There’s now a dude at the front of the Virgin lounge in Sydney with a shoe polishing business. 

I love a shoe shine business as much as the next person – especially if it’s a kid in a movie with a cockney accent – and an airport lounge is as good a place as any to get a shoe shine. 

What I don’t love is the lounge advertising over their PA system. When I was in the lounge last week it seemed like every 20 minutes they were letting us know that “for a small fee” we could get our shoes shined. 

Interestingly this is at a time when many major airlines like British Airways, Etihad and Cathay have gone the other way, and implemented ‘quiet lounges’ where they don’t even announce flights any more.