Home Depot Founder Will Keynote Event
Staff -- Tradeshow Week, 8/6/2007
Bernie Marcus, the founder and first chairman and CEO of Home Depot, will be the keynote speaker for the fifth annual Tradeshow Week Fastest 50 event Nov. 2–4 in Atlanta.
Marcus, who began his professional career as a pharmacist, and his partner Arthur Blank came up with the idea for the home improvement warehouse concept in 1979 after the two were fired from another home improvement chain, Handy Dan Improvement Centers.
Marcus went on to be the first CEO (a position he held for 19 years) of Home Depot, the largest home improvement retailer in the world, and remained chairman of the board until his retirement in 2002.
"We are very excited to have Mr. Marcus address all the TSW Fastest 50 winners and our other guests," said TSW Publisher Adam Schaffer. "Every year, we're able to bring the true titans of the business world to TSW Fastest 50. Once again, we have been able to do that."
The annual TSW Fastest 50 recognizes achievement in the tradeshow and consumer show industries with a gala weekend that includes a reception and executive-level conference. The event culminates in a black-tie gala dinner Saturday night at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center, the host hotel.
The TSW Fastest 50 will honor shows that experienced the greatest growth in terms of net square footage between 2004 and 2006. The 50 winners will be announced in late August. and the top prizes in three categories (consumer shows, trade and/or association shows and overall fastest-growing) will be awarded at the black-tie gala Nov. 3.
The weekend will kick off Friday night with a welcome cocktail reception at the new World of Coca-Cola, a museum that offers the opportunity to sample 70 different products made around the world by the soft drink company.
The executive-level conference, keynote speech by Marcus and lunch will be held at the Georgia World Congress Center. As has become a tradition, the conference will begin with a State of the Industry panel with the chairman of the Society of Independent Show Organizers and the incoming chairman of the Intl. Assn. of Exhibitions and Events.
The overall fastest-growing shows will be announced at the black-tie gala Saturday night, and the weekend will wrap up Sunday morning at the Georgia Aquarium with a brunch prepared by Wolfgang Puck Executive Chef Gregg Brickman.
For more information on the TSW Fastest 50 and details on the weekend's activities, go to www.tswfastest50.com.
