Speaking about his personal success and hardships, Mr Howard drew an instant connection with the 180 conference attendees and launched the week-long business-building event with admirable thought and clarity. John Howard said: “I was delighted to be a guest of and address the Annual Conference of Price Attack. It brought together numerous men and women who are competitive small business operators. Their mood was optimistic. They were great believers in private enterprise. I really enjoyed the occasion. If the spirit I encountered at the conference is reflected throughout the franchise it should be very successful.”   

His words true, as the overall conference theme was to take control of your business with Matrix the major sponsor of the inspirational event. The week’s schedule included a supplier trade show (like a mini hair expo), educational presentations and the highly acclaimed business awards event that acknowledges the key drivers of the Price Attack brand.  

Price Attack multi-unit franchisees Simon and Leanne Finlay drew emotion out of the strongest of hearts as they took out the prestigious Franchisee of the Year award. The Finlay husband and wife team have three stores in total; two South Australian stores located in Tea Tree Plaza and Ingle Farm and the Northern Territory store of Casuarina Square.  

Tears welled in Simon’s eyes as he bowed his head to receive Price Attack’s top award in front of the traditional Fijian warriors and peers who were strewn out under a beautiful chandelier-lit marquee.   Simon said: “It’s a real thrill to be awarded “Outstanding Franchisee of the Year” and we are extremely proud of ourselves and our staff in all three salons. We have dedicated ourselves to the Price Attack brand and our businesses for the past 16 years and look forward to the next 16 years to come. Thank you to our staff, our customers and to all the Price Attack support office staff for their ongoing contributions towards our brand.” 

Managing Director Barry Jarred said: “Simon and Leanne Finlay consistently strive for the highest standards and achieve excellence in all areas of the business.  Getting one business system right is a challenge and here we have a family that is operating three stores in a hard retail environment and it’s simply outstanding.” 

On what was a perfect full-moon and idyllic 20 degree evening, Simon was watched upon in admiration as he shared the pride with his wife and spoke of his involvement and commitment to the Price Attack brand. 

Salon basin-partner Matrix will provide the couple with a $1000 marketing solutions voucher to further maximize their business potential.  Price Attack’s category award winners included: 

•       Outstanding franchisee: Simon & Leanne Finlay - Casuarina Square NT, Tea Tree Plaza & Ingle Farm SA.Nominations included: Ruth & Phil Swan ACT; Greig & Katrina Bishop SA; Simon & Leanne Finlay SA/NT•       Most Improved: Charlestown NSW- Craig Headland.Nominations included: Grand Central QLD; Broadway on the Mall QLD; Charlestown NSW; Mandurah WA.•       People Development: Russell Taylor - Albany, Barrack St, Booragoon, Karratha, Murray St, Whitford City WANominations included: Russell Taylor WA; Craig Headland QLD/NSW; Suzanne De Pinto-Smith QLD•       Customer’s Choice: Wagga Wagga NSW  Among those gathered on the beach front at the Sofitel Fiji Resort and Spa, Denarau to witness the gala awards evening,   was the 2009 FCA Franchise Woman of the Year award winner and Price Attack co-owner Mrs Carol Jarred.   

Price Attack’s annual conference aims to educate, empower and provide a networking opportunity for those associated with the nation’s longest living hair care franchise. Barry said: “Conference is the main event in the year that provides Price Attack associated with the opportunity to network with our peers on a national basis, exchange ideas, and enable us to deliver vital information to assist in the growth of the business.”  

Major announcements included a new and exclusive professional hair care label, the biggest investment in a Christmas promotion yet, and the introduction of a Trade Card for home hairdressers.  Announcements in brief:     

·         Introduction of a national financial benchmarking program (Avatar).·         Introduction and expansion of new label – Salon Confidential – a product range consisting of 12 top-selling lines to hit Price Attack shelves nationally in November.·         Launch of the L’Oreal Staff Rewards Program.·         Launch of the new Pure range by Juuce.·         Introduction of the Loyalty Zone Customer Feedback Program. Barry said: “This is undoubtedly the most exciting period for our brand yet –with Matrix on board to help develop the salon wing to our 120 stores nationwide we have been able to announce further investment in Price Attack’s business development.” 

