SHEFFIELD'S AID

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 59, 7 September 1926, Page 19

SHEFFIELD'S AID

| j EMPIRE GOODS AND PRODUCE. 1 | ! I BUYING AND SELLING. \ \ j I CUTLERY, PLATE AND STEEL. j ! I [ NEW ZEALAND AND ITS CONNECTION. S 1

S» .-"" ■ ■" n""1" 11 ' "■■" "" ■ ■ „„„„„■." 288 By Mr. Peter McGregor, J.P., 3lessrs. Sanderson Bros, <£• Newbold, Ltd., StttffieU.

One cannot help feeling that to some extent manufacturers in the Old Country have in the past taken for granted their overseas trade, and have, as it were, assumed that without any particular activity on their part orders would come in and their business connections with the various integral parts of the Biitish Empire would continue without any serious disturbance from outside sources. Indeed, the more closely one is in touch with members of our own Dominions and colonies the more convinced one becomes that, rightly or wrongly, that is the feeling that exists amongst our peoples overseas. The ordinary man in the street in the Old Country cannot be expected to delve into facts and figures and ascertain for himself the value of any particular market to the United Kingdom as a whole or to any particular district thereof, and, however regrettable this assumption of the past may be, I think there is some excuse to be made when, one takes, into account that in the old days markets were not competitive in the same way that they are to-day, and it is always difficult for anyone to visualise in their true perspective the tastes and requirements of a country situated many thousands of miles from the Motherland. During recent years, however, a very great deal of thought and real spade work has been put into the difficult question of trade

MR. PETER MACGREGOR, J.P.

From Canada, Australia, Singapore, South Africa, and the British .West Indies. FiIUIT (Dried, including evapor. ated) —From Canada, South Africa,; Australia, and the British West Indies.; FRUIT (Fresh) — From Canada,; Australia, and South Africa. JAMS — From Australia, South Africa, and the British West Indies. MACARONI—From Canada. MEAT (Canned) — • From Australia and New Zealand. MEAT (Extract)—From Australia. MEAT (Frozen and Chilled)—From Australia and New Zealand. SPICES—From India and the British West Indies. TEA—From India and Ceylon. TOBACCO—From Canada, Cyprus, Africa, India, and Rhodesia. WINE —From Australia and South Africa. TELL YOUR WIVES AND FAMILIES TO DO THE SAME. At the same time DON'T FORGET the many food and agricultural products o£ the Motherland—meat, bacon, butter, eggs, cheese,' jams, sauces, etc., etc. If you cannot get supplies we will do all that is possible to help. FEDERATION OF BRITISH INDUSTRIES, NORRIS DEAKIN BUILDINGS, KING STREET, SHEFFIED. This poster has received very wide publicity, and supplies of it hav© been asked for from many different parts of the country. It was brought to the notice of the High Commissioner, Colonel the Hon. Sir James Allen, K.C.8., who wrote as follows :— " .... I have read it with much interest, and am quite in sympathy with you. If I may venture on an expression of personal opinion, British goods first must be the policy of an inhabitant of the British Islands, with goods of the Dominions and colonies a good second."

THE VALUE OF A BRAND.

Speaking personally, and on behalf of the Sheffield Branch of the Federation of British Industries, we would like you to rest assured that this policy of assisting you in the sale of your products will be pursued untiringly, and we hope that such a concrete effort on our part to do all that we can in your interest will not only meet with your approval, but will also be reflected in a still greater measure by increased purchases of the products in the manufacture of which practically the whole of the population in this district is employed. In this connection it might be appro* priate to mention that the general consuming public in New Zealand and, indeed, everywhere should insist on purchasing goods branded by reputable firms. We make the finest cutlery in the world, but the finest cutlery is made by the firms who brand their goods and are not ashamed of their responsibility in the manufacture thereof. We make the finest saws, the finest tools, the finest files, the .finest electroplate and silver ; Sheffield steel has a reputation throughout the world as being second to none, but we do suggest that in your own interest you should buy on a brand with which a good name, a goodwill, and a good reputation are allied. Should you have any difficulty whatever in securing your supplies the local branch of the Federation of British Industries will always be only too happy to direct you to reputable sources.

development, and it has come as a great surprise to many people in this country that New Zealand should purchase so large a percentage of British goods in all its imports so that in the year 1924 £15 15s 3d worth of goods and products of the United Kingdom were imported per head of the population. We in Sheffield, if 1 may apply myself more particularly to the products in which we are primarily interested, note with extraordinary satisfaction that in the year 1924 over 90 per cent, of the cutlery imported into New Zealand came from this country; over 95 per cent, of the iron and steel imported, over 91 per cent, of the plate and plated were imported ; over 46 per' cent, of the tools, saws, files, spades, forks, etc., imported found their origin in the Motherland, and we have been engaged for some considerable time now in a form of propaganda which we believe has already contributed towards a greater purchase and consumption of the products of New Zealand in this country, and which, we believe, should, and will, make possible a still greater consumption of the manufactured goods of the Home Country not only in New Zealand, but also throughcut the length and breadth of all our overseas possessions.

AN EFFORT TO HELP.

We take great pride here in the "Buy British Goods" movement, which has been receiving so much attention during the past twelve months, and also in the fact that we were, through the medium of the Sheffield branch of the Federation of British Industries, the first Association of Manufacturers to appeal direct to our work-people to develop the habit of asking not only for British-manufactured goods, but for the British produce as implying food- produce of the Empire. Tor many months posters have been displayed in all the principal works, and a great deal of time and thought has been spent on bringing home to our people here the interdependence between the Old Country and its Dominions, which, if taken full advantage of, should undoubtedly pave the way towards a vast development of the Empire overseas and secure prosperity for all our people throughout the world. The wording of the poster, which has applied more particularly to Empire products, reads as follows:— "Our overseas possessions are the best customers for the manufactured goods of the United Kingdom. Their capacity to buy from us depends upon their capacity to sell their own produce. It is therefore to your own advantage to support the Dominions and colonies and where agricultural produce of the Old Country is not available to INSIST on Empire supplies. ' Ask your retailers, and KEEP ON ASKING forCEEEALS—From Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. COFFEE—From India, Kenya, and the British West Indies. DAIRY PRODUCE—From Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Northern Ireland, and the Irish Free State. FISH (Canned) — From Canada, South Africa, and New Foundland. .FRUIT (Canned and Bottled)—: