National Sporting Goods Association Vice President of Business Development Paul M. Prince will retire, effective September 30. Prince is one of NSGA’s longest-tenured staff members, having contributed 39 years to the sporting goods industry.
“Paul has been an important part of the NSGA team for nearly four decades, and he has developed relationships that have lasted throughout his career,” said NSGA President & CEO Matt Carlson.
“Paul exhibited enthusiasm for NSGA, passion for the sporting goods industry and the unique ability to turn a stranger into a friend instantly,” Carlson said. “He has worked hard for the Association, and we wish him the best in his well-deserved retirement.”
Prince joined the NSGA staff as an executive assistant in November 1970 and worked with the late Robert Youngblood as assistant trade show manager for many years. His first trade show was the 1971 Chicago show, which was the first show held in the rebuilt McCormick Place after a fire had destroyed Chicago’s landmark convention center.
After Youngblood’s passing in 1985, Paul became trade show manager and in 1992 Vice President of Trade Show Services. During Prince’s tenure, NSGA hosted two trade shows on a regular basis for many years. The Chicago show was among the top 10 largest shows in the country, and the Fall Market in Anaheim, Calif., was among the nation’s top 25. In addition, NSGA held a third, regional show in Chicago for several years.
After NSGA exited the trade show business in 1999, Prince was named Vice President of Business Development.
Prince earned his Certified Exposition Manager (CEM) credential from the International Association of Expositions and Events (IAEE) and had been an active member of the Major Association of Trade Show Organizers (MATSO) and the Friends of McCormick Place, which worked with the Chicago Convention & Visitors Bureau and the McCormick Place labor unions to enhance the trade show experience for exhibiting companies.
