RETAILERS’ BATTLE.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVI, 13 November 1926, Page 6

RETAILERS’ BATTLE.

OPPOSITION TO P.A.T.A. DEATH OF LEGITIM AE, COMPETITION. There promises to be a great buttle n aged in the near future between those who may be termed independent trad ers ana the Proprietary Articles Trade Association, which has taken upm itself the fixation of prices for many lines in New Zealand. ... . A criticism of the activities of the P.A.T.A. was madei the other morning by the manager of a Dunedin cash business who said that the policy of the P.A.T.A., as it was genera iy unclerritood. was simply to fix prices at which proprietary articles _ could be sold, regardless of the article. In© association was commencing ny handling such articles as patent medicines and fancy goods, but, according to the trader, it liad been definitely slated at various meetings being held that it was the association’s intention at a inter dajte to include foodstuffs and ad other lines handled by the retailers. “The association is not prepared to give consideration to the various sty es of business, such as cash or otner businesses giving credit and service, lie asserted, “which means that m all probability those who are . ble to pay for the services will not he ifiected m the slightest, but the working man, who can afford to pay only for goods ieceived and not for unnecessary services, will have to pay high prices because of the set sale* of charges. A deputation representing the grocery trade is to wait on the Minister with a view to preventing the 1 .A t.A. from commencing its operations, until a thorough investigation made. Traders supported the .scheme in the first instance in the belief that, it meant the stabilising of prices, and not. as it is now alleged, the death of legitimate competition.