“CLUB PA, Price Attack’s loyalty program has been a huge success and the Trade Card has been strategically held off until now to ensure the systems and tools are in place to offer even greater service to our customers.” 

“As the “authority in hair” we have a firm commitment to our customers to deliver the best - professional advice and the greatest prices in a friendly and consulting matter.” Guest speakers for 2010 included the master of customer loyalty research Mr Craig Cherry, financial management strategist Mr David Campbell from AVATAR and the doctor of retail Mr Brian Walker. 

Price Attack’s PR Manager Victoria Lloyd said: “The tools were provided, the opportunities were presented through personalised store research data and the conference really highlighted how exciting the future looks for Price Attack as the leader in hair care.  “The idea to take the company’s biggest event of the year offshore was to immerse attendees in a warm, friendly and culturally enlightening destination. 

“Everyone was able to relax and in order to fully absorb what was presented in a refreshed and objective mind frame the choice of location proved a huge success. “To see so many people share the same passion for the brand that my family do, is just terrific and there is no hiding the fact that the Price Attack brand is stronger than ever.” 

The Fijian experience included a poolside bula party, traditional kava ceremony, Royal Fiji military band performance, fire twirlers, meke dancers, and a Bollywood themed night which saw many immerse in lavish jewels and sari attire. Attendees also spent a day enjoying relaxation massages, water sport activities and an extensive buffet feast on a private island -one of Fiji’s 333 islands. 

Barry Jarred said: “Price Attack’s 2010 conference will be hard to beat – the feedback was overwhelmingly positive and we sure look forward to delivering a topnotch event to even more attendees in 2011.” Price Attack donated hair care products and reading resources to the Fijian communities as a gesture of appreciation and goodwill. 

Price Attack held its 2009 conference at the Gold Coast, Australia.  About Price Attack: Price Attack is a franchised business that operates within the haircare and retail industries. With nearly 25 years of successful operation to its credit (to be celebrated in 2011) and with over 120 salons nationwide, the Price Attack brand is one of the best known in Australia. Price Attack prides itself on being the authority in hair. 

Image caption: Winners of the prestigious Outstanding Franchisee award Simon and Leanne Finlay with Price Attack’s co-owners Carol and Barry Jarred. Media enquiries: Price Attack’s PR Manager, Victoria Lloyd (07) 3216 1616. Interviews can be arranged. Please contact Victoria for assistance or call Franchisee of the Year Simon Finlay on 0412 292 507. 

Black Swan State Theatre Company presents: 

Madagascar

By J.T. Rogers

Season: 23 October – 7 November 2010

Venue: Playhouse Theatre

Director: Kate Cherry

Featuring: Amanda Muggleton, Rebecca Davis and Greg McNeill

Madagascar is the haunting story of a mysterious disappearance that changes three lives forever.

At three different points in time, three people find themselves in the same hotel room overlooking the Spanish Steps in Rome: June, a young woman who works as a tour guide of the city’s ancient ruins; Lilian, her wealthy and elegant jet-setting mother; and Nathan, an awkward university economist and the best friend of Lilian’s deceased husband.

Slowly, their individual stories unfold: their relationship to each other, what this room means to them, and why they have been called to it slowly reveal themselves. As their stories spill out and weave back and forth - each contradicting, clarifying, or deepening what the others say - the strands join to form one gripping and disquieting tale.

“… thoroughly entertaining and thought-provoking.” Del Mar Times

Madagascar stars an intimate cast of Rebecca Davis, Greg McNeill and Perth favourite Amanda Muggleton! Amanda, returning to Perth for the first time in over 6 years, is most well known to us from her roles in popular television series, Prisoner and most recently in City Homicide and the smash hit play of the season, Calendar Girls!

