Move For Shopping Change

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31658, 19 April 1968, Page 1

Move For Shopping Change

Any move for latenight shopping on Thursdays had not come from the union, said the secretary of the Canterbury Shop Assistants’ Union (Mr B. Alderdice) yesterday. He was commenting on a report that shopping hours in Wellington might be modified and traditional late-night shopping on Fridays could disappear. The Wellington report said that union officials in Wellington and retailers’ representatives hoped to get together within the next two months to discuss changes. One proposal was that the late-shopping night should be on Thursday. Mr Alderdice said that a reason in favour of Thursday late shopping being considered in conciliation council was that Friday night was becoming part of the weekend. In people’s minds it was becoming a social or travelling night so that full advantage could be taken of the week-end, he said. Mr Alderdice said he had

noticed that the president of the Courtenay Place Progressive Association (Mr K. C. Shotter) had said that we were behind the rest of the world in shopping hours. “We are ahead of the world in shopping hours,” said Mr Alderdice. “This is because our people are getting their shopping done and providing for their needs in fewer shopping hours, thus clearing themselves for longer personal or family recreation.” By doing this they were obtaining all the goods they required at more economic prices. The longer shops stayed open the higher were their costs and therefore the higher prices were passed on to the consumer. The retailers did not want longer shop opening hours either if it meant less profit. The secretary of the Canterbury Retailers’ Association (Mr N. M. West) said more flexibility, not necessarily longer hours, could well be justified by changing patterns in the shopping habits. There was no unanimity at present on how best customers’ needs and the needs of the trades could be commonly. met. Some thought had been given to a different late shopping night and there was an I

attempt to gain Thursday for Riccarton. However, the position in Christchurch was vastly different from that in Wellington, where the shopping areas were widely spread.

The Christchurch shopping area was more compact and it would be difficult to imagine distribution being economic if different late nights were observed in suburbs closely linked.