Sexism in the Trade Show Industry

by Emily Fearnley

"Booth Babes" can be defined in a few ways - promotional models, scantily clad women encouraging attendees to stop and buy, or poor attractive girls being objectified by the males around them. However you categorize a booth babe, these enticing women tend to reveal the sexism in the trade show industry.

When asked to describe their experiences, booth babes generally have the same responses. Besides dealing with the grueling 10-hour days on your feet, often in heels, many women have to deal with being groped, being spoken to inappropriately, and stares that would make your skin crawl.

If the above reasons are not blatant examples of sexism, then I don't know what is. Although a healthy level of rudeness would be acceptable to put men who step over their boundaries in line, many of these promotional models are too polite to do so. They are also hired for the trade shows to sell or promote products, so being rude (even to put some one in their place) is not the best tactic for selling.

The fact that booth babes are proven to grab attention and get people into the booth makes is easy to see why companies hire these attractive women. But the real question is, do the companies do anything to protect or prepare these women for potentially dangerous or abusive situations? How do the companies ensure the women's safety and comfort during a trade show? Full Article from Map Dynamics.