he Lilliland Business Lunch

aron Von Lodge was the head of a small country known as Lilliland near Switzerland. The time was the early 1900s.

The custom of the Lilliland citizens who were businessmen and businesswomen was to arrange a luncheon meeting with clients. The lunch was usually held in the dining room of the Grand Lilliland Hotel. The dining room was reserved for business luncheons and had a beautiful view of Lilliland Castle and the large Castle Lake. The atmosphere of the room seemed to enhance the opportunity to have a successful business transaction for all parties concerned.

There were some unwritten rules that the business luncheons had followed over the many years it had been open to all business owners in Lilliland.

For example, there was little or no drinking of alcoholic beverages during the meeting because the business owners all felt that the client might become forgetful of some of the details agreed upon in the deal made.

The lunch was served in an elegant French style. The food was light and prepared to enhance the meeting by keeping everything easy to serve and consume.

The business luncheons started promptly at noon and rarely went beyond two o'clock in the afternoon. The dining tables were uncluttered with papers, maps, charts or diagrams. The tables were kept inconspicuous so that an observer would not be aware of the specific nature of the meeting.

The event went as smoothly as one taking place with professional diplomats. When the meeting was over the observer would not be able to tell if a successful transaction had taken place or not. Everyone at the table smiled, shook hands and quietly left the dining room.

The Baron usually had his business luncheon meetings at Lilliland Castle but sometimes he attended a business luncheon meeting at the Grand Lilliland Hotel because he also liked the view of the castle, his home, and the lake with its beautiful swans.