The area outside was dotted with extremely expensive cars. A few smallish boats languished at the pier beside the building, and a two-man red helicopter perched on the jetty. Nobody was quite sure who owned it, but all agreed the owner hovered in on it earlier, and was in attendance. Welcome to the world of the rich.

            Box Magazines’ target clientele is obviously a little different to Cosmo or even the classier Vogue. An open market re-imagining of the Variety Club newsletter, Box aims to help the world by peddling luxury to those who can afford it. A shelf price of $12.50 ensures that the folks who can’t quite afford the seafront property can dream in glossy colour, too. All profits of the magazine will go to charity, helping disadvantaged and sick children.

            However, the launch night was less about charity and all about hob-nobbing. The gorgeous function room at Central Pier was decked out with DJ, chandelier and not much else, allowing the pretty folk to gossip unhindered. An island bar greeted people as the entered the room, all four shelves lined with rows and rows of complimentary and infinite free drinks. Wine (both red and white), champagne (of course!), beer for the plethora of AFL footballers in attendance (in fact they all acted like gentlemen and imbibed in moderation, most notably Ben Cousins), and a sort of citrusy cocktail that was very nice and no doubt filled with fancy ingredients.

            Great gobs of young women who looked-very-familiar-but-can’t-remember-who-she-modeled-for squealed and hugged others of their kind, whereas I found myself in conversation with an eclectic crowd consisting of men who sold grand pianos and women who ran boutiques on Collins St. By the doorway, the security and organizers agonized over people parking their Ferraris and Porches too close to the building, and wondered how they could get people to re-park. (It didn’t happen.) Elegant wait staff shadowed their way around the room, offering an endless supply of rice-paper rolls and steamed finger food. It was oddly comforting watching rock stars and current affairs show hosts perk up when the trays were nearby- proof that everyone enjoys free food.

            Celebrations were low-key. A couple of hours into the wining and catch-upping, the proud organizers thanked the happy throng for coming and explained the background of their magazine, then announced the after-party would start soon at another venue, leaving the podium to allow people to get back to their business.

            As the small but elite crowd of a few hundred started to slowly head towards the next venue, copies of the magazine were finally offered to the crowd; a thick, square, glossy collection of articles and images. But of course, you can check it out for yourself now.