Frayed, loose ends trail promoter

A fashion show promoter with eyes on Prince George is enduring catcalls on her way to the catwalk.

Consumer protection warnings are being sounded about the Fashion & Design Festival based on the history of its organizer, Linda Fae Buchanan of Halifax.

The event was scheduled for May 4 and 5 at CN Centre but was recently cancelled (see related story). Similar events have been advertised for Halifax, Moncton, Whitehorse, Winnipeg and Victoria.

Buchanan said the warnings are unnecessary and she was working hard to hold a positive event for the clothing designers and fashion consumers of B.C.'s northern capital.

"You've got a lot of talent there," she said, claiming she had been "working with one [Prince George designer] right now, and talking with four or five."

She said there were others, but when asked by The Citizen, she could think of no one's name.

"I'm not appreciating this, because we are trying to build a great event for your community," she said. "This is about your community. We are doing your community a service."

A lineup of alleged victims claim they provided service to Buchanan and got no money for it. Nova Scotia's authorities are prosecuting.

"She has been charged," said Halifax Regional Police spokeswoman Const. Katheryn Willett.

"She has had several fraud charges here in Halifax. There is a master file that holds 11 fraud charges and 11 breach of probation charges."

The probation stems from a prior conviction in a different police jurisdiction within Nova Scotia. Cpl. Andrew Joyce, Nova Scotia RCMP spokesman, confirmed "there was a fraud-related charge laid against Ms. Buchanan in 2007, with a conviction attained in 2010. It was a conviction of fraud over $5,000."

The incident was brought to police attention by a bank when Buchanan wrote a bogus cheque in the amount of approximately $17,000. Joyce said the cheque offence was Buchanan's first criminal conviction.

"I'm not even going to discuss it because I'm not allowed to... Something happened and it affected the last year," Buchanan said, referring to the multiple fraud charges.

"It is all a part of a particular situation that is being dealt with now. All of it. But that has nothing to do with your community. I'm not running. I'm still sitting in the same office I've been in for 14 years. And I'm not going to stop doing business. I'm not afraid of this."

Not all the allegations were made pertaining to the last year, or the charges laid in 2012. The Better Business Bureau has records of complaints against Buchanan each year dating back as far as their tracking system will allow.

"They have an 'F' rating. In the past three years they have seven complaints under one company name and six complaints under another company name, so 13 altogether for that business," said Alanna Swartz of the Better Business Bureau's Atlantic Canada division. "The complaints allege nonpayment for services, scheduling trade shows and cancelling without refund, and lack of customer service."

This was exactly the experience alleged by a Prince George fashion designer who was alarmed that Buchanan was attempting to do business now in B.C.'s northern capital. The clothier told The Citizen (under condition of anonymity) how she had signed up for the Victoria event in order to make inroads to a new market. She paid Buchanan $450 for a display booth but the advertised event has been cancelled without refund to the designer, and subsequent attempts to contact Buchanan have gone unanswered.

The Winnipeg event was also cancelled. It was supposed to go ahead this past weekend but the venue's staff told The Citizen that Buchanan paid them no deposit by the specified date, so it was removed from their schedule. No mention of this was made on the event's website and it was still listed as originally advertised until The Citizen's inquiries were made.

When the advertised venue in Halifax was contacted about the show, staff there said they knew nothing about the fashion festival and had another event booked for the advertised date.

The Whitehorse venue said they officially had a booking, but "we still have some things pending and haven't been able to get a hold of the event promoter," according to a staff person there.

Buchanan told The Citizen that all these situations were due to her needing to shift either the dates or the venues due to business reasons. All the events were still on, she insisted, but they would have to have times and places reposted.

United States media reports show a pattern of similar concerns there, when events organized by Buchanan took on paid sponsors and exhibitors but the shows did not happen, at least as advertised.

"Every event has bugs to work out," Buchanan said. "If we lose some exhibitors along the way, we have to give them their refunds, don't we? But we've only had two [cancel from the current tour]."

She pointed to three consecutive outdoor fashion extravaganzas she has operated in downtown Halifax as proof that she is honestly a host of high-quality entertainment events, and invites those interested in fashion and design to join her foray into Prince George.

"I've been in business for 14 years. We've had a lot of success and a lot of great times," she said.

"We are moving forward with it and we are here to support the community."