As the excitement builds to be reunited once again for “The Show of Shows” in Philadelphia Dec. 7-9, full-service event production company Shepard is making notable strides for the greater good, while inviting IAEE Expo! Expo! attendees to do the same as well as share their next steps for the future during this pivotal time.

As part of its Shepard GO (Go Outwardly) philanthropic initiative, the company believes Expo! Expo! is the ideal place to unveil its new alliance with Soles4Souls. The organization turns unwanted shoes and clothing into opportunity by putting them to good use—providing relief, creating jobs and empowering people to break the cycle of poverty.

Kicking the Soles4Souls partnership off at Expo! Expo! was the perfect timeline and synergy for the initiative, according to Lauren Bauer, director of sales, West region for Shepard.

The purpose is to focus on, support and create a dialogue around everyone’s next steps in this new era of events and at the same time do something great by stepping into Shepard’s booth, according to Lauren Bauer, director of sales, West Coast region for Shepard.

“Expo! Expo! is the place where people come to share ideas and learn about future opportunities, so what better place to start?” she said.

Shepard is inviting attendees to lend a hand by visiting its booth (#738) and sharing how they plan to move forward in the next generation of events in 2022 and beyond. By sharing their success tips and strategies with the community, they will be helping to make a contribution to Soles4Souls and be entered to win a pair of one-of-a-kind celebrity artist-designed shoes.

“As a longstanding supporter of Shepard’s philanthropic efforts, I am so pleased to be able to provide a platform for our Expo! Expo! community to get involved with Soles4Souls,” said Steve Basch, CEO of Shepard. “As event industry professionals, we know the incredible power of lifting people up, and providing them with resources can be the key to taking that step towards a better life.”

Attendees will also learn how Shepard can support their mission and needs and the ways they may work together for the future.

“We want to be able to guide that conversation about how attendees are approaching the future, and as they step into our booth, just continue that discovery with current clients, prospective clients and partners in the industry,” Bauer said.

Meanwhile, the Shepard booth will feature fun new activations by PopShap, a digital partner that creates compelling experiences with interactive technology. At the Shepard booth, PopShap will offer pre-loaded, engaging content for attendees to explore Shepard’s offerings, and they can even spin a wheel to win a prize.

“The goal with Shepard is to help trade shows move into the digital age by becoming more interactive with their presentations,” said Eitan Magid, CEO of Popshap.

“We also want to bridge the digital gap for exhibitors, especially for Shepard’s clients.”

Located just across the aisle from Shepard in booth #743, TSNN is also looking forward to helping support Shepard’s Soles4Souls initiative in creative ways as their show neighbor and partner. TSNN’s very own Rachel Wimberly and Arlene Shows, for example, will donate their own shoes at the Shepard booth.

“This will be two amazing women giving up their shoes so that somebody else can now take the next steps in life—but it’s more than just the shoes,” Bauer said. “It’s what they represent—an industry that is fortunate to have survived and able to come back together to make a big impact.”

The TSNN booth will be packed with free resources to help attendees connect and perform their jobs with the highest level of excellence. The company will also feature a social media wall and snapshots of attendees to Tweet out their brand and message to TSNN’s industry audience of more than 300,000 event professionals. In addition, TSNN is hosting an Ugly Sweater Contest during the IAEE chapter receptions and offering a $100 Amazon gift card for the winner. The winner will be announced during the general session on Dec. 8 and can come to the TSNN booth to take a picture with their prize to be Tweeted out.

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The Shepard booth at Expo! Expo! is #738, and the TSNN booth is #743.