FT. LAUDERDALE, Fla. — Marine industry veteran Kaye
Pearson, who founded Show Management and for years ran
some of the largest boat shows in the country, died of
cancer at his Ft. Lauderdale home on March 21, 2009,
according to an obituary in the
Florida Sun-Sentinel.
He was 68.
Show Management has dedicated this week's Palm Beach
International Boat Show to Pearson's memory.
According to the
Sun-Sentinel, Pearson was born
July 22, 1940, in Terre Haute, Ind., to Earl and Triva
Pearson. When he was a toddler, his parents relocated to
Florida, the state where he would make his most
indelible mark on the marine industry.
After earning a business degree from the University of
Miami, Pearson moved to Ft. Lauderdale, where an
entrepreneurial spirit led him to start Pearson Potter
Yacht Basin in 1971. Five years later, Pearson founded
Show Management, the promotion company that operated the
Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show, the Miami Yacht
& Brokerage Show, the Palm Beach Boat Show and the St.
Petersburg Boat Show, among other shows and special
events.
The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show was already
17 years old when Pearson's company was founded, but at
the time it consisted of about 20 boats in the water, 30
booths on the adjoining street and another 20 land
exhibits, according to materials from Show Management.
Today, the company says the show spans six locations in
Fort Lauderdale, covers approximately three million
square feet, and includes 1,500 exhibitors and more than
1,600 boats.
By the time Pearson sold Show Management in 2006, the
company was producing eight boat shows and a host of
shows in other industries. After selling the busy
company, Pearson told
Boating Industry he wasn't
ready to slow down, and he remained closely involved
with the business.
Pearson's other successes included winning several
fishing tournaments aboard his boat, "Showpiece," as
well as being named Ft. Lauderdale Distinguished Citizen
of the Year in 1999, according to the
Sun-Sentinel.
Summing up his legacy in 2006 to
Boating Industry,
Pearson said, "If anything, I think my legacy is that
I've contributed an opportunity for the entire industry
to come together and sell their product and be
successful. Certainly, we shared in that success along
with them.”
He is survived by his wife, Cheri Pearson, daughter
Jennifer Moore, brother Jerry Pearson, sister Janet
Powell and a granddaughter.
There will be a memorial service at 3 p.m. April 4 at
Bahia Mar Hotel & Yachting Center in Ft. Lauderdale.
Memorial contributions may be made to the Boys & Girls
Club of Broward County, the IGFA or the Human Society of
Broward County.
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