The Hawaiian gazette., 1916-04-14
OUCH! Shoe PRICES
/ SOAR Still HIGHER
INHONOLULUTRA
Tanneries Run Short of Hides
and Leather Supply Is Cor
respondingIy Light
FANCY C0L0RED GOODS
ARE BECOMING SCARCE
Difficulty To Get Dyestuffs Is
Reason and Plain Colors Bring
Extravagant Prices

Shoe dealers in Honolulu are expect
ing another substantial advance in the
price Of their goods, which means that
their customers viii have to pay pro.
portionately more for all grades of foot
wear. Leather has been soaring in
value until now It has reached almost
unbelievable heights, and the supply Of
leather now on hand in the factories
and at the tanneries is reported TO be
just about adequate to take care Of the
manufacturers immediate demands.
1t is now "between season" period
in the shoe manufacturing trade, how
ever, and the demand is slow. When
operations are resumed on the making
of footwear for the new season, the
question: Of where an adequate supply
Of leather TO meet this demand il to
come from will confront the trade.
Hides have shown sharp advances, i'm.
porters now asling rs high as thirty
three and q half at thirty!four cents
q pound for best selections of South
American hides. Even at these fig
ures, there are few ION offer, the ocean
tonnage scarcity causing a holding back
of shipments from primary points. T.
Tanning CMateriAls Short
Coupled with these conditions is the
shortage Of, tanning materials. Many
| tanning extracts and dyestuffs, which
are essential in the finishing of hides
for use in manufacturing shoes and
other leather goods are kept in the
country wherein they are produced,
owing either TO government restric-
tions on expectations, or lack of ship
ping facilities. Thus, both tanners
and shoe manufacturers are facing q
critical situation and higher prices
seem the only way out.
Not alone Is the shoe making indus
try affected by these conditions, but
makers of various leather goods, in.
keluding stray and e betting manafact
urers, are obliged to make advances
or suffer a loss in profits. Betting butts
and curried betting leather have been
climbing upward in value, as the stock
held by tanners has been decreasing.
One year ago the price of curried belt
ing leather was quoted at seventy. four
at seventyVseven cents for ce1fters and
sixty four at sixty FIVE cents for sides.
Today quotations range at ninety eight
at one dollar and four cents for ceHters
and ninety at niAety-two cents for
sides. Betting butts, which were selling
at 6fty.four at ifty-seven cents per
pound about one year ago are now
quoted up to eighty cents. per pound.
Effect Is To Boost Prices
The effect Of these advances in the
price of the raw material could not
long be- evaded in the price of the fn-
ished product. One instance Of this is
shown N the communication sent out
from the Offices of betting manufac-
turer in New York to customers, which
in part, reads:
} This will advise you that on March
rs we will be obliged to advance all
prices on leather betting FIVE per cent
} This advance has been made neces
sary owing to the continued rise in
the price of hides and other materials
, that enter into the manufacture of
leather betting"
This letter states tersely Ithe reasons
for the advances, which were newt
! able and which are anticipated in the
shoe trade under present conditions.
Shoe retailers, however, have one
, vital point to overcome in marketing
I their product; that is style. The aver
age purchaser Of shoes today looks
, largely to the stylish appearance of the
shoe as well as to the material put
, into it. As a result, the retailer il
forced to combine quality, with style.
Stable Colors win Be Vogue
, The consensus is that the white higf
boot will be the style for women thil
season, while for men the conv entiona
1 black or tan shoes will be in vogue BY
wide publicity campaign, the retail
ers have succeeded in, abating the de
mand for highly colored footwear
which are ,difIicult to produce, owing t.
shortage of aniline dyes. Thus yellow
brown and gray shoes have been sup
planted by white or tan boots. Thes'
fancy colored shoes, which sold abOu
six months ago from five dollars to 81,
dollars a pair, and now Tetailed at sew
en-. dollars to fifteen dollars.
: The lateness of Easter this year i
= expected to result in a good deman,
for light colOred footwear.