An Atlanta native, Dan began his 35-year career in tradeshows when, at age 22, he boarded an airplane and left the Southeast for the first time to set-up and manage a trade show booth in San Francisco. He knew immediately: this was the industry for him. Since that modest beginning in a Fairmont Hotel ballroom, Dan has produced more than 90 trade and consumer shows including some of the industry’s largest and most diverse events – The International Surface Event, Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market, NY NOW, The Original Miami Beach Antique Show, The World of Concrete, International Roofing Expo, Surf Expo and Medtrade.

Dan says he was drawn to LightFair by its position as market leader, its sheer beauty and the deep camaraderie of the show team, as well as the opportunity to return to IMC, where he’d worked in the 1990s.

Dan is a graduate of the University of Georgia (Go Dawgs!) and an incredibly proud father and grandfather. He can be found most weekends in his workshop building or redesigning.

P: +1 404.220.2218
F: +1 678.686.5259
E: dand@lightfair.com

Lea has 25+ years of experience in the trade show industry. She started her career at Americas Mart Atlanta, growing over the years to take on Show Director roles with Urban Expositions and Exponation. She entered the lighting industry in 2013 as Sales Manager and later, Show Director of LightShow West. Her experience includes the areas of exhibit sales, conference program development, attendee relations and new business development. She also orchestrated the launch of the West Coast Lighting Insider monthly newsletter and was the creator of and Show Director for Chicago, Denver and Seattle LED Specifier Summits.

Lea joined LightFair in May of 2019 as Director of Attendee Relations in pursuit of her love of working with all the connections she had made in the lighting industry. In her current role she leads the attendee relations and exhibit sales teams.

This Oklahoma Sooners fan loves spending time with her family. Hobbies include water sports, snow skiing, and travel.

P: +1 404.220.2291
F: +1 678.686.5259
E: leat@lightfair.com

Donna joined LightFair in July 2021 as Sales Manager. She has 20 years’ experience in Trade Events, Media Advertising, Saas and Telecommunications fields. Formerly with Emerald Expositions, her role included exhibit sales and customer success serving Medtrade, GlobalShop/IRCE (now retailX) and the Prosper Show.

Donna is an Atlanta native obsessed with everything UGA and in constant pursuit of Foodie life and traveling.

P: +1 404.220.2132
E: donnam@lightfair.com

I have been in Sales for the last 10 years in the chemical and lighting industry. I’ve become very passionate about the lighting industry over the last 4 years. The innovation and technology advancements continue to grow and I love to see what products are coming out year after year. I grew up in Peachtree City, Georgia. After high school I spent 6 years in the US Army, then went on to spend the last 8 years in Boston and Martha’s Vineyard. I enjoy hunting, lake activities and hanging out with my wife and daughter. Go Dawgs!

P: 1.404-220-2221.
E: benjamins@lightfair.com

Rowena has 14 years of experience in the trade show industry. She started her career at Surf Expo and has worked for U.S. Antiques Shows, RFID Journal LIVE!, Artisan Bakery Expo and Pizza Expo. Her experience includes exhibit sales, customer service, marketing, and attendee relations.

Rowena joined LightFair in 2021 and is excited to be working for such an incredible show and with so many talented people.

Rowena is a native of Atlanta and a graduate of the University of Georgia. In her spare time she loves to read, travel and spend time with family, friends and her dog, Murphy.

P: +1.404.220.2287
E: rowenab@lightfair.com>

Shannon has worked in the event and tradeshow industry for over 15 years and has been with LightFair for five of those. Her experience includes working on the General Service Contractor side in sales, design, and operational roles. She is very passionate about the event/tradeshow industry and loves working with attendees and exhibitors to ensure they have a fantastic experience while attending LightFair.

During her career, Shannon managed the Louisiana State University AgCenter John M. Parker Coliseum. While with the LSU AgCenter, Disney utilized the Coliseum for the filming of Disney’s, “Glory Road”. During the film's production, Shannon noticed that one of the film's props, a team banner, was incorrect. The film's set designers had depicted a banner for the University of Kentucky using North Carolina blue—and to any UNC or UK fan, you know their blues are important. The film's set designers quickly updated the banner colors to depict the proper UK Blue which you now see in the film.

Shannon spends most of her weekends cheering on her husband’s volleyball team at Western Kentucky University and traveling to her son's soccer games. Shannon stays busy during her limited free time researching Pinterest to find projects for her husband, trying to stay healthy, and just being happy.

P: +1 404.220.2251
F: +1 678.686.5290
E: shannonb@lightfair.com

Ryan has over 20 years of executing marketing and advertising strategies for global brands in the television, real estate, and hospitality industries. When he is not working at LightFair you can find him traveling, cooking, reading a good sci-fi book, and delving into landscape design.

Ryan won an Emmy for Turner Entertainment’s “100 Years of Film” as associate producer.

P: +1.404.220.2237
E: ryanc@lightfair.com

Rupa joined LightFair in November 2019 following marketing positions with a Fortune 50 retailer and a decorative lighting manufacturer. Her work experience spans 15+ years, two continents, and a range of roles with agency and in-house corporate teams. She enjoys collaborating with the LightFair team and members of the lighting industry to drive engaging and relevant content marketing initiatives.

Learning at least one new thing every day about the industry she works in is one of Rupa's goals. When she is not strategizing, curating and crafting content for LightFair, she enjoys spending time in nature, hanging out with her family, doing yoga, reading, teaching, daydreaming, binge-watching, and dabbling in personal writing projects. She is a happy, oddball marketer/writer in a family of engineers and techies.

P: +1.404.220.2233
E: rupar@lightfair.com

Blake has been with LightFair since December 2019 and this is her first experience with the lighting industry. She is excited to grow her knowledge and loves seeing the complexity lighting holds within so many different industries. "We can’t live without light and it’s a vital, yet beautiful part of our daily lives. I’m glad we can transform this passion into a tradeshow with the best of the best."

In her spare time, Blake loves taking walks with her pup Ziggy and making fresh flower arrangements.

P: +1.404.220.2298
E: blakeb@lightfair.com

Amanda joined the LightFair team in 2021 and this is her first experience in the lighting industry. She is excited to learn more about the world of trade shows from an industry that specializes in making many aspects of life even brighter, and she loves the ability to meet journalists from all over the world that cover such an impactful industry. “A light has the ability to shift any mood in any room. Lighting is so powerful, and I can’t wait to share the story that it tells with the press.”

When Amanda isn’t working, you can find her exercising, playing with her cat, Pepper, or creating new makeup looks with her many colorful products. Amanda is also a Georgia Bulldog, and whenever she can, loves to say, “Go Dawgs!”

P: +1.404.220.2153

E: AMerritt@imcenters.com

Bob joined the LightFair team in 2010 to assist with hotel logistics, contracting, and to enhance the host city/convention center deliverables to LightFair. His career experience as a hotel director of Marketing for Marriott Hotels and 10 years directing city-wide sales with the Atlanta Convention and Visitors Bureau made for a good partnership.

Bob's responsibilities also include supporting our parent company IMC—running the Convention Center business, maintaining hotel partnerships, supporting our food service and event operations teams.

When not working, golf, beach and lake vacations with the family are the priority.

P: +1.404.220.2652
F: +1 678.686.5101
E: bschuler@imcenters.com