Evening star., 1928-06-10
By ]. A. FOX.


TIME Department of Commerce has
set out to repair two cracks in
the business structure of the
country through which a golden
stream of billions is dissipated
rearly--a sacrifice to uneconomic prac-
tices.
Taking up concurrently study of
retail credits. and marketing and dis
tribution. the department, through its
experts of the Bureau of Foreign and
Domestic Commerce. is hopeful of find-
ing a workable solution for the problem
of putting the extension of retail credit
on a scientific basis, and. secondly, to
cut out that waste that marks the
handling of industrial output all the
way from factory door to the hands OF
the consumer.
The two new surveys are part of the
comprehensive war on waste in in
dustry" which is being waged unre-
r1ittingly by the department and sue
cess on these two interrelated fronts
will mean an annual saving that con-
servative estimate puts at $6, ,000. 600, 900,
and will benefit not only producer. but
what is more important, the general
public.
Relatively Little Known.
Strangely enough, although credit has
become an integral part of the very
foundation of the country, and daily
grows in Importance, it is conceded that
Il is subject about which relatively
little is known, and this is particularly
true with regard to the all-important
angle of the cost" of extending various
types of credit. Basicly. this study, it
Is hoped. will bring out this feature and
viii answer a question that on the sur
lace seems simple enough. but which
actually is represented as raising some
doubt in the minds of retailers and that
Is whether cash or credit sales are made
with least expense TO the dealers.
For instance. there seems to be an
impression among the ordinary run of
customers that in paying cash they
make their trade much more attractive
and remunerative TO the merchant
than If they operate on charge ac-
count, because when they make a pur-
chase the transaction is concluded and
the storekeeper doesn't have TO worry
about getting his money. or at least
DOESN'T have 10 wait for it.
1t has been suggested. on the con-
trary, however. that perhaps in the
long run it may develop that just the
opposite is true-that the trade of tho
charge customer. in general, is more to
be preferred.
Is There Cost 10 Cash Sale?
Setting up hypothetical case in this
connection, 1t may be shown that the
"ccSt" of a cash sale exceeds that of
credit transaction. because the buyer in
the first case shops more carefully-re-
cuires more personal attention than the
second. This. of course. is only suppo-
sition and is only one of the many fac
tors that must be taken into considera-
ton in study that is to be as all-em-
hracing as that under contemplation
end viii go from corner store sales,
which are just about the alpha of trade.
on up through other phases Of the de-
ferred-payment plan and installment
buying, where much greater sums are
involved
This investigation is being under
taken al the request of the National
Retail Credit Association. one of the
major business organizations Of the
country, and followed a meeting of in
terested parties here at which the ne.
cessity for action was gone into thor
cughly.
1t was sgreed that everything Is not
es it should be In handling credit. but
trying to point out definite st1ortcom-
E1gs is something else, and the Depart
nlent Of Commerce, it was agreed, is In
the unique position in this case of being
able to do something for business that
business finds ii virtually impossible 70
oo for itself
Must Reveal Experiences.
AZ a prerequisite to successful study,
II Is explained, firms whose trade comes
Under scrutiny must freely and frankly
show just exactly what their expert
ences have been In credit operations.
Hitherto the barrier 10 such an ex-
position has been what is described as
natural llnwillingness" on the part