WAR VETERANS WILL PAY MORE FOR FURNITURE

Manawatu Times, Volume 70, Issue 266, 10 November 1945, Page 4

WAR VETERANS WILL PAY MORE FOR FURNITURE

i Not only will the returned service* | man and his wife, or his bride-to-be, re- ’. quire to deduct from the purchasing l power of the £IOO rehabilitation furni- , ture loan the sales tax of £2O, but they i will also require to pay higher prices ‘ for what they buy for the home he has : 1 so deservedly earned the right to estao--1 lish. Business houses are dreading the 1 position they will find themselves in ' i when they have to say “no” to the 1 , war veterans who want a special suite '! they might fancy, because of the eo- ’ called standard specification. I Makes of furniture on which long established houses have built up their reputations will not be available for ! the returned serviceman, and will be [ j marked at a lower price, and the war 11 veteran will wonder why. The reason j is that the standard set for furniture on which the loan can be spent must be L of certain measurements and must be made under certain Specified methods, i many of which have long since been re- . placed by more modern ways that, in , the opinion of experts, are equalty reliable and efficacious, as well as time i saving. Trade union representatives took a i large part in the decisions regarding 1 the standard specifications, and their i idea was to maintain a high degree of i craftsmanship. The manufacturer, howi ever, finds that the new standards will i require more material than is cus- • tomary in furniture today; that the methods—referred to as the old ' methods by most local businessmen—will moan more time and with overhead costs, including high rates of pay and taxation, business cannot afford to make free grants even to ex-service-znen.

The demands of the standard specification—and no furniture can be bought with a rehabilitation loan that is not so guaranteed—were stated by one manufacturer to make a difference of over £3 in one suite. Outwardly there was no difference whatever in tho suite made under this standard and that on sale to the general public, but inwardly, in the ex-serviceman’s suite, for instance, wooden cross pieces have not only to be nailed but also glued, while in general practice nailing has proved to be quite satisfactory and adequate. Also all springs have to be lashed, which is considered by experts to be quite unnecessary and takes time that must be added to the cost. Another item that will mean added cost is that the standard breadth, of furniture must be 20 inches, meaning more timber without guaranteeing an article any better than a 16in. piece, but costing more. One salesman also pointed out that ex-servicemen, as other people, starting up house were content with a suite for a back bedroom that was not quite up to the quality of that in the “best bodroom,” but there was no provision in the standard specifications which allowed for variation in the quality where the rehabili* j tation loan was concerned, i “Tho position will be,” said a retailer, “that our salesmen will be asked by ex-servicemen why they can’t have tho furniture they desire and made by reputable houses, and why [they have to purchase suites at higher [price levels. They will wonder,” ho I 1 added, “what ’freedom and liberty really are.” What is baffling the trade is why I standards were set that must obviously mean higher costs for the serviceman in setting up his home.