Casablanca Journal - Day 2

Three colleagues and I were sent to Casablanca for business three weeks ago. The trip lasted four days, so I kept a daily journal.This is the second day.  

The neighbourhood around our hotel.

Breakfast of Champions

Good breakfast this morning. I was the first downstairs and met our omelette/pancake cook, Ami. Friendly guy. He laughed at my jokes, even the lame ones. He whipped up some Moroccan-style pancakes, which are made with ground-up couscous, and topped with honey and an almond spread that’s made from pulverized almonds and argan oil. I like Moroccan breakfasts.

Luggage Update

According to the airline people, Katie and Malika’s luggage didn’t even make it onto the plane in Rome, so it might arrive later that night on the midnight flight.

With no luggage, Katie and Malika went out shopping, while Arnold and I went for a quick Discovery Walk around the block. Nothing to report, Katie bought a dress, Malika bought a top, but neither could find appropriate hair product. Meanwhile Arnold and I learned to play frogger through Casablanca’s free-for-all traffic.

Time to Work

We began the process of understanding the market, so we toured the cigarette vendors of Casablanca. There are plenty of smokers and we’re allowed to advertise in-store, but they’re all so small and crowded.

The big thing that everyone talks about is everybody buys their cigarettes individually, especially at bars where waiters and bartenders sell their own smokes to patrons. It’s not legal, but it’s not enforced either.

This reminds me of a conversation with a friend when I used to be the guy who only smoked while he was drinking. We agreed that if we could just buy one smoke when we wanted it at the bar, we wouldn’t come home with half a pack that tempted us the next day.

Morocco understands the smoker I used to be. 

One of the crazy crowded kiosks. I can't even find the smokes.

Seeing Casablanca from the Backseat

Casablanca is Morocco’s biggest city and people from all over the country flock here for work and other opportunities. It’s a big country. There’s a huge rural population and plenty of cities strung along its coast, so there are a lot of different people from different backgrounds.

The easiest way to recognize them is how they dress. Some men wear the long kaftan, while others wear jeans and t-shirts – although almost nobody wears shorts.

For the women, there are a few burqas, but not many. Most wear brilliantly-coloured, ankle-length dresses with vibrant head scarves. Many other women wear trousers and modest tops but, like the men, few bare legs.

Over lunch one of our clients mentioned that Moroccan society, despite appearing modern, is actually very traditional, with a focus on family and religion. He described it as traditional with a modern coating over top.

HoReCa Tour!

After a break to change and refresh, which is difficult for luggage-less Malika and Katie – who are craving their favourite shampoos and other product in this heat – we will be visiting a few bars with the client to investigate tobacco advertising opportunities, get a feel for the target in their natural habitat, and, of course, have a drink (we're in advertising, after all).