If you like Fraser's sense of humour you'll enjoy his recently published new novel Café. It is available online now at fraserbeathmcewing.com. Bookshops will begin to stock it from April 2009.

The wonders of wwwdot may have been a boon for consumers but not so for local suppliers or governments. People now think it is clever to look at a product in an Australian shop and then trawl through the web to buy it at the cheapest price.

When export is primary to your business the current economic crisis could be catastrophic. Samantha Docherty speaks to a luxury designer seeking to tackle the situation head on.

Diffusion lines mean Joe and Jill can access designer looks at non-designer prices. But does it also mean those products are made from a lesser breed of fabric? Not necessarily, Assia Benmedjdoub discovers.

Designers across Australia are busy preparing their spring/summer 2009/10 collections. Leading trend forecasting agency Scout offers a snapshot of what fabrics will be most in demand.

Ragtrader regularly catches up with a previously profiled brand to see how it has moved with the times. Here Belinda Smart talks to Club 21 marketing & communications manager Lucy Owens.

Name: Rachel Gilbert

Making big money with small customers is not always easy but when it comes to Avalon, a beachside suburb 35 km north of Sydney CBD, fashion retailers highly value their pint size clientele. After all children between the ages of 0 and 17 make up 26.8 per cent of the suburb's 10,044 population and therefore represent a buying power that cannot be underestimated.

NATIONAL: The six months to December 31 2008 have seen discount department stores Target and Kmart battling the economic downturn with varying degrees of success.

NATIONAL: Australian consumers flouted the urge to save over Christmas with more industry reports indicating trade was the same or better than the previous year.

NATIONAL: Collapsed fashion house Monti Australia has re-entered the ragtrade - with some burnt creditors footing the bill.

AUCKLAND: New Zealand's luxury sector has suffered a double blow with owners of upmarket menswear chain Satori forced to sell the business and retailers in the Chancery shopping precinct facing an uncertain future.

MELBOURNE: Up and coming womenswear label and retailer Fame Agenda has expanded its offer with the launch of a range of bags.

MELBOURNE: Menswear designer James Cameron has put a troubled launch into the market behind him, with the unveiling of a new stand-alone store in Collingwood.

SYDNEY: Organisers of the Australian Shoe Fair (ASF) have unveiled a number of new exhibitors and events at the upcoming Sydney edition.

NATIONAL: Over half of Australian consumers spent the same or more over Christmas 2008 as they did in the previous year, according to a new report from the Australian Centre for Retail Studies (ACRS).