Milford chronicle., 1961-04-21
Manufacturers And
Retailers Bow
To Consumers


Mans world or no? No. declar-
ed Mrs. Charlotte Montgomery, con-
tributing editor of Good House
keeping magazine, at Delaware's
First Consumer Forum held last
week at the Hotel Du Pont in
Wilmington. IT'S the feminine seq
ment of our economy that dictates
to manufacturers and retailers
what products they'll produce and
stock on store shelves" she en-
phasiZed
Your Power as Consumer
How to Use It" was the theme
of the forum and the title of Mrs.
Montgomery's talk. The forum
was sponsored by the Home econo-
mics section of the Agricultural
Extension Service at the University
of Delaware.
super market managers can fig
ure a $1,000 loss every time one
of their customrs takes her bust
ness somewhere else" said Mrs.
Montgomery, in an effort to show
the $50 people attending the forum
just how great their influence is
upon the products and services of
retailers and manufacturers.
In explaining this power women
have in the market place, Mrs.
Montgomery pointed out that wo-
men have entered the work force
in great numbers in recent years
giving them money of their own
to spend. They have also become,
in most cases. the family's purchas-
ing agent. These things coupled
with the facts that women are now
better educated and their tastes &
cultural and intellectual interests
more developed, have made them
more selective in spending their
money Retailers find il hard. in
deed. to sell the informed shopp-
ers something they don't want and
don't need" she said.
But this tremendous power is
not free of responsibilities, Mrs
Montgomery cautioned. you must
let manufacturers and retailers
know what you need and want and
you are willing TO pay for it. You
must let, them know when merchan-
disc is defective and substandard
Manufacturers can't check every
piece of merchandise that leaves
their factories nor can retailers
check every product that comes in
TO their stores. Only by your sugg-
estions will they know where i'm
provements can be made"
It's equally important to let
these people know when they are
pleasing you. when their products
are of good quality. selling at rea-
sonable prices and when their SER
vices are up to snuff" she point
ed out.
customers shouldn't expec I
something for nothing, continued
Mrs. Montgomery. That something
extra in style and quality costs the
manufacturers and retailers money
and only by charing a little more
can they provide better products
than ones produced for mass taste
without taking a loss.
What's the good of complaining /;
nobody pays any attention to what
/ say. "This is the faulty thinking
of many people who simply shrug
off unsatisfactory merchandise as a
poor investment Mrs. Montgomery
emphasized. ''In 9 out of 10 cases
the letters you write to manufact-
urers and retailers are read even
though you don't receive an answer.
II would be hazardous. indeed. if
they didn't for its on you they
depend for their livelihood.
Other speakers at the forum were
Horace F. Johnson, manager of the
J.C. Penney Company Store. VIII
mington; Carlton r. Asher, direc-
tor of advertising and promotion
for the James Lees and Sons Com
pany. carpet manufacturers: and
Charles Rutledge, manager of spe-
eial services for the DUPONT Com
pany's textile fibers department.
The forum was made possible by
grant from the Sears-Roebuck
Foundation TO the home economics
extension section at the University
of Delaware.