Firm Founded By Newtown Resident

 Ranks Among 100 Fastest- Growing

BRIDGEPORT – A trio of college pals who built a $12 million Bridgeport company from a modest investment won a major award recently when their trade show exhibit business, Innovative Display & Design, was named by Inc. magazine as one of the 100 fastest-growing inner city companies.

Innovative Display & Design was chosen for the Inner City 100, an annual ranking by Inc. magazine and the Initiative for a Competitive Inner City. The awards showcase successful businesses that are helping to revitalize urban America. Innovative Display & Design was chosen from a field of more than 900 companies.

“One key to a company’s success in this economy is to develop a worldwide market,” said Newtown resident Eugene David Shapiro, one of the founders and principals. “We’ve built an international reputation and a good percentage of our business is now overseas.”

Mr Shapiro, Donna Shea of  Southport, and Andy Pandiani, of Old Saybrook, the company’s partners, met as industrial design students at the University of Bridgeport. The company was founded in 1986.

The partners credit their complementary skills for Innovative Display & Design’s success. Mr Shapiro directs the finances, Mr Pandiani is in charge of production, and Ms Shea heads up marketing and sales. They also credit the support they received from the City of Bridgeport and the state. IDD started out in a business incubator in Bridgeport and later moved to its current location at 1452 Barnum Avenue. _  From its initial three founders, Innovative Display & Design has grown to 62 employees, including an international staff that serves a worldwide market. The company has created displays in Geneva, Bombay, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Sao Paulo, among other places. Clients include PanAmSat, Dun & Bradstreet, Hasbro, KPMG, and Pentax.

Since its inception, the company has grown an average of 30 percent each year.

The awards were presented by Earvin “Magic” Johnson, who received the National Inner-City Leadership Award, at a recent dinner in Boston. _  Innovative is a trade-show exhibit company offering a full range of services, including custom exhibit design, production, maintenance, warehousing, and shipping.  The company successfully executes more than 1,000 shows annually.