Schnitzel, sauerkraut, sausages, beer… it’s Expo Real again! That lovely time of the year when I get a break in Munich.
OK, the days are all about work – this is no Mipim, taking in the sun, drinking rosé, chatting casually with acquaintances on the Croissette, turning up late for meetings.
“Henrietta, where are you? On my way to next meeting in A3” was the text I got from a client at 9:36am on Tuesday morning. I was six minutes late, because getting from the entrance of the exhibition halls to where I was meant to meet him was causing me grief. You’d think the hall after A1 would be A2, not B1! It’s a vast area with vast stands and vast numbers of people.
It takes forever to find anyone. You have to hand it to Savills. The default meeting place is the one place everyone can actually find – the Savills chairs, sat invitingly on the grass between the halls. Great bit of marketing.
Truth be told, though, Expo is actually a bit of a breeze for the seasoned PR. Even though I have to be at the Messe, clients are too busy to chat for more than a few seconds, as they speed from meeting to meeting. There is the odd seminar where a client is on a panel; 30 very soporific minutes that give me a chance to catch up on Instagram and Facebook.
I feel a tap on my shoulder. It’s an old client, whom I still get on with. We disappear for a coffee. He had arrived early in Munich and proudly shows me his photos from Oktoberfest, dressed in lederhosen, with his wife in a dirndl. Get me out of here!
.
No comments yet