Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-05-20
CEDAR RAPIDS MERCHANTS oP-
POSED TO JOINING PRESENT
REDUCTION WAVE.
DECLARE GOODS CAN
NOT BE REPLACED
Raplenishing Of Stocks After Present
Supply Is Sold Impossible on Basis
OF 20 Per Cent Disoount-Fran-
ehere Declares Stampede is Due to
Hysteria, Business Will Be injured.

Cedar Rapids, May 20.--With one
chants of Cedar Rapids voiced their
opinion that to make sweeping re-
tn, sales price of their goods would
result in financial decentralization for
their business and where being done
by merchants in other cities is only
temporary or else is the result of an
effort to unload on materials pur-
CHASED at old prices.
The one exception among those
interviewed was the Syndicate Cloth
ing Company, which is said to have
pioneered the $40 per cent reduction"
movement in Cedar Rapids with an
nOuncements in the newspapers that
practically everything In the store
would undergo a price cut Of that
amount.
Now Goods Cost More.
Where reductions might be made
OH the basis OF goods long in store
Purchased at former prices, local
ir merchants point out that these goods
when sold must be replaced and re-
placed at much higher prices than
were paid for them and - some
cases so high as to make the new re-
tail price almost prohibitive. Several
merchants expressed the opinion
that sweeping price reductions In
some Of the cities from which reports
have been received were due to local
fights between stores or were case
OF following after each other like
sheep. The Wanamaker store, said
oae merchant, could not be taken as
II criterion for the smaller merchants
To pattern after, for its greatly in
ecreased buying power, it's great cap
ital stock and it's usual high retail
prices made reductions possible with
still q margin of profit.
Business Will Be Hurt.
The opinion of the department
store merchants of Cedar Rapids who
were interviewed might be summed
up in the statement of A. o. Fran
chere of the Franchere Company,
"The merchant who reduces his
prices certain percentage turnout
his entire store" said Mr.. Fran
chere. because of slight depres-
sion in business, due to unsea SON
able weather. will soon find himself
So short sof merchandise that his
business will be seriously hampered.
The time for reduction in the cost
of merchandise, which we all are
booking and hoping for, will not ar
rive until production is increased
materially. Every merchant today
IL, very short on certain lines of
merchandise.
Il regard the present situation as
nothing more or less than a case
Of hysteria on the part of some
merchants who really think the time
for lower prices has arrived All
merchants in Cedar Rapids are re-
Siicing prices wherever they can, to
90 their part toward making 1t cas-
Ter for the consumer, but no one is
In position to give uniform dis
count on his entire stock, from his
original marked prices, without en-
failing serious loss. which in the
end will cause him a still greater
loss because of the fact that he can
not replace the goods at the price at
which he now owns them. One has
but to read the advertisements to
know that material reductions now
are being made on seasonable mer-
cnandise, which is customary at this
time of the year"