Derby Day Surprise
By Julie D Cole

It’s not often I get invited to corporate event days since the Senior Executives in our Company have never invited minnows like me and like to mix with the millionaires and the celebrities who often frequent such events.
The Derby is one such event and whilst some of my best customers have been invited as our guests there was no involvement from me save the issue of invitations and the follow up to make arrangements for hotels and for any special things I could think of for the wives that came along.

This year had been my biggest ever strike rate for conversion of new accounts from the hit list set by our Sales Director and I had locked in accounts worth more than $30m per annum for the next 5 years. Not bad for a 28year old high school drop-out who’d been bullied and kicked all the way school since I can’t remember when. I’d left without a qualification to my name.

I suppose my success is really due to my ability to mimic people and make them laugh that was my way of escaping the bullies so I learned how to survive and how to read people and identify their likes and dislikes. I used to spend a lot of time on the telephone and I tried all sorts of tricks to get through to the real decision makers and I sometimes make my voice sound feminine and a lot of customers would chat me up over the phone. It would get a bit heavy sometimes and it took me all my time to keep them at a distance and decline invitations.

Anyway back to the point of this story four days before Derby Day our Sales Director was taken ill and rushed to hospital with violent stomach pains so I received a panic telephone call from her personal assistant who instructed me that our President wanted me to step into her shoes. I was asked to attend this rather special corporate event and look after the wife of the President of one of the Companies. This was the largest and most important account that we’d ever one and it was my account.

Oh did I tell you that I’d spoken to this President on many occasions professing to be a female Sales Manager, Ms Sarah Lynn-Taylor and he often called my private mobile number that I’d set up in this name. Now I was going to get the chance to meet him and I was entertaining him and his wife in support of our President at the largest and most prestigious event on our annual calendar.

‘Jane, how on earth do you think I’m going to carry this off. He is expecting to meet Marie and if he knows I’ve been asked to step in for her he’ll be expecting to meet me as Sarah. ‘This is a crazy idea and anyway the Derby is in June so old dragon britches will be OK by then won’t she?’

Steve my dear this isn’t the Derby at Epsom it’s the Kentucky Derby in Kentucky. Yea you know Kentucky US of A.’

‘What that’s miles away and I’ve no idea where it is. I’ve never been to the USA either so is Kentucky near New York?’

‘I don’t think so. I do believe it’s in the middle somewhere. You know it’s where Davy Crocket and his Band came from.’

‘How will I get there and who’s paying for our customer and his wife and who’s paying for me?
‘It’s all arranged. They’re going to Florida on vacation so have diverted to the Derby for 2 days at our expense. You got the information from Marie’s secretary didn’t you?

‘No. I didn’t see any details since I’ve had a lot on. In fact, how can I drop everything and step in. When is it?’

‘it’s this weekend.’

‘Whaaaat? No chance I have plans.’

‘Well you’d better unplan them and pack something since you are flying tomorrow’
‘I can’t. No visa.’

‘No need visas we just apply on line.’

‘But what’s the carry on I’ve no idea about these things and I can’t turn up in rags.’

‘No problem taken care of this morning. You’ll land at JFK and then we are kitting you out in New York on Friday morning then off you go to Kentucky to meet up with everybody.’

‘What about my plans? I was going to Oxford this weekend with some friends.’

‘Well put it this way when our President says you are going then you are going.’

‘OK, OK let me have time to sort things can you e-mail me the details.’
‘All done ‘Sarah’, you’ll find everything has been arranged between my friend our travel rep and once you are States side you just have to switch from Steve to Sarah somewhere and our Head of Sales in New York will meet you and take care of you. He’ll be escorting you everywhere but watch out. He sounds a bit of a lad. We’ve chatted a lot.’

‘This gets worse. whose idea is it?’

‘It’s our President Mr Jengens. He knows what you’ve done to get this business and he knows you act a bit, so he says it’s your account and your responsibility.’

‘Who did you say I’m meeting?’

‘I didn’t. His name is Carole Todd like the actor in the film Victor/Victoria. He’s a man though and not a woman as you might suspect from the name. He’s the top salesman in the whole of the Group so you will be in good company. Give him my best wishes. He makes me feel like I’m Sophia Loren when he talks to me. What a silver-tongued sex bomb he is. I go weak at the knees.’

‘That fills me with lots of confidence. Does he know the truth about me?’

‘No he expects to meet Sarah. He knows our president has a high regard for you and by the way he knows old dragon britches and he has met her several times at conferences.’

‘OMG. Here we go.’

So with a small bag of clothes suitable for a girl who has travelled at short notice from UK and a wig and a make-up bag I was soon working my way through the maze at Heathrow airport and collecting my business class tickets from British Airways. Luckily my bag wasn’t opened and for the USA I had received a full travel pack from the office including an identity card, hotel reservations for New York and Louisville, wherever that is. I don’t know who selected the clothes but they seemed to be stylish and about my size.

Well I’d finally gone too far this time. I was going to soon find out if my years of mimicking people and acting about could get me through this difficult situation. And right under the noses of the top brass. Oh Carole Todd I hope you can look after me, whoever you are. I hope you are waiting at the other end. !!!’

To be continued……….