State of the Shoe Industry

Dominion, Volume 25, Issue 260, 29 July 1932, Page 13

State of the Shoe Industry

Sir,—lt certainly is nice to read such an optimistic article in Saturday’s “Dominion” as the one headed “Tide Turnin*’ ” and it would be more so if one was not faced with the' facts that one portion, at least, is definitely incorrect and very misleading to the general public. I am referring to the remarks regarding the shoe industry. Your article describes this industry as one of the flourishing industries of th® Dominion. I may venture to say that to-day the shoe factories, as a whole, are working shorter time with a much lower output than for the past twelve months. One has only to observe the low price of the large majority of footwear, coupled with the frequent display of sales notices, to realise the impossibility of the likelihood of any increased demand upon the factories. , As one who is in continual touch wita the shoe industry of New Zealand, I can. definitely state that your informant is at least three months behind the times. At that period there was a temporary stimulus brought about by the increased exchange, but since then saturation coins has more or less been reached, and th® demad for footwear has fallen to sere, prompted perhaps by the loss in purchasing power of the general public. Manufacturers to-day are not working at half their capacity. with the result that their overhead expenses are unusually heavy. Thia, coupled with the depreciation of stocz values, and the difficulty of financing long-term credits, causes them to be equally as hard hit as any other industry in the Dominion. —I am, etc, W.S.L.

Wellington. July 26. [Our reference to the boot and shoe industry was as follows:— ■ “One or two boot and shoe factone® •have been able to increase the number of hands employed owing to the number of orders received, and a week or two ago one of them was working at capacity. This is reflected in the increased sales in some of the retail shops. Prices of footwear are a good deal lower than they were a year ago* with keen competition consumers are getting the benefit in quality and prices."]