“A subtle and haunting piece…powerfully captures how little we may know about those we love.” The Telegraph 

Tickets: Standard $54.50, Concession $44.50, Groups 8+ $42.50 (plus 1 free ticket for every 10 tickets purchased), Previews $39.50, Students $20

Bookings: BOCS Ticketing, ph (08) 9484 1133, Groups 8+ ph (08) 9321 6831, www.bocsticketing.com.au/events/madagascar.shtml

Python 3 Object Oriented Programming is a new book from Packt that is aimed at object oriented programmers and those who have basic Python skills. Written by Dusty Phillips, this book teaches programmers how and when object oriented programming (OOP) should be correctly applied.

Python is a programming language that lets programmers work more quickly and integrate systems more effectively. Programmers can learn to use Python and see almost immediate gains in productivity and lower maintenance costs.

This book introduces the terminology of the object oriented paradigm, focusing on object oriented design with step-by-step examples. It covers topics from simple inheritance, one of the most useful tools in the object oriented programmer’s toolbox, all the way through to cooperative inheritance, one of the most complicated.

Using this book, programmers will be able to create maintainable applications by studying higher level design patterns. They will learn the complexities of string and file manipulation and how Python distinguishes between binary and textual data. This book will also give them an opportunity to study higher level libraries such as database connectors and GUI toolkits, and how they apply object-oriented principles.

Packed with real world projects, this book focuses on high-level design as well as the gritty details of the Python syntax. The book is now out and is available from Packt. For more information, please visit: www.PacktPub.com/python-3-object-oriented-programming/book .

 This story is my own and only one of thousands around the country. I have told it countless times and listened to similar tales from all around the nation. It is completely true and unexaggerated.

 I myself have lived with both mentalities at different stages of my life. When I came to Australia back in 1989 I was a naive 18 year old from a squeaky clean country town in Norfolk England. I had no criminal record and had tried to join the Melbourne Police. I was told I would need to aquire a drivers licence before I could qualify. I worked at a nightclub to pay the rent and moved into a backpackers in Preston. I was an Australian by birth but my family had moved to England when I was 5 years old. So Australia was a fascinating place to me where people spoke in an accent and Melbourne seemed huge.

 One of the managers at the backpackers was a Tasmanian lady whom I hardly knew but sometimes paid my rent to. It was therefore a surprise to me when she rang up from the central city asking for me. She told me she had spent all her money on grog and asked if I would pay for her taxi home. Being a gentleman I agreed to do so. It was only a few dollars and  I figured it couldn’t hurt to make a new friend.

 The next day evening her boyfriend came to my room to thank me. He then asked if I wanted to come for a drive with him, his girlfriend and another guy staying there. I had nothing planned that evening and agreed to go along. I didn’t know many people in Melbourne and I thought it might be fun. Unfortunately they neglected to mention the small matter of the car being stolen.

 It was the scariest drive of my life. A truck was rammed at one point on a dare. I think we ran over a cat. They stopped at a carpark to steal another car because they were low on petrol and I figured this was an opportunity to get away from these people. I didn’t want to offend them. We all lived at the same address but they clearly  lived in a different world to me.

The Police arrived before I could even figure out which way to start walking. They were from Flemington Police Station and I recall one officer tapping me hard in the chest with a Maglight as he interrogated me. I instinctively reached up and held the torch to stop this from happening. The officer then screamed in my face to leave his torch alone. It was surreal. Police were everywhere and their menacing manner had me very frightened. Having taken our details they then bundled us into a paddy wagon. The nightmare had only just begun.

Sitting together in the back of the vehicle we talked about what was going to happen next. I was clueless but the others were experienced felons and soon filled me in on what to expect. They told me we had been arrested by Flemington Police and this was very bad. We would be beaten up at the station and if I defended myself I’d get beaten even harder as well as charged with assault. I was incredulous. I certainly didn’t believe them. Yet I was terrified. We could hear the police in the front laughing as they drove over speed humps at high speed. This caused us to crash our heads into the roof of the wagon each time.

