the tradeshow industry, best known for founding Exhibitor Magazine and the Certified Trade Show Marketer (CTSM) program. Established in 1982, Exhibitor Magazine has become a leading resource for tradeshow and corporate event marketing education. The magazine provides in-depth articles, case studies, and best practices to help exhibitors improve their performance and achieve measurable results. Knight’s vision extended beyond print media, he also founded EXHIBITORLIVE, an annual conference dedicated to educating professionals in the tradeshow and event marketing industry. Knight passed away on May 24.
Industry News Year in Review
TSNN Published Top Trends for U.S. Exhibition Industry
1. Positive outlook in U.S. In the 2nd half of 2024, 65% of respondents indicated they increased industry operations and only 10% reported a decline. For the first half of 2025, 78% of respondents are predicting an increase in industry operations and none are reporting a reduction.
2. Exhibition space surpasses pre-COVID levels in U.S. Compared with 2019, respondents reported a 2% increase in exhibit space sold in 2024.
3. Double-digit revenue growth projected for 2025 in U.S. Compared with 2023, 2024 revenues increased 4%. In 2025, respondents are projecting a 21% increase year over year.
2025 IFES World Summit <Exhibit City News> The International Federation of Exhibition and Event Services (IFES) World Summit took place in Guadalajaro, Mexico from June 17-20.
ECA Announced Its Board of Directors for 2025 The Exhibitions & Conferences Alliance (ECA), the unified advocacy voice of the business events industry, announced its 2025 elected officers and board of directors members. The following slate of officers have been elected by the ECA board of directors to serve a one-year term ending on December 31, 2025:
- Hervé Sedky (Chair), President & Chief Executive Officer, Emerald (representing the Society of Independent Show Organizers)
- Mark Bogdansky (Vice Chair), Vice President, Trade Shows and Community Engagement, Auto Care Association (representing the International Association of Exhibitions & Events)
- Chris Griffin (Treasurer), President & Chief Executive Officer, Crew XP (representing the Experiential Designers & Producers Association)
- Fernando Fischer (Secretary), President, Americas, RX (representing the Society of Independent Show Organizers)
Dallas Approves Loan for Convention Center Expansion <KERA News> The Dallas City Council approved a $1 billion loan for the expansion of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Wednesday ahead of the 2026 FIFA men’s soccer World Cup.
The expansion is part of a convention center district project and is estimated to cost between $3.3 billion and $3.5 billion — a stark increase from the initial $1.9 billion in 2021.
Real ID Instituted for Air Travel <Northstar Meetings Group>. After years of delays, the Real ID Act finally took effect on Wednesday, May 7. The legislation requires all travelers to present a Real ID–compliant driver’s license or photo ID card, or another form of federally acceptable identification (such as a valid passport or a military ID) to board domestic commercial flights.