COST OF BOOTS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLIV, Issue 10296, 3 June 1919, Page 9

COST OF BOOTS

- —.— . STANDARDISATION SCHEME. \

The important bearing of the schemi, to standardise New Zealand made boot* on the price of tho article to the pul* lie is emphasised by the chairman of the New Zealand Boot Manufacturere' Efficiency Board, and the secretary of the board, Mr B. Mapplebeck/- who are at present in Auckland /states the “Star")., These gentlemen also emphatically refute the statement that has appeared in'the press that the manufacturers _of New Zealand are opposed to participation in the standardisation scheme, in the course of a talk on the subject this morning they pointed out that the scheme actually originated from the manufac-i turers themselves, and that the proposition „was. first,, submitted by .their Efficiency Board to the Government at the time of the second hide conference in March, 1918. In making the proposal .the aim of the manufacturers was the production of a high standard article at reasonable price, the maxim, in short,; being "value for moneys and no shoddy." Mr Hammill further claimed that the standardisation scheme has already had a marked effect on the prices of footwear in the Dominion made from New, Zealand leathers. “Had it not been for this proposal," he said, “the prices of New Zealand manufactured boots to-day would probably have been from 4s to fis per pair higher than they are. This' and the fixing of the price of ■ hides has accomplished a saving to the New Zen-; land public of thousands of- pounds. Take the free hide market in Australia., Word has recently come of an advance in hides there of from 3d to 3d per lb, which means an increase in the price l of leather of‘something in the vicinity l of 9d per lb. Again on tho free operating market in Australia tho price ol glace kids has risen in the last fort-; night to the extent ol from 5d to 7d per foot, while America refuses to quota ai),y price at all. Patent leather in the United States and Canada has,'’according to cabled advices a week ago, gone up lOd per foot, while willow and box calf have risen to such an extent that at the : present time we cannot get anything like reasonable quotations. Tho manufacturers claim, therefore, that it is only by standardisation and a restricted export of hides that the great upward tendency in the prices of foot-' wear can be checked./ It should, of course, bo clearly understood that Newj Zealand manufacturers’ do" not produce) every class, of ‘ footwear, and also that so far as the standardised article is concerned they have no direction whatever, to the Government calling for tenders, 1 provided they are called on the samples submitted by the Efficiency Board," ;