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The Experiential Design Authority Announces Esteemed Judging Panels for the 2026 ExSys Awards

  • Jan 3
  • 2 min read

The Experiential Design Authority (TEDA) is honored to unveil the distinguished professionals who will serve as judges for the 2026 ExSys Awards. These individuals, each a respected leader in experiential design, marketing, and/or brand strategy, will lend their expertise to evaluate entries across categories, celebrating the most innovative and effective system-based exhibits of the year.



Preliminary Panel

This year's initial round of evaluations will be conducted by a select group of industry veterans with deep experience in trade show marketing, event strategy, and brand engagement:

  • Allison Saget, Author and Event Marketing Consultant, EventBLT

  • Frank Jones, Experiential Producer, A Team Experiences

  • Liz Nacron, Partner, President of Creative and Production, Live Marketing

  • Stephanie Chavez, CTSM, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, BlackPearl Technology

  • Steve Riches, CEO & Principal, Laguna Displays

Their collective insights will shape the shortlist of finalists that will be evaluated by our final judging panel.


Best Student Design Judging Panel

To ensure a thoughtful assessment of tomorrow’s experiential leaders, TEDA has assembled a diverse panel of professionals to judge the Best Student Design category:

  • Al Mercuro, Strategic Marketing & Client Engagement Advisor, Genesis Exhibits

  • Alex Hill, Vice President, Experiential Solutions, Taylor Corp.

  • Axel von Hagen, Founder/Managing Partner, von Hagen Design, Germany

  • Courtney Soice, Chief Marketing Officer, Hamilton

  • Jeannette Sanders, Vice President, Marketing & Strategy, 2020 Exhibits

  • Rita Meno Price, Senior Vice President, Experiential Innovation, MC2

  • Stephen Ross, Vice President, Executive Creative Director, Access TCA

These awards recognize fresh perspectives and creative potential among student designers, interns, and/or recent graduates.



Final Judging Panel

The final stage of judging will bring together a broader group of experiential design experts and brand leaders from around the world, whose combined experience spans disciplines from creative direction to large-scale production. These individuals will all finalists to determine this year’s Gold, Silver, and Bronze Award winners.

  • Christian Lachel, LEED AP, Chief Creative Officer, BRC Imagination Arts

  • Christina Lyons, Professor & Chair, FIT Graduate Exhibition & Experience Design

  • Christina Stoll, CTSM Diamond, CDMP, PCM, Former Senior Marketing Manager, Event Marketing, HD Supply

  • Isabel Lorenzo, CEO, Octaplan Arquitetura e Promocoes Ltda., Brazil

  • James Inedu-George, Head of Design, HTLAfrica, Nigeria

  • John Pavek, Director of Partner Development, Willwork Global Event Services

  • Mike Denison, Head of Design, Smithsonian National Museum of American History

  • Rohit Saraogi, Co-Founder and Director - Europe & USA, Design Desk, Poland

  • Dr. Sachel Josefson, Associate Professor of Exhibit + Experience Design & Production, Bemidji State University

  • Smart Xu, Vice President, Lingtong Exhibition System Co. Ltd., China

  • Takhmina Turdialieva, Director, Tatalab.uz, Uzbekistan

  • Vickie Velji, Chief Experience Officer, Kubik, Canada


TEDA extends its sincere thanks to all judges for their time, expertise, and thoughtful evaluation of the many exemplary entries.



 
 
 
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