Calling off the canines
For some as yet unknown reason anyone from anywhere can command Dog to do anything from sitting at the roadside in the middle of a downpour to dropping to his tummy to emulate puppy press-ups. And he will listen to their authority without question.
Husband-to-be is an entirely different proposition, however.
Bullish to the point of being obsessively stubborn, the only reason he will ever listen to suggestions by myself or others is if he is a) recovering from a debilitating illness or b) drunk.
Which is why I must take my hat off to IMG, the organisers of this week's Rosemount Australian Fashion Week (RAFW).
Without so much as the mention of a medical waiting room or the sniff of a cork, IMG has not only actively listened to concerns raised by exhibitors at last year's exhibition area 'The Source', it has even acted on them.
Now I know my comments on the running of the bi-annual event have not always proved favourable - the column in this magazine's previous edition proving a case in point. I must also make it clear that I am not be prepared to put my career on the line and bet that this latest olive branch signals a changing of the guard.
However, I feel if I am to highlight what I believe to be the event's weaknesses it is only fair I act similarly with its strengths.
And in the case of The Source area, at least, I believe IMG is more than on its way to getting this girl's tick of approval.
With memories of last year's terse meeting between a group of exhibitors and IMG Australian head honcho Simon Lock arising from what exhibitors dubbed the area's "poor traffic flow", "non-existent atmosphere" and "unhelpful layout" still bubbling close to the surface, this year IMG went to great pains to ensure there was no repeat performance.
The first change it implemented saw the introduction of a new floor plan where exhibitors were placed in a central thoroughfare hub where domestic and international buyers were forced to pass through the exhibition area to access all three collection showrooms and the VIP bar. This was a vast improvement on previous years where The Source was hidden behind the registration desk - in the opposite direction to all showrooms in a manner in which made it easy for buyers and media to avoid it altogether.
For the first time ever this year organisers offered participants their own choice of design schemes. Not only this but they were also given the option of a space-only booking which allowed them to develop their own showroom space for installation.
Having secured additional funding from its new naming rights sponsor the Fosters Group-owned Rosemount, IMG also opted to pour this into the exhibition area with the ready-to-wear women's, men's, children's, footwear, denim, swimwear, millinery and jewellery labels benefiting from a 25 per cent drop in fees.
At the time of writing - just days before RAFW spring/summer 2007 actually kicked off - the changes had led to more than 70 exhibitors taking space at the event. More importantly, there was a strong mix of both established and emerging labels with the price of taking a stand proving so appealing at least five had chosen to launch at the event.
This, combined with the fact that several source exhibitors had reported strong pre-show interest in their labels driven off the profiles posted on the RAFW website appears to be a clear sign The Source formula is working.
So congratulations to IMG (and to Dog) for being able to cast their own beliefs aside and having the balls to listen.