Last year alone, despite heavy cuts to its government funding, the consumer facing festival generated in excess of $1.16 million in sales for local designers and retailers, according to festival director Lindsay Bennett.

The "See it. Love it. Own it" campaign was launched this year, to measure the exact financial impact the festival has on local fashion retail and tap into the pulsating vein that is online shopping.

"Whatever garments you see on the runway, you can instantly view on the Brisbane Fashion Festival website and then click through and buy directly from the designer, or the designer will come back to you within 24 hours and provide you with stockist details," Bennett told Fairfax Media.

"This campaign has just been a natural progression. Year on year we refine what we do and make sure we go to market with something really tangible and exciting. We need to be able to demonstrate there's true economic return."

So while everyone watching the shows staged at City Hall and around the CBD was busy shopping (and taking selfies) here's the top 10 things we noticed at the 2014 event:

1. Party pies and ice coffee being served in the VIP lounge: Carbs and Campos is the new fashion diet.

2. Former Governor General Dame Quentin Bryce's favourite designer on the catwalk: Pia du Pradal is the only designer who can make mint, fushcia and a Mondrian skirt suit suitable for official occasions. Fingers crossed Lynne Cosgrove, wife of new GG Peter Cosgrove, gets in touch with her soon.

3. Lisa Brown: Lisa is Queensland's own Zimmermann thanks to her great use of texture and mixture of silhouettes.

4. Sacha Drake: The stalwart of the Brisbane Fashion Festival has been showing for nine years and has never been more in demand for her cocktail and race day wares. Her busiest month is now August which she has renamed "Oh my August" for how busy she is designing and creating.

5. Irma J Smith House of Fashion bespoke silk, cotton and wool suits: Like a disco version of the classic Chanel tweed two pieces.

6. Molly & Polly's swimmers cap bikini: Just like Jean Paul Gaultier's famous cone bra of the '90s but with a colourful Gold Coast twist.

7. Talulah's creative director Kelli Wharton's energy: After launching the resort wear label's summer range in front of a home crowd on Thursday she is now focusing on launching a number of new diffusion lines and ranges. Sources tell us David Jones is excited about her vision.

8. Jason Chetcuti: Aka the John Galliano of Queensland (aesthetically speaking). His bespoke gowns can be best described as a Brynne Edelsten-David Bowie love child, thanks to the metres of French lace, Middle Eastern silk, sequins, ostrich feathers and diamantes. Chetcuti, who won the national costume design for Miss Universe Australia 2013 is now preparing to create the official evening wear gown for Australia's Miss Universe 2014 hopeful Tegan Martin. "She's keen to explore something in gold," Chetcuti told Fairfax Media backstage.

9. Pistols at Dawn's suiting: These guys sent a white suit down the runway that didn't make you automatically think of Miami Vice. Sharp.

10. Rugby players in the front row: Queensland Reds star Quade Cooper and former Wallabies captain James Horwill seemed to thoroughly enjoy George Wu's sheer evening gowns. As did we, the fabrication and finishes were impeccable.