Stepping Into the Shoes of Karen Chupka - a Woman With Sole

Sometimes, it takes a bit of trial and error to find the perfect pair of shoes. And, if you’re Karen Chupka, senior vice president of events and conferences for the Consumer Electronics Association and responsible for overseeing the world’s largest technology trade show, you have a really good excuse for indulging in quality footwear: spending lots of time on your feet!

After more than two decades of running around the monolithic International Consumer Electronics Show for several days each year in Las Vegas, no one knows the importance comfortable shoes like Chupka.

“I do have quite a few pairs, around 300 at least,” Chupka said. “I usually bring about four or five different pairs (to CES) and switch them throughout the day. I try to do some flats and some mid-heels because I think it’s good for you feet to have different heights to adjust to and different pressures points for areas that are hurting or not hurting.

She added, “Probably, why I have all the shoes I have is because one day I really am going to find an awesome pair of shoes that are incredibly good looking, incredibly comfortable and incredibly high-heeled that I can actually walk in. I don’t think such a thing exists, but I continue trying!”

But for Chupka, working at CEA for the past 22 years has been well worth the years of sore feet. Starting as registration coordinator, the small-town girl from Ambridge, Penn., worked her way to the top by being willing to try new things, take on additional responsibilities and learn new skills.

“I just really took advantage of trying to learn as much as I could by volunteering to do different things over the years,” Chupka said. “I tend to be someone who likes to do new things a lot, so I like to take something that maybe we haven’t done before and try to figure out how to do it and once I figure it out, hand it off.”

She added, “And, as I grew up in the trade show side, I also started liking the electronics industry, too. (CES) was a great opportunity, allowing me to take what I had learned from the events side and create something that’s a fun place to be and a fun thing to work on every year.”

As someone who thrives on change, challenges and new experiences, Chupka’s busy and diverse career not only suits her temperament, but also has allowed her to design a life that fits. When not traveling for work, Chupka divides her time between the D.C. area and Virginia Beach, Va., where she enjoys working from home on Fridays, spending weekends close to family and pursuing her favorite pastimes.

“It’s kind of a nice diversity of living two different lifestyles,” Chupka said. “One of the things I love doing is spending time and playing with my nieces and nephews because it’s great to be around kids. Obviously I shop! I love football and just hanging out, spending time doing things around the house or trying to organize my life.”

But, despite the fulfilling life she has created, Chupka admits that certain stressors come with the territory of running such a large and important industry event, including issues beyond her control. Her solution? Staying centered, proactive and taking as many preventative steps as possible to avoid potential pitfalls.

“For (CES), it seems like weather-related issues tend to become challenging for us,” Chupka said. “For instance, for years we’ve had almost 500,000 square feet of temporary structures, and I swear the weather relates to how many temporary structures we have because it seems like the more we have, the more it rains. So you’re worried about trying to make sure the exhibitors in those areas are having a good experience and yet there’s not much you can do other than trying to do as much preventative care as you can.”

Even with the stresses and challenges of her job, it doesn’t appear likely that Chupka will be changing careers any time soon. If she ever were to leave the trade show industry, could a possible career in the shoe industry be her next calling?

“I love shoes, so that would probably be the most likely thing that would make sense,” Chupka said. “But no matter what I ended up doing, it would be something that would have a lot of diversity and a lot of different elements to it. If there is something I would love to do, it would be working with kids. They’re fun, they have their challenging moments but they’re kids – they’re still learning.”

Whether she’s planning and running events for CEA, traveling on behalf of the association, spending time with friends and family or walking along the beach with Lucy, her beloved toy poodle, Chupka said she’s just happy to just live in the moment. Ask her what she thinks she’ll be most proud of when looking back on her life and she just laughs.

“I don’t know yet – I’m only halfway through my life, and I have many more good things to come!” Chupka said. “In a sense, I guess it would be that I came from a small town, I didn’t end up going to college, I came right out into the workforce and through hard work and just trying out different things I was able to build a career. That’s something I’m really proud of.”

TSNN: Faces of Face2Face Series is presented by MarketArt