With 25 years in the events industry, Karen is an accomplished branding, event, marketing and business development professional. She is one of the founders and partners of Event Advisory Group, a firm focused on improving event financial performance, brand value and operational excellence for our association and event organizer clients.
Karen honed her skills at Fortune 500 firms, Reed Exhibitions, technology start-ups, marketing agencies and her own event consulting firm. Karen has successfully launched, managed, and marketed large and niche trade shows, conferences, and corporate events, achieving rapid revenue growth, enhanced brand presence, and improved attendance and event square footage in highly competitive markets.
Karen was Event Director of the Americas for Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE), successfully launching new events in the travel industry, including American Travel Market (ATM) and International Golf Travel Market (IGTM). She developed strategic alliances, led the sales & marketing teams, and created new programs, ensuring the events achieved revenue and attendance goals.
Prior to launching the North American division for RTE, Karen led the marketing and communications for Reed Exhibitions, working on National Manufacturing Week, the Packaging portfolio, Interphex, Powder & Bulk Solids, ScanTech, and other leading events. Karen significantly increased attendance by 50 – 1000%+, improved the quality and traffic flow of buyers, and generated quality sales leads that converted to new exhibitors and sponsors via innovative marketing programs, promotions and technology. Karen was tapped by executive management to launch entertainment events with Reed’s sister publication, Variety, and revive declining events, turning around revenues, attendance, and exhibitor numbers.
Karen founded an event marketing & consulting agency, New Generation Event Solutions (NGES), focused on helping clients achieve their event objectives and improve financial and operational results. NGES helped association clients to improve attendance, sales and revenues, and better leverage their events to drive new memberships and product sales.
Karen raised $1M in seed capital to launch The Women's Congress, a business event for entrepreneurs and corporate executives. The event generated $1.6M in exhibit and sponsorship sales in just 18 months, and delivered more than 6,000 attendees to the first event.
She was instrumental in the successful launch and acquisition of b-there, an event registration and housing SaaS solution. She developed the go-to-market strategy to secure new association and trade show clients, as well as new partners, enhancing the solution to meet clients’ needs.