Great Falls tribune., 1921-12-23
The HaSkiil Letter . 'sssss.s. @sss
THE RESOURCEFUL SHOPPER.

store on the principal retail street al
ways gets more for exactly the same
article than the little store up side
street. Furthermore, reel which
sells for $500 in the spring ia only
$3.50 in the fall, but very few are
sold in the fall.
The average sportsman spends prob
ably at least half again as much as he
need spend for his equipment. He is,
in fact, about as careful as small
boy in a candy store. His outdoor
life represents the kid side of his
nature anyway. When he sees some
shining bit of equipment that he likes
in window he runs in and buys It
30 per cent more than is necessary:
But rise OF one cent in the price OF
gasoline will always get howl OF
rage out of him, while to mention the
prices women pay for clothes nj his
presence is to inspire philippe.
The women as matter of fact are
much better shoppers than the men,
hnd as result the prices charged for
the things they buy exclusively are
much more uniform than those charged
for strictly masculine goods. 1t has
been noted that stores catering to
women usually run in groups Of three.
That is. there are usually at least
three stores in a city which carry
women's cloaks, and larger places are
likely to have three stores of each dis.
tinctive class, or on each principal
street The reason for this is that
will usually price the desired article
in at least three places aud then buy
in the cheapest market, whereas the
man will probably buy in the first
place he enters If the salesman there
knows his business at all.
Women Determined
1t is also easy to see that woman
will take more trouble to make her
mems furnishings are always on the
first floor. They have to be. Men
will not go to an upper floor in search
of what they want. But the women's
furnishings are always on an upper
floor, while the first floor is devoted
to lot of small articles that every
woman needs. so that she will see
them and buy them in passing.
Despite her greater determination
and resourcefulness as shopper, it
cannot be said that the woman comes
off much better than the man in the
buying of ready-to-wear clothes. On
the Otner nand, women clothes gen
orally seem to be little higher than
mems. There are two principal rea-
sons for this. In the first place, woman
is a good deal more a slave to fashion
than man. She must have the latest
thing right away, no matter what it
costs. Likewise the merchant must
sci 1.-The latest thing while it is still
late, or never. What is left over is
mostly loss. So he has to charge a
high price.
Mems styles in suits change every
year, but there are few men who hesi-
tate to wear a suit three years old if it
is still in passably good condition. Men
who buy tailored clothes usually have
them cut by the SAME patterns year
after year. The tailor may introduce
some minor changes as concession to
fashion. but the average man is a con-
servative in that matter. Furthermore,
if the price is too high, man will not
buy at all. He will make the old suit
do. But not SO woman. She must
have new one.
There are many different factors in
the making of high retail prices, but
mans laziness and woman's vanity
are undoubtedly two constant ones.