An Unforgettable Small Business Experience

In 1997 my little advertising agency in Dubai was awarded the Qatar Airways launch account in the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and India.

My little advertising agency had a visualizer (these days known as a graphic designer), a finishing artist (these days often confused with computer operators), a junior client services executive, and a chap (wish I could remember his name) to look after print production. Then there was my financial partner, and oh, let’s not forget, me leading the shop while tripling as creative director, copy writer and head of client services.

We had 12 days to get everything done for Qatar Airways. 12 days to get the advertising layouts in three languages approved, booked and released in three GCC countries and India. Precisely the same 10 days (no more) to put together the PR campaign for South India; pre-launch press releases, press conference, press invitations, hotel bookings, press kits, familiarization trip for GCC journalists… can’t remember all the little details. All these with my little advertising agency based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates while the client’s sole approving authority is located in Doha, Qatar. I did get complimentary first class travel to make up for the geographical gap.

Everything was going like clockwork, though my team and I had to put in several nights of sleep deprivation.

I must warn you at this point. What I have related so far is not the ‘unforgettable’ experience I have been threatening to unveil. Please be patient, stay with me.

The day comes when I have to catch my flight to Trivandrum, India (48 hours prior to the launch flight of Qatar Airways to Trivandrum and the press conference on arrival of the flight). I naturally choose the last flight (Air India) from Dubai to Trivandrum since I was carrying all collateral required for the press conference. Some items like banners and press kits were expected to be delivered by the printer at the last minute, as usual. Every one needs their moment of glory.

Now here starts my ‘unforgettable’ experience (times indicated may not be accurate, please note all this happened 11 years ago):

DUBAI – 48 HOURS PRIOR TO THE PRESS CONFERENCE

10am:
client calls and wants me to carry 10 Longines watches to be gifted to friends of the airline in India. I accept, knowing fully well, that luxury watches carried into India more than one at a time, are controlled by severe import penalties like confiscation, in the absence of a prior permit.

2pm:
I brief my client services executive on last minute details. He is accompanying the journalists on the familiarization trip on the launch flight the next day. He has a big job with 40 journalists of various nationalities having confirmed. Client has already arrived at the destination the previous night on another airline and will be at the press conference.

4pm:
All set, so I go home with the conference material to pack my travel cases and, for some shut eye before the flight at 8am the next day. Scheduled time of arrival in Trivandrum: 1.30pm on the day before the press conference. Scheduled time of the press conference: 10am on the day following my arrival.

1am:
Finished packing. My bathroom scales show the baggage is 90 kilos, allowed weight is 20 kilos. So what! I have the budget to pay for even excess baggage, thanks to a great client.


6.30am to 9am:
I’m at the airport. All flights cancelled due to heavy fog. There is no sign or news of my Air India flight that’s supposed to arrive from Muscat and fly on to Trivandrum with me onboard. Desperate enquiries. Calls to friends in the airline business. No luck. Act of God. Fog. “Don’t know when flights can resume,” an airline friend tells me. “Go home, I’ll call you.”

DUBAI – 24 HOURS PRIOR TO THE PRESS CONFERENCE

9.05am to 2pm:
Panic! Calls to India. Calls to financial partner. Calls to everyone except the client. Can’t let the client know we have a problem, can we? Act of Man or God notwithstanding. Calls to airlines to check alternate flights! “Sorry, no flights, fog.”

2.10pm:
“Flights have resumed,” an airline friend calls me to break the news. I promptly call Air India and learn that my flight will arrive from Muscat around 3.30pm and depart to Trivandrum at approximately 4.30pm. Great news! I’ll make it to the press conference with several hours to spare. Remember readers, I am carrying with me all the press kits, banners, collateral and giveaways for the press conference. I rush to the airport.

5.15pm:
I am on board my Air India flight, but for some odd reason we have taxied only a few meters for take off, the aircraft having come to a complete halt for the last half hour.

5.30pm:
We are still parked on the tarmac. I can hear the normally ‘all-suffering’ passengers with me in economy class beginning to complain to each other, anger building. I stay very quiet, unaffected, lest my voice, added to the others, grounds the flight completely. I shut my eyes and said a prayer for all small business owners in the world.

5.40pm:
“This is the captain. I am sorry, as per IATA regulations, your current crew has exceeded the maximum allowed flying time without rest. We will not be taking off. All passengers will be accommodated in another Air India flight departing to Bombay in an hour’s time, to catch the next available domestic flight from Bombay to Trivandrum.” No apologies, no explanation for the last hour the aircraft was stationary on the tarmac with all passengers on board. My heart almost stopped beating.

6pm:
“When is the connecting flight from Bombay to Trivandrum?” I thought I was thinking it, but I clearly wasn’t. I looked around, from the eyes trained on me, I realized it had screamed the question. It was the first I had spoken so far in some sort of protest. A particular stewardess who I had earlier made small chat with and, who was standing near me, said, “Don’t worry sir, there is only a 10 hour transit time in Bombay for the connecting flight to Trivandrum… we are providing accommodations.” I sit there deciphering what she had just told me. I’ll be in Trivandrum around 4 hours after the press conference is scheduled to start. Panic!

