New-York tribune., 1921-06-05
Buyers Strike Broken,
Retail Sales Indicate

shopping. Look through opr 49,.
day a1d you will see It sfinJs to-
women as it was In the rnost WI with
Gus times. Our records sbor, .spef-
are doing a considerably larye, 10
ness than we were a year So p1sl-
sales. in dollars and cents ar our
ahead of last year, which, witS nss s.ss
from 70 to 35 per cent below Isst asss @
means that we are distributin,s sesf
d quarter to a third more merehs, AVN IRON
The store referred to, while cause" carrnss
Wlde range Of goods, is well Lno.ss
as popular priced' store. Tsa
ohleial lntimated that, in his bsl;.ss
par Oh tne explanation for the Isr.s,
Solume OF business his store is da;sss
the part of the public, send;ns on
the stores we'll known for csrr N %
medium priced merchandise tIng
than l%.o the more expensive iass sia
where higher qualities, ard eaops'
quently higher prices, obtain. 'H'e'
I'm our own store, however, +. -.
tInued, we have not found snv .a' "a
down IN the volume Of hieh-nr;o.s
lnerchanalse' when proportionatsIvv
compared to the low priced Tbe beey
lative proportion of the two +has me re-
sell has not been digturbed '.a' no We
great extent. What / mean is ~, ~ any
are not selling great quantities s; os ~, We
priced goods to the detriment ns WV
hlgh-prlced business. In wonen;s @ ou'
rnents, for instance, we find tbs+ 5ai-
as many high-priced dresses ana ...ss Joss
are being sold in proportion r. 'I..s Ias
priced ones as a year ago ri. NV
mand Tor silk hosiery shows no sba.e
ment. We are selling more Of nne =
our best grades of silk hose now .. ~ ~
pair than We did at SO ns;- - -
year. The quality is the same br. 'aSs 60
price is lower and the public sn,as ..e
emily is consuming more at tbe "fssai- f,
prices than it did at the higher nr;csa5 ;c"es
This experience differs slightly f,om
that of the chief executive of NV, rv@
lnent Fifth Avenue store. who sns.
that his sales volume in lower nricsS
merchandise IS making a steady col.
compared with that of his more eynsn4
sive nnes. People are economizino /.
SAID, and are making strenuous efforts
to bring their desires in line with a.
amount they have to spend. Nv ssIss'
; people tell me that frequently womsn
arrive IN the store with pre-conceiysS
ideas of the amount they wish to snsrs
Tor certain article, and If we cannos
furnish the item at this price Il !.
difficult to influence the customer ~
spend more"
This idea seems to nave nerrs.,.,
men more than women. iudpinr bv Nv
remarks Of cIothiers, who saw tbs,
close to half of the men entering tbs;r
shops ask for a $40 suit. a $50 sn;t
or 50 shirt or S3 shirt or what.
ever they have in mind. This is in
sharp contrast to a year ago, when the
first requisite of merchandise was a
visual appeal to the customer. The uries
was secondary in Importance. II tba
article pleased the eye the price asked
was paid, in most cases without COM
ment.
Another interesting sidelight on the
shopping habits of people has been
noticed by many retailers. II hus-
band and wife are shopping together
the husband makes few objections to
the prices asked for women's garments,
but usually registers strong "Esk"
at the prices the salesman asks for
mems attire. A story of man who
accompanied his wife to a store and
complacently laid down SO for pair
OIL SILK nose LOT nSF duQ D6ike1 ~
paying rs cents a pair for his cvn
socks and finally asked for something
"about two pairs for quarter Is
quoted by many retailers as showing
the trend of the times.
On the whole, the mems end Of the
trade has not come hack. as strongly in
the general revival in retail circles,
according to the statements Of various
merchants. On the other hand the sale
of furnishings, hats and shoes is much
better than the sale of the larger items
OF mems apparel, such as suits Making
the old suit go through another sea
son, but dressing up by the addition Of
new shirts, ties, belts, hose, etc. is
one way of economizing that has
struck large portion Of the mails
population, in the opinion Of clothiers.
Much to the surprise of many retailers
the straw ha& business so far this
spring has been exceptionally good.
Prices are considerably lower than las:
year, it is true, yet many retailers had
misgivings concerning the ability OF
willingness of men to pay from s2ou
upward for straw hats. However,
prices from S3 to $6 have ELECTED few
complaints from customers and the
volume of business has been sufficiens
to cause many merchants to place re-
orders for quick delivery.