By Debbie Hall
Gayle Wright and IPME fit the trade and expo industry perfectly. International Port Management Enterprise (IPME) is a shipping container supplier and in-house production studio providing turnkey solutions for innovative container systems. Gayle, as the sales manager, brings her unique background and love of people to create teamwork with clients, vendors, and attendees.
Gayle sat with Exhibit City News (ECN) to discuss her day-to-day adventures.
Day to Day
“I keep East Coast hours even though I am based on the West Coast,” said Gayle. “I wake up at 3:30 a.m. I run at least 10K, then I go to the gym, lift weights, and do yoga for about 30 minutes in a sauna. After finishing my workout at the gym, I head home to my office to begin responding to emails and returning phone calls.”
While taking care of current clients, she is developing new relationships.
“When I meet with a prospective client, I begin by learning about them and their company to understand how IPME can deliver the best solution for their activation. My goal is to gain insight into both the individual I’m working with and the organization they represent. It’s through this understanding that I begin building a strong, collaborative relationship.”
Gayle attends many tradeshows and expos and will review the exhibitor and attendee list. She strategizes on what she needs to focus on, their brand, their goals, and what they have done. Gayle looks forward to these conversations.
“I view myself as a solo entrepreneur, and my bosses support that. I might ‘work’ seven days a week, but I love it. I feel connected, and I feel that people are so supportive of me.”
A Special Relationship
She develops partnerships with exhibit houses to help clients with referrals.
IPME is always happy to manage the full scope of an activation. However, when budget constraints come into play, it often makes sense to collaborate with trusted partner vendors to ensure they stay within the client’s budget without compromising quality.
“I have partnered with Cameo Coleman with Word Up Productions. She was my first boss at Freeman, and she’s an expert when it comes to stage rigging—an area where I consider myself more of a novice. When I bring her into a project, I know the client is going to receive an exceptional experience through the combined strengths of IPME and Word Up Productions.”
A Unique Background
She was born and raised in Concord, California, east of the San Francisco Bay Area. Some counties were named after her family, residents for generations.
“I was fascinated with law enforcement, and I had a dream of becoming an FBI agent or lawyer. At one point, I wanted to join the military, but my mom talked me out. I love everything about law enforcement. I don’t think people really understand that it is about communication and working within the culture, the community, and people,” explains Gayle.
She would be hired by the Pittsburg (California) Police Department in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay area, given a beat in one of the highest crime areas, which included diverse cultures.
“It really changed me as a person. I learned how police officers and the community work together. I really got to know the humanization of people.”
She met her future husband through a friend. He asked her to move to Las Vegas in 2004. At 30, she desired to get married, start a family, and continue her career in law enforcement.
Gayle applied to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department but was looking for temporary employment. Her mother-in-law had a friend who worked at Freeman Expositions Transportation Department, and they offered her a job in the Exhibitor Service Department.
“I loved the job as an exhibitor service rep, making and fostering relationships, solving problems, and helping people. We wanted to start a family, and it made more sense for me to stay at Freeman and have better hours.”
She worked her way into a management position and was assigned to the biggest shows including CES and World of Concrete.
Gayle was divorced in 2014, and in 2017, she needed a mental break from constant travel, 14-hour days, and no time off.
“I left Freeman, became certified to teach yoga, traveled, and went sailing. I learned how to meditate. Before I knew it, almost a whole year had passed, and it was time for me to get a job, so I reached out to Brumark and was offered a job as a sales account manager. My dream was to be in sales. Working with Rick [Pierson] at Brumark, I learned how to build relationships.”
IPME: Past, Present, and Future
The pandemic would change everything in 2020. Nobody knew if tradeshows were going to come back, and if they did, what to expect. Gayle was furloughed.
IPME, her client at Brumark, would contact her. Gayle would resonate with IPME co-founders Bill Hinchliff and Craig Rapoza.
“They were so innovative. I told Bill [Hinchliff] you’re my big brother, and he calls me his little sister. We can have a conversation and create together.”
Gayle wants to own the outdoor space. While their product can be used indoors, containers aren’t for everybody.
“I always tell prospective clients that I’m not the cheapest solution, but I’m going be the fastest. When a client is onsite building a booth, charges can increase with onsite labor charges over. I want to help clients save the most money and get the most value for their investment.
“We have 10 full-time employees, including a designer, an estimator, two salespeople, a co-founder, a general manager, a project manager, and people that work in our warehouse.”
Gayle does not view the other exhibit houses as competitors and sees the future as a hybrid.
“It’ll be part of it, especially the double-deck booths. We can set up a two-story structure in four to six hours. We did a three-story structure for T-Mobile at the Sphere for Formula 1 and were done in a day and a half.”
Personally
Gayle serves on the board of directors for Women in Exhibitions and spends her leisure time enjoying the outdoors, primarily trail running and hiking. “I do competitions, marathons, Hyrox fitness competitions, and Spartan races. I’m going to Morzine, France, to do one in the French Alps. I have a really large network of friends who also do these kinds of competitions all over the world, so we all congregate together.
This story originally appeared in the Q3 2025 issue of Exhibit City News, p. 88. For original layout, visit https://issuu.com/exhibitcitynews/docs/exhibit_city_news_-_jul_aug_sept_2025/88.
