WRAPPING UP OUR YEAR OF THE DRAGON 🐉
According to the Chinese calendar, 2024 was the Year of the Dragon, a symbol of good luck, strength, and prosperity. And wow, did it deliver! From massive trade shows to growing our dream team, this year has been nothing short of legendary. As we close out 2024, let’s dive into our highlights— what a year it’s been.
Roaring Through the Shows 🔥
This year, we brought the heat with 30 trade shows across the nation! Here’s the breakdown:
30 Food & Beverage clients (yes, we’re still dreaming of snacks)
17 Beauty clients bringing the glitz and glam to every booth.
The result? 67 booth projects completed. From custom designs to seamless execution, we tackled it all with a mix of creativity and caffeine (lots of caffeine). Shoutout to the 25 new clients who joined the GTC family this year …
KITS & Merch Madness
We didn’t just stop at trade shows. We also dove into branded merchandise, completing 15 kits and merch projects. Our favorites included swag-filled kits for Chomps and custom excitement kits for Catalina Crunch.
Meet the Newest crew members
What’s a successful year without new team members to celebrate? We grew by 6 incredible people, each bringing fresh perspectives and unique skills to the table:
Nicolette — Marketing Coordinator
Kristen — Exhibits Project Manager
Madi — Kits and Merch Project Manager
Meghan — Event Coordinator
Sydney — Account Manager
Keegan — Experiential Designer
Each of them hit the ground running, and we’re so lucky to have them on board.
In the Spotlight 🚨
Born This Way Podcast:
Our founder, Marissa, joined Chris Way to chat about the qualities that helped her launch GTC. From growing a team to staying grounded through life’s ups and downs, Marissa kept it real, raw, and relatable.
Beauty Industry Report: Feature Article
The Beauty Industry Report gave us a shoutout with a deep dive into our journey—covering everything from our quirky name to Marissa’s focus on building a culture-driven, client-centered brand.
BizBash Feature:
Not one, not two, but six of our booths were featured in BizBash’s article, 15 Colorful Booth Designs From Natural Products Expo West 2024. Booths like Chomps, Deebees, Belgian Boys, Tindle, Rambler, and Milkboy stole the show (literally).
New Industry Connections ⭐️
This year, we made some exciting additions to our industry affiliations:
Professional Beauty Association (PBA):
We’re thrilled to be members of the PBA, which supports over 100,000 beauty professionals. From financial relief programs to advocacy initiatives like the Cosmetology License Compact, we’re proud to be part of an organization making a real impact.
Women in Experiential (WIE):
Our founder and CEO, Marissa, joined the WIE Board of Directors this year. WIE’s mission to empower women in the experiential industry aligns perfectly with our values, and we’re honored to be part of this movement.
Work Hard, Play Hard 🤪
At GTC, we know how to have a good time—and 2024 was no exception:
Cubs Summer Outing:
We hit the hottest day of the year at Wrigley Field, but tacos and a Cubs win made it worth every drop of sweat.
A GTC Thanksgiving
Marissa hosted our annual holiday party, a true feast with Thanksgiving vibes. From delicious catering to a game of White Elephant, it was a night of gratitude and good times.
Closing the Year in gtc Style ❤️🔥
As 2024 comes to an end, we’re looking back on a year that embodied the spirit of the dragon—bold, ambitious, and full of wins. To our clients, team members, and industry friends, thank you for being part of our story. Here’s to more creativity, collaboration, and success in 2025!
P.S.: Of course, we made an end-of-the-year TikTok! Check it out here ❤️