Veteran FTW journalist Alan Peat has retired after a career that has spanned over 40 years, 27 of those with this publication. Although he read for a degree in economics at St Andrews University in Scotland, Alan never pursued this as a profession, rather following his adventurous spirit in the UK and South Africa. Before taking up photo-journalism at the age of 28, his career path was extremely varied. He sold convertible accounting machines to British companies desperate to be decimalised as their national currency was converted from Lsd in 1971, before the attraction of SA’s sunny climes (and two Durban girls he met in Edinburgh) persuaded him to come to this country later that year. His first five years here saw him trying his hand at a range of different tasks that included import clerk, ship’s engineer, book shop manager and art gallery assistant – before joining a Scottish friend’s PR outfit in Durban as a photojourno. Alan decided that this was the path to follow, and, over the years, it saw him employed as finance editor of the Sunday Tribune in Durban, as a transport specialist with the then newly established Business Day in Johannesburg, and as a features editor with the Financial Mail. He then switched from the mainstream to the trade press field where he edited a number of transport publications. At this stage of his career, Alan twice won what then existed as the SA Transport Services (SATS) ‘Transport Journalist of the Year’ awards – once as the overall awardwinner and once as ‘Feature Writer of the Year’. All this was before he made what he described as his “best move ever” and joined Now Media as consulting editor of FTW in 1990. “Working (and socialising) for so many years with Now Media owners, the Marsh family, and FTW editor Joy Orlek, has always been a great pleasure,” said Alan. “Also writing for a publication that has such status in the industry as Freight & Trading Weekly has pleased my journalistic soul. And the business contacts I have made and befriended over the years have also been a great fulfilment.” An old-school journalist with a talent for investigative writing, his relentless pursuit of the facts has ensured that over the years FTW has become essential reading, providing informed insights into the news behind the news. Never one to shy away from controversy, he has ruffled many feathers along the way – but gained respect for his no-nonsense reporting. A master craftsman as a wordsmith, humble and unassuming, he’s always been generous in his praise for his colleagues. Alan will be spending some well-earned leisure time over the next few months recuperating from a few health setbacks, including a broken shoulder, but has not ruled out the possibility of doing some freelance writing in the future.
Business contacts I have made and befriended over the years have been a great fulfilment. – Alan Peat
