Join the club

I heard this week about a US-based vendor executive's adventures into London nightlife on a recent trip to these shores.

The security expert was supposedly in town to close a few big UK deals and press a few palms among channel partners and esteemed members of the media. But, during a meeting with a journo pal of mine, the enthusiastic exec accidentally let slip that he'd been mixing business with pleasure.

My friend was taping the interview he conducted with a gang of directors from the vendor. Several members of the junket rolled in 20 minutes late, offering profuse apologies and accounts of Central Line delays, and my pal went off on a coffee run.

The recorder kept running and, when he listened to it, the journo uncovered the real reason for the late arrival.

"We went to this nightclub and didn't wake up until nine o'clock this morning," said the exec, rather gleefully. "It was crazy - women everywhere!"

Professional that he is, I'm sure they were all just potential customers to him.