JCK talks to Mandalay Bay’s Martie Sparks about what it takes to host the country’s most prestigious jewelry fair After two decades at the Sands Convention Center, the JCK Las Vegas show moved into new digs last year at Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino. It was a big deal for the jewelry community—but, believe it or not, it was an even bigger deal for Mandalay Bay. To hear Martie Sparks, the hotel’s vice president of catering and convention services, describe the preparation process is to appreciate the degree to which JCK differs from just about every other trade fair on the Las Vegas calendar. “It was the first convention we looked at as a corporate-wide event,” Sparks says. “They had room blocks at just about every one of our properties. But it was never looked at as overflow. The convention was at Mandalay Bay, but it was an MGM Resorts convention.”JCK: How did you pre