Treading the light fantastic

I’ve just finished my first training run for The Moodie Multi-National Marathon*, due to take place in early March. The marathon will be run in travel retail industry teams of six. Each team member will run/walk one-sixth of a marathon (7.03km), anywhere in the world. As training sessions go, mine wasn’t very impressive. But it

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Bringing to life A History of Desire

At this week’s Airport Food & Beverage Awards in Manchester, I chatted on stage with Caviar House & Prunier Chairman Peter Rebeiz in a candid, often humourous and always compelling interview. It was a very special moment for me. Not only did it represent a return to the ‘day job’ after my prolonged absence, but

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Blanket coverage of frozen food conference

As industry ‘comebacks’ go, mine certainly did not get off to the most promising start… After seven months out of the industry spotlight due to my illness, I made it to The Moodie Report’s inaugural Airport Food & Beverage (FAB) Conference & Awards on 23-25 January. It was a close-run thing. I only finished my

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MAC recruits Wonder Woman

Prepare for a stampede at certain make-up counters in March. MAC has created a Wonder Woman make-up collection and, like the lady herself (in her invisible plane, no less) this writer predicts it is going to fly off the shelves. MAC is no stranger to quirky collaborations. Past partners have included Barbie, Hello Kitty, Dame

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Back on the road again

Some seven months since I last travelled outside London, I am finally back on the road again. It’s a gentle easing back – just the two-hour train ride to Manchester – but it feels both strange and wonderful to step tentatively back into my old life after my illness. I’m back in a hotel room

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Give Me Five

Week two of training, and this writer’s mission to transform herself from Couch Potato to Running Mann continues, with a bid to nail a never-before-achieved 5K. And we’re not even talking pay rises. This running lark is certainly a learning curve. The latest thing I’ve learned is that attempting to run whilst a) mildy hungover

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The Eye of Soul

A poem perhaps for the wonderful travel retail community. Thank you to Martin Waldron, ex-Aer Rianta International, for the source.   The Eye of Soul (Abridged Edition) I judge you not by what you wear, Whether your garment is of rag or riches, Or your skin is of a color white or black, Whether you

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Reaching the Journey’s End

‘I ain’t saying I beat the devil. But I drank his beer for nothing and then I stole his song’ – Kris Kristofferson, To Beat the Devil I’m not saying I beat the devil either. But for now I have at least successfully confronted the brute of a disease they call the ‘Big C’ and gotten through

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Repeat after me: I. Am. A. Runner.

“So, how do you turn on this treadmill thing? I’m taking part in a marathon in March.” And with that question (which in itself nearly floored the gym instructor at Billericay’s LA Fitness) earlier this week this writer began training in earnest for The Moodie Multi-National Marathon. You have to understand – it’s a pretty

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Joining a very special club

“There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent hinder or control, the firm resolve of a determined soul” – Ella Wheeler Wilcox – American Journalist and Poet. Sometimes it’s the little things that make a difference. This week I sat up late with my wife planning our respective travel agendas for the

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Turning the ARC light on Asian inflight retail

The first ARC Asia Airline Retail Conference began on Tuesday in Macau’s Grand Hyatt Hotel. It’s a project that aims to turn the spotlight on Asian airlines and inflight concessionaires, as well as brands targeting the Asia inflight business. It’s a regional event that should have good prospects, given the engine room of global travel that Asia Pacific is

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Ed Brennan speaks at HWS College

[Source: © 2010 Hobart and William Smith Colleges] The following article dates back to late 2010 but it’s well worth reproducing on The Moodie Blog. It focuses on DFS Chairman and CEO Ed Brennan, and his work in the pioneering travel retail corporate social responsibility project, Hand in Hand for Haiti (you can see the

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Give me Strength

I choked back tears today Because I can’t begin to say how much you’ve shaped this boy these last few months or more. – Give me Strength, Snow Patrol One finds strength in many forms and via many people. As I approach the last days of my chemotherapy regime, the struggle, perversely, seems greater, darker and

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