VICTORIA LAUNDRY

Evening Post, Volume CXXIV, Issue 26, 30 July 1937, Page 11

VICTORIA LAUNDRY

SHAREHOLDERS MEET

DIVIDEND OF 5 PER GENT.

Shareholders of the: Victoria Laundry Company, Limited, met in Wellington yesterday for-the annual, meeting of the company. In ' recommending that a dividend of 5 per cent; be paid, Mr, W. S. Wheeler, chairman of directors, said that it was regretted that the "dividend could not be increased; it' was necessary that the company conserve its, resources as much as possible. . Reviewing the past year, ■ Mr.' Wheeler said that taking into account all the circumstances, the directors were very pleased to be able to' announce the satisfactory profit of £3249 2s 2d, which represented a slight increase on the profit for the previous year. He stressed the point that, although the turnover had been higher than since 1931, costs had been very considerably higher. . The • company's wages bill alone was £5710 more than for the previous year, the'total wages bill for the past year iDeing £29,740. The company had also had to1 meet a very heavy increase in income tax. Although some difficulty had been experienced in organising the. company's large equipment to fit in. with the 40-hour week and other restrictions placed upon it, the high standard of service the . company had always tried to give to its clients had been maintained.

Mr. Wheeler placed on record the loyalty and co-operation of the staff1, through whose efforts he said the output of the laundry had been so efficiently handled. It was difficult to forecast with any degree of accuracy what the future held in store. With J increasing costs there was only a certain limit'to which they could go so far as concerned the passing on to the public of extra costs. If any further restrictions .were imposed, it, would have the effect of curtailing the company's business.' It was only because of the large turnover that the company had been able to show a profit, and any reduction of the turnover would have a detrimental effect on future results. i The annual report and balance-sheet, a summary of which has been given previously, were adopted, and the retiring director, Mr. Will Appleton, was re-elected. Messrs. Dymock, MacShane, and Sclanders were re-ap-pointed the company's auditors.