Brady Replaces Allen as CEO and Chairman of America Exhibition

By Staff -- Tradeshow Week, 4/19/2004

Charles Allen, CEO and chairman of American Exhibition Services, has sold his share in the company to former Vice Chairman and cousin C. Allen Brady. Allen will now take on the title of chief strategic advisor as Brady takes over as CEO. Brady joined AES a year and a half ago as Allen's partner to help restructure the tradeshow marketing and promotions company.

Allen said he would serve for the foreseeable future in a support role, offering help when and where needed. According to Brady, the two "had different philosophies" on how to run the company and "had to pick a direction."

"Charles is such a visionary. He concentrated on growth," Brady said. "I'm more conservative in, let's deal with what we have and fix it and grow it once we stabilize our position."

In 1999 AES partnered with Vulcan Publications. During that time, many of the company's products were outsourced and their quality suffered as a result, Brady claimed. In 2002, Vulcan conveyed back to AES the 50-percent stake it had purchased. Since then, Vulcan itself has been bought by Cygnus Business Media.

Brady also said that, since he joined the company, many of the services it had been outsourcing are now being done in house and, as a result, AES's first quarter was its first profitable quarter in a year and a half.

"I want to make AES what it once was," Brady said. "AES was put in a bad position, as was the entire industry after 9/11."