As soon as we arrived at the station everyone was separated. I was kept just inside the entrance. A line of police stood almost at attention staring off into space while a short police officer confronted me. It was like something out of a movie. He stood facing me and said.

“We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”

He then proceeded to punch me in the stomach. I used to be an amateur boxer and it was a surprisingly weak effort but I wasn’t an idiot. I realised that bravado would only lead to harder punches. So I screamed my lungs out and begged for help. They took me to a small back room and chained me to a desk. I had never been so angry in my life. I knew I had the right to remain silent and chose not to say a single word to these cowardly thugs. So they began torturing me. Every time they ripped hair out of my scalp or punched me I started screaming and every time they tried to talk nicely to me I ignored them. The only time I spoke was to tell them they were lowlife. Which ofcourse elicited more violence.

My mind turned to escape and during one of the periods I was left alone I tried to break out through the window. I wriggled a nail loose which was surprisingly easy. I think it had been tried many times before. Then I used it to cut through the mesh enclosing the window. I was almost home free I figured. Then I realised the desk was concreted down.

At one point they took me to a cell where one of the others was also being held. I asked him to look after my wallet as he had already been searched and I didn’t want these animals knowing my identity. With a name like Smith I figured it might be possible to disapear if all they had was a name. He just shook his head. Then the door burst open suddenly and a huge police officer came in. I remember a boot and then it becomes blurry. I was told the next day that the officer kicked me in the head. I must have passed out. The next thing I recall is being back in the small room.

A lady passed by in the coridoor outside and I called out for help. I thought she might be a lawyer as she wasn’t wearing a uniform. She just laughed at me and asked if I was ready to make a statement.

Eventually one of the others was brought in and he told me I should agree to make a statement. He said everyone else had talked and the police were taking off their belts in the next room. I didn’t believe him as he seemed ingenuine and I was later proved correct after talking to the others but I agreed to make a statement.

In the interview room I acted as unhelpful as possible and said I didn’t remember anything. The interviewing officer said.

“I put it to you that I think you are lying.”

 I replied.

“I put it to you that I couldn’t care less what you think.”

Eventually we were all released after signing a form declaring we were happy with the way we had been treated. At first I refused but then the others told me I’d be held on remand if I didn’t sign. The police could keep me there for days. So I signed. We were all glad to get out before the morning shift started and a fresh round of bashings.

I had to turn up for bail once a week at Preston Police Station but when I appeared they didn’t know who I was. They had somehow lost the paperwork. I hoped this mean’t the whole case was lost and never bothered turning up again. I had moved to flat down the road from the backpackers. It had been arranged weeks earlier. Ofcourse the police came looking for me. I went around to the backpackers to check for any mail I might have received and was told the police had come around kicking down doors and threatening to murder me.

I decided it was time to get some legal advice. So I went to see a legal aid adviser. To my horror he told me:

“People go into Flemington Police Station and don’t come out. Same with Moonee Ponds. Run and hide.”

I followed his advice and left the state. I went to Queensland and didn’t return for five years. Facing court I told my lawyer everything and said he was to plead me innocent. The lawyer then pleaded me guilty and I was fined $750. No criminal record as I had no priors and nothing since. even today I have no criminal record.

I returned to Queensland and have lived there ever since. I could have joined the Police as originally planned but my heart was no longer in it. The experience shaped in ways I never could have imagined back in England. Now, whenever a police officer is reported dead on the television news a smile comes to my face. I wouldn’t call it a voluntary act. All of my respect for the police was beaten out of me a very long time ago. I now enjoy talking to people about their experiences with police brutality and have realised it is far too common.

Whole Police Stations turn a blind eye to it so how can it be a few rotten apples?