Any old promotor drivers around

The Tehran International Trade Fair of 86 was one of the largest exhibitions we ever handled. I remember Peter Calderwood reminiscing about the Poznan Fair of the mid 70’s when Promotor took all the stands out for the BOTB as well as most of the exhibits but the 86 Tehran fair was something special. The event itself that year was huge and the British companies as a whole was equally so, to the extent that many couldn’t get into the official BOTB Group. Once again Promotor stepped in and organised our own Independent Group of British Companies. We hired a broken down old pavilion, tarted it up and built the stands. Although our group didn’t get financial support for their participation from our government I didn’t hear any complaints.

Promotor provided travel arrangements once again as well as most other services but one of the jobs we took on was the pits. It was to clean the pavilion twice a day. Once before the doors opened in the morning and secondly during the afternoon break. Our Chic Steadman armed with Cimex vacuum cleaners some local help and the willing but despondent Bill Kitt took on the job. Bill had two lorries in Tehran. He drove the Volvo whilst another driver drove an old Fiat which Bill had just bought. M & C Jamie mentioned in the above post that he met them both in Dover on the way out. However, the Fiat gave up the ghost on the expressway as it neared the fairground. Bill retrieved it and after both trailers were unloaded he sent his driver back with the Volvo whilst he stayed in Tehran to wait for the Fiat to be repaired. It was during this time that we put him up with Chic in the Esteghlal Hotel and employed him around the fairground.

Andy Maclean aka jazzandy was working there for Hammonds and we shared a cubby hole/office provided by the BOTB. It wasn’t the most luxurious of spaces but thats where the exhibitors could get a cup of coffee so became very popular.