All (very) black in Tokyo, all smiles in Doha

by Martin Moodie |
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Martin Moodie

Martin Moodie is the Founder & Chairman of The Moodie Report.

I have arrived, a little belatedly it must be said, in Doha for our annual Trinity Forum, which I founded 16 years ago and which is now the world’s leading airport commercial revenues conference.

Hamad International Airport has welcomed us in spectacular style, dressing the airport in an impressive array of Trinity-themed promotional signage.

The charming Sylvia from Kenya welcomes us to Qatar
Our hosts even brought Jonathan a chariot that he could swing low in. Driver Faizal is typical of the gracious airport staff.

The reason for my late arrival is of course the fact that I was in Tokyo for the weekend to support my beloved All Blacks in their Rugby World Cup semi-final against England. It was all black alright, or you could argue it was a white-out for the Kiwis as they were thumped by a hugely impressive English side.

A black and white case: Jonathan Holland celebrates the English victory while I do my best to look sanguine about the whole wretched affair

I was with my good pal Jonathan Holland of Singaporean distributor Jonathan Holland & Associates, as patriotic an Englishman as you’re ever likely to meet and I don’t think the smile has left his face since the final whistle. He and I flew in through the night from Tokyo onboard Qatar Airways and what a fantastic experience it was. If you haven’t tried the airline’s Qsuite Business Class offer I urge you to do so. The level of privacy, facilities and service it offers surely ranks as best-in-class.

With the lovely Vanessa who looked after us so well on the flight from Tokyo

The pressure now really kicks in and I must admit to even greater nerves than on the eve of the All Blacks match – and I was a shivering wreck then. A lot of last-minute preparation is now involved over the next 24 hours: scripting; researching; meeting with speakers; coordinating with my top-class team here; and, not least, keeping ‘the website that never sleeps’ awake.

You can see updates from Trinity all week on The Moodie Davitt Report.com. I look forward to catching up with many industry friends during the next couple of days and making many new ones.