The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1889-06-16
THE TAILoR's COMMENT.
Tie Has to Credit Ills Customers to Keep
tho Trade. Which Il Hard to Get.

tho Trade. Which Il Hard to Get.
"Finc custom tailoring Is not what
ii used to be, " said a Brooklyn man in
the business to an Eagle reporter, and
the big houses are just driving us to
the wall. suppose it is the same in
everything else, but Of course, you
know our trade is the first to suffer
from competition of that kind"
How is thatl'
IL am surprised. that you ask me
such a question: replied the tailor,
slightly clcvating. his eyebrows,
when you should know, il you do
not, that we must get large profit on
custom made suit of clothes to make
any money. Why1 Because there
has been an unwrItten law from time
immemorial which allows man to
pay his tailor's bill last OF all. Now,
a person can't get credit to any amount
in one Of the big establishments. II
he orders a suit at such place he must
leave a deposit, and the balance IS de
manded when the clothes arc delly-
cred. On the other hand, tailor who
has small shop must cater to his Gus
toners by allowing credit. Now. IN
these times Of sharp competition, high
rents and heavy expenses for skilled
labor. YOU will see that it takes the
profit upon n great many suits oil
clothes TO pay running expenses ana
Law up something for dull times.
When there was less competition we
could get along, but now, beside the
big establishments where they can get
up a suit Of clothes for almost nothing,
there arc innumerablc shops where
they sell fashionable looking clothes
limitations Of the clothes we keep, of
course-for Just about half the money
we can sell the real goods for. In for
mer years, the fine custom tailors and
the ready made stores monopollzed the
business. Neither interfered with the
trade Of the other, and consequently
we had a certain hold on our custom
ers, who in order to get new clothes
Of us, would pay their bills rather
than be forced into buying ready
made garments. Now they leave our
bills unpaid and go to one Of the
cheap custom stores, pay cash Tor Ill,
fcrior goods, and then come back and
tell us how cxorbitant our prices are.
Why. it's enough to drive man crazy
sometimes. Yes, the better class OF
small tailoring shops are being driven
out Of business, and it's too bad, for
the establishments that are driving
them out arc doing much inferior
kind Of work. Tho great object with
them is TO make up and sell fashion
able goods at n low figure. Now, !
will not say that the material they use
is all ..oddy-far from it. 1t IS sur
prising for what q small sum they can
sell really good clothes How do they
do it, We'll, in the first place, they
rely 10 a great degree upon transient
trade. Secondly, the credit system Is
taboocd and they get cash for their
goods. Thirdly, they pay the lowest
wages possible to their help. Fourth
w. they do not pretend TO put the
finish on their goods that a first class
tailor docs. y man argues IN this way
when he patrOnizes one OF these shops:
He says TO himself: i have been pay
ing SIG for trousers, while here IS
man who says he can get me up a
pair equally good for s. know that
he can't do it, but also know that for
fit and appearance his s. trousers will
fora considerable time be rs good osmy
$40 pair, consequently | will buy the
IS ones and when they are worn out !
can get another pair, paying for both
pairs what | would ordinarily pay for
one Now, you see, if his argument
is a good one he would be very fool
ish if he did not tq,ro advantage Of the
cheaper man. After all, concluded
the tailor, signing, IF it weren't that
we were expected to give such long
credit | don't know that We would be
any worse off than our neighbors.
That is what is killing US. '--Brooklyn
Earle.