Licensing Blog

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Exhibiting at the National Incentive Show(Posted: 26-09-2008)

At last a judgement on the sausages, the joys of a cheap pint of mild, and I'm glad I missed that hangover!

I’m sure you have been waiting with bated breath for me to answer the question at the end of my last posting! Well, wait no longer, the sausages were poor. The quality of the B&B was good – an eighteenth century Georgian house – but not only were the sausages disappointing, the fried eggs were overcooked as well. Still, you can’t have everything.

If you remember I’ve been exhibiting at the National Incentive Show at the NEC, with another of our publications, the Big Black Book, a directory listing manufacturers and suppliers of promotional goods. By the way, the book isn’t black, and I got close to breaking my duck and being rude to the umpteenth person who asked why it wasn’t.

Whilst there I was also on the lookout to see if there was any licensing about. The easy answer to that is no – I don’t know if the crackdown on characters in advertising for children’s foodstuffs is having an effect on the promotions industry as a whole, and the promoters are starting to steer clear, but I didn’t have licensed promotions jumping out at me. Mind you, I was surrounded by a myriad of pens, mugs, coasters (thanks Ken!) mouse mats (does anybody use these now?) and other bog-standard promotional giveaways. There are only so many incentive vouchers and eco-friendly carrier bags a man can take.

Outside of the show we stayed near a village pub (you know, the one where everyone turns round to look when you walk in) that served some of the largest portions of food I’ve ever seen. Although sorely tempted, I managed to resist ordering the 30oz rump steak, but only just. A lack of real ale was compensated by finding Mild on offer – an old favourite of mine that seems to have disappeared from the pubs in the south-east - and at only £2.10 a pint.

Unfortunately the show coincided with the Licensing Awards dinner, so I was unable to attend that rather boozy evening. I won’t name anyone, but I have heard a few reports of some poor drunken souls staggering around in the middle of night. At least I didn’t have their hangovers next morning. The same day it was my 20^th wedding anniversary, so perhaps I wouldn’t have been allowed to go anyway.

The end of the trip was slightly spoiled by the M25, which once again managed to live up fully to its reputation, especially around the Heathrow stretch. Sometimes I hate living in the southeast of England.

So all-in-all it’s been a fairly uneventful couple of weeks. But just you watch out – Brand Licensing is looming and I suspect there may be a few tales to tell………