The Waterbury Democrat., 1935-09-28
BUSINESS BETTER I HAN SENTIMENT"
Sears, Roebuck Co.,, Presi- dent, Local Manager ls-
 sue Significant Words

'Business this year has been better than sentiment until very recently"
 This is the way that General R. E. Wood, president of Sears, Roe- buck & Company characterizes the outlook in Q message sent to the firms 422 managers during Sears 18th birthday now in full swing.
 General Wood, who, during the last six months has visited Sears stores in many different parts of the United States, declared in his annual message to store managers that most of the great business csnters haven't yet awakened fully to . realization of an upturn in business that is already apparent throughout the country. During the depression years General Wood was never one to encourage false optimism and his analysis of cur rent business conditions has great CT significance for that reason.
 The business of Sears, Roebuck q Company. which sells merchan- disc in every state in the Union through Its retail and central stores is considered by many eco- nomists as one of the most re- liable criterions of purchasing power in the country.
 General Wood cited the middle west, the west coast and the south as the regions where the return of better business is most noticeable. The improvement, he said, seems to be moving from south to north and from west to east. In the great cities he found the least awareness of this improvement.
 There is one popular fallacy about the cost of goods that should be exploded" General Wood said. People think prices are higher. Food prices are higher. But on general merchan- disc, prices aren't higher. We can see that plainly in our own business.
 Results of Survey
 "A survey recently conducted at Sears shows an interesting com parison between the prices of farm comm odities and merchandise prices. In 1926, when conditions were more nearly normal, it took 89 pounds of hogs to buy 29x4:4O tire-as this is being written, 63 pounds will buy a better tire; 9-1O of a bushel of wheat bought a standard bed sheet in 1926-to- day 9-10 of a bushel buys the same quality; IF 3-S pounds oi cotton was the price of a typica work shoe in 1926-to-day 12 5-1z pounds of cotton brings an i'm proved shoe.
 What is true of hogs and whea' and cotton is true of almost every farm commodity, and what is true of tires and sheets and shoes ii true of almost everything else wt sell"
 A tremendous buying campaign was a part of Sears plan for 1t. 18th birthday. The company's an niversaries have become an in creasingly interesting feature O its program every year.
 Preparatory to one of the mos gigantic sales in it's history, Sears Roebuck & Company last sprint and summer placed orders fo $15,O00,000 worth of merchandise especially for it's anniversary cele DTAtlOH WHlCIi niA CohJ pOtS tA and will continue through Satur day, October 5.
 MT. Kelsey Comments
 According to N. F. Kelsey, man ager of the Waterbury Sears store more than 5000 manufacturinl sources in nearly every state il the nation received a share of thi expenditure.
 Acting under instructions iron General R. E. Wood, president o the company, and D. M. Nelson vice president in charge of mer chandise, Sears buyers scoure' American markets for thousand of goods purchased, many branch es of industry felt the impetus o the buying campaign.
 "In spending this large sum fo one sales event, our company doing everything in its power t stimulate production" MT. Kelse said. "The theme of our anniver sary celebration is the Days c 49'. In comparing 1t to the gol rush, we are not unmindful of tn nuggets the pioneers sought. w too, are featuring nuggets in tn form of 100 special merchandis items.
 'Last years anniversary ever lasted nine days. It wasn't lon enough. Shopping traffic wa frequently too heavy for custome comfort. That is why we hay made a 15-day celebration of thi years anniversary, September l! to october B."
 During this period. the compan will employ several thousand extr people in addition to it's regular re tail personnel of 10000. MT. Kel sey said.