HATS FOR WEN

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 7, Issue 34, 17 December 1943, Page 7

HATS FOR WEN

MADE IN NEW ZEALAND VERY FEW NOW IMPORTED A hat i.s one of the few items of men's dress needs not subject to coupon control.. For many years tlr.ro has heeri little change in men's hat fashions, both in shapes and the range of colours. This conservatism is carried further by a general rcluctance to abandon an old hat in favour of a neAv one, and improved methods have made it possible for a faded and rather shapeless felt to Ih; renovated. The. importation of fully manufactured men's hats practically ceased over three years ago. Hats have come into New Zealand »in conical shape as hoods and have been blocked and finished, here,, the betterknown English makes being manufactured under licence. Formerly, the best fur felts came from Italy, but British makers had captured the New Zealand market, long before. the war. While there has not yet been any shortage of soft hats, stocks of the raw material are reported by warehousemen to be low.i Hats have not a very high priority rating and, even if service requirements had not depleted stocks available for civilian needs, shipping space would still be a serious consideration. Prices j for standard makes have increased by 30 to 40 per cent., and the predicton was made that further increases in all-round costs could be expected.