Evening star., 1953-04-23
z New Credit Services Here
Serve Both Customer, Store

cllenC llSC, Mr.. MalaSKy expects
soon to open the facilities to
restaurants.
The advantage Of this kind of
service to the smaller merchants
is obvious. With so to so per
cent of the local retail trade
done on a credit basis, bookkeep-
ing represents a considerable
cost of the overhead for all
stores.
1--WE keep the accounts of our
customer stores. giving them an
opportunity to devote this saved
time to merchandising" Mr..
Malasky explained. The stores
pay nominal fee for the service
and reduce expenses.
The Old Dominion Bank op-
crates very much in the same
way. Although the service is
scarcely a month old, President
Edwin T. Holland thinks it will
eventually develop into a profit
table business for the bank.
Separate Department.
Because it is a service where
Old Dominion furnishes credit
facilities to a group of small
merchants for a fee. it requires
a separate department to service
the accounts. It is the same as
setting up a department store
bookkeeping department in a
bank. The service is under the
supervision of Thomas Malone
and the bank expects gradual
extension of it's list Of member
stores, regardless of geographic
limitations in the Metropolitan
Area.
The merchants bill the bank,
which in turn bills the credit
customer using it's service. The
latter may write off all trans
actions with a single check or
give the bank routine authoriza-
ton to make the deduction in
his or her account. 1T serves
as an all-around convenience
that seems to be satisfactory for
that reason" Mr.. Holland said.
The identical service has been
operating for a while in a few
banks in other cities. For some
it has proved profitable, it was
said here. while one bank is re-
ported to have sustained a loss.
Time will tell" said one Wash
ington banker who is not sold
on the idea.
The large department stores,
too, have their own credit-con-
venience arrangement through
mutual cooperation. 1t is a
we'll established practice. One
metal slip easily carried in
purses and bearing an identifica-
ton number answers the same
purpose at any Of six stores
Woodward & Lothrop. Hecht
Co., Garf1nckel's, Lansburgh's,
Kann'S. Goldenberg's and the
Raleigh Haberdashery.
Credit losses among the de-
partment stores here are written
off about on the same rate as the
nationally accepted figure-one-
half of one per cent. The losses
are less on monthly charge ac-
counts than on what the stores
prefer to call deferred payment
plans"
Washington has a reputation
as good credit city"-probably
one of the best in the country
by reason of its non-industriaI
status. the stabilizing Federal
and District Government pay
rolls and the highest her capita
income ratio in the country. It
would seem that every one wants
credit, but that isn't so. Forty
to so per cent of the sales in
department stores are said to be
for cash.
Naturally, the department
stores are eager to extend credit
and the newcomers in the city,
especially. are being courted.
But while credit mistakes"
crop up, credit screening in
Washington is pretty thorough.
For some persons-and every
credit bureau has a built-up
list Of them-credit is just one
thing they can't get.