“In yoga, when you bring your hands together, you should leave a little hollow between your palms to leave a little space for your heart,” says Tatiana Konareva, CEO of IT Studio Design LLC, a Toronto-based exhibit house. Konareva, who teaches yoga three times a week at her local YMCA, could use this subtle but powerful pose as a metaphor for the way that she uses her exhibit house to bring diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) to the trade show industry. But like those of us cursed with tight hamstrings and inflexible backs, it has taken IT Studio Design decades of practice, focus, and dedication to achieve the right balance of profit and generosity.

You'll be forgiven if you take the current buzzword with a healthy dose of skepticism — much as you might have with the outgoing “synergy” and the newly minted “circular economy.” Oftentimes such buzzwords are little more than bulletpoints used to make companies feel like they're doing something new and innovative. So it's more than just a little heartening when you discover a company that's addressing a thorny challenge by doing more than simply checking a box on the to-do list.

Child's Pose
Before immigrating to Canada from Russia 22 years ago, Konareva worked in trade shows across Europe while she was a member of the Ministry of Foreign Trade for Russia. When she arrived in Canada in 2002, she found an exhibition industry that she considered outdated and sluggish compared to its European counterpart. So she started her own exhibit company, IT Studio Design LLC, at a time when there were few exhibit house owners who were women. She had bold ambitions to transform the industry by modernizing exhibit design and incorporating new technologies. Soon, though, she shifted her focus to driving the adoption of pavilion structures.

For example, in 2015, Peru's tourism board, PromPeru, wanted to promote the country's diverse tourism and investment opportunities through a series of trade shows in the United States. IT Studio made a pavilion that incorporated wood textures, flexible wrapping, and lightweight aluminum framing. The end result was beautiful and stayed within PromPeru's very modest budget.

Within a few years, IT Studio carved out its niche by focusing on international companies that were exhibiting in North American trade shows. But exhibiting in North America is cost prohibitive, particularly for those from developing countries. According to Konareva, this is especially true for women from those countries, who often have little idea how business works in the United States. This realization struck a chord with Konareva because she empathized with the challenges of competing in what can often be a male-dominated world. “It kind of sits inside of me,” Konareva said, “because in many countries it is still like when I grew up in Russia where women are not well organized as business people.”

So IT Studios began finding ways to help set up small and medium exporter (SME) pavilions for those breaking into the U.S. market. Konareva found that North Americans benefited from learning about and investing in the small and culturally significant international businesses. These exhibitors needed a lot of assistance on everything from getting services through general show contractors (GSCs) to finding where to purchase water to have in the booth. “I wanted to ensure these women were presented a high level, so we went above and beyond to make sure the exhibits and pavilions are attractive and successful,” Konareva said.

In 2018, at a show in Canada, Konareva met an important partner — a member of Canada's Trade Facilitation Office (TFO), a nonprofit implementing the Women in Trade (WIT), aimed at inclusive and sustainable growth in 24 developing countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and the Caribbean. TFO was surprised to find a company working along a parallel path, and the two organizations began working together.

Their first collaboration took place at the Canadian Produce Marketing Association in Vancouver in 2018 where they put together a pavilion for a women's group from Honduras. The booth won Best Booth for a First-Time Exhibitor. “Working with IT Studio Design was a wonderful experience,” said Marysabel Gonzalez, program director of Latin American and the Caribbean at TFO Canada. “The team is professional and friendly, and they are always open to listening to our requirements and needs. They supported us during the whole process and offered the best value.”

Since then, IT Design has supported exhibitors from Guatemala, Bangladesh, Columbia, Jordan, and more. And along the way, the pavilions continue to earn accolades. The latest was the top honor for Innovative Booth Design at NY NOW 2022 for its Guatemala pavilion.

But this success comes with a significant financial investment by IT Studio Design. Konareva estimates that her company sets 5 percent of its revenue aside each year to invest in new and emerging exhibitors. “This is our investment — we help people put together exhibits that would cost twice as much without our financial support,” she said.

And organizations around North America are taking notice. In 2023, the Exhibition Services & Contractors Association (ESCA) awarded IT Studio Design with the first ever Diversity and Inclusion Award for ensuring the exhibition industry is welcoming, diverse, and inclusive. “The [award] is a testament to [IT Studio Design's] outstanding efforts in championing diversity and inclusion,” wrote Julie Kagy, director of operations for ESCA, in her notification letter. “Your dedication to creating a more inclusive environment, promoting diversity in all its forms, and fostering understanding and acceptance has made a profound impact on the exhibition industry.”

But Konareva isn't motivated by recognition — rather it's a rare streak of altruism. Even her daughter questions why she spends so much time and money helping others get a leg up. “Maybe I was changed by my own immigration,” Konareva said. “I went through so many difficulties getting my own business started, and this melted my heart a little and made me nicer than I was before.” She'd like to see other companies give back, but since the pandemic she instead sees them becoming less flexible and less giving, which drives her harder to help. “We are there to help these people every step of the way,” she said. “In this somewhat crazy and aggressive world we live in, we need to show a little mercy.” E