6.15pm:
There’s mayhem on the aircraft. Passengers refusing to get off the aircraft. Passengers arguing with any crew they can find. First class passengers peeking in and assessing the situation to decide if they should participate in the protests. A visibly tired crew trying their best to pacify everyone. “We demand to see the captain,” a voice rises above the others. Several people start shouting and thumping the overhead luggage compartment. No sign of the captain, except a vague threat over the PA system to use airport security on us. No one in the aircraft seemed to hear or care.

6.30pm:
It took me exactly 15 minutes to see the light. If this standoff between crew and passengers continues, I will most definitely not get to my press conference on time. Worse still, we could all get detained for causing a threat in an airplane or something like that. What have I learned in all those years practicing advertising and PR? Put it into use, idiot!

6.35pm:
I rose from my seat, walked over to the cabin crew who were by now gathered, worried, between the economy and business class sections. I approached the stewardess who had earlier chatted with me, put on my best PR disposition and say, “Looks like this is getting ugly, you guys need a rest and the passengers need to fly… would you let me see what compromise can be arranged?” She looks curiously at me, “I’ll check with the captain.” I say, “Right, you do that while I see what I can do to calm the passengers.”

6.45pm:
The captain finally emerges with the stewardess and I, desperate to keep him from getting lynched and spoil my manipulation of both parties to reach my destination on time, rush towards him and convince him to return to his cockpit for a few minutes.

6.55pm:
Things are moving fast. I’m with my friends in economy class. “Would you guys be willing to cooperate with me if I can arrange a better alternative?” They agree. I had no idea what that alternative could be, but I needed to move quickly. Back to the crew. “You are extremely patient, a better crew than any I have experienced in my years of flying, but the other passengers don’t care, any alternatives you can come up with?” They stare at me in silence. I add, “How about a short rest in Dubai and then continue with the flight?” Now, where did that come from?

7.15pm:
“Okay, we have consulted with the captain and we can fly on to Trivandrum after a 6-hour rest. We can depart around 2.30am in the same aircraft.” I cheer loudly, others join in. I chant, “Air India, Our Airline”, others join in, including our compatriots from first class.

2.30am
The flight departs as promised, but the experience has not ended for me. Remember the Longines watches I am carrying?

TRIVANDRUM, INDIA – DAY OF THE PRESS CONFERENCE

8.30am:
I’m through immigration in Trivandrum! Finally! There’s still time to get to the hotel for the conference and prepare things. “Anything to declare?” a customs officer barks at me. “A few watches to be given as gifts at the press conference of the Qatar Airways launch flight arriving in this airport as we speak…” He cuts me off in mid speech, and points me towards a customs counter to declare my deepest feelings.”

9am:
One hour to go for the press conference to begin and I’m still at the airport! I’m a mess, tired, harassed and worse still, my nice new Italian suit is still in the bag. Oh, to hell with impressions. I need to get out. Quick. “Are you a smuggler? You have 10 watches in your baggage,” claims the top customs person in charge, before whom I am brought. “As I said many times to your officers, these are gifts for the launch of the press conference of the first Qatar Airways flight that has already arrived at this airport,” I venture. “Besides, I need to be at the conference in 30 minutes, so please let me know how much duty to pay and let me go.”

9.15am:
I’m still at the airport. “We don’t seem to have this brand of watches on our list to be able to calculate duty. How much is the cost price?” asks an officer. “Around Indian Rupees 20,000 each,” I suggest, when the actual figure is closer to Indian Rupees 75,000 each. Success! I pay duty on the cost price I suggested and am out of the airport.

10.15am:
The Group General Manager of Qatar Airways and his entourage walk in, followed a few minutes later by a smattering of members of the press as I am just putting finishing touches in the conference hall. Thank God the press is always late.

THE CAST:

GCC: Gulf Cooperation Council; an economic and political bloc combining the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman.

Qatar Airways: one of the world’s top and fastest growing airlines.

Trivandrum: now known as Thiruvananthapuram, Capital of Kerala State, South India; still a top revenue earning destination airport for passenger carriers in the GCC.

Qatar Airways Group General Manager: a wonderful client who had no qualms about thanking his advertising agency for a difficult task well done.

Air India Crew: a nice bunch. I ran into my ‘favorite stewardess’ at the hotel where we were having the press conference. She and her friends had 4 days off to crew the next flight after that particularly bad incident. She says, “Hi there, what are you doing here?” I said, “That’s a long story, which I will explain when we meet next.” I quickly fled to immerse myself in the pressing tasks at hand.

Economy Class Passengers: where would I be without them?

Financial partner: I’m free of the yoke.

Client Services Executive: never heard from him again after his pleasure trip with the journalists on agency account, in style, first class all the way, with spending money in cash.