Going Dutch

I’m in Amsterdam this week, attending TabExpo 2019 which starts tomorrow.

TabExpo is a trade exhibition held every four years. The last one took place at the ExCel in London. Previous locations have included Barcelona, Paris and Prague.

Part of TabExpo is the Congress. It’s like a mini conference within the main event. In 2015 I was a speaker. This time I’m the MC, which is a new challenge for me.

Topics include next generation products, the future of combustibles, harm reduction, the future of leaf, and much more. There will be a mixture of speeches and panel discussions.

My role is to begin each day’s programme with a ten-minute ‘overview’, then introduce each session (and the speakers), before ending with some closing remarks.

When I spoke at the ExCel in 2015 we were tucked away in a large room on a different floor some way from the main exhibition hall. I followed a speaker whose specialist subject was smoking on board the great ocean liners, the original Queen Mary in particular.

Why the subject was included in the programme I don’t really know but I enjoy social history so I found it quite interesting. Unfortunately, when he finished we were well behind schedule and the audience had dwindled to single figures - and didn’t get any better for my presentation.

This time the TabExpo Congress is taking place within the exhibition hall at the RAI Amsterdam Convention Centre, which should help boost numbers.

Intriguingly, part of Thursday’s programme has been curated by the Foundation for a Smoke Free World, so that should be interesting. I’ll keep you posted.