PHARMACY TRADE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22909, 11 December 1937, Page 22

PHARMACY TRADE

PROPOSED RESTRICTION THE HOUSEHOLD DEALERS BUSINESS THREATENED Alarm at an unintended effect of the proposed legislation to reorganise the pharmacy industry in the Dominion is expressed by men who have established for themselves a connection as dealers in household medicines and necessities from door to door. They have had advice that if some of the present proposals are put into effect by way of legislation all such dealers "will be put out of business.

, The plan now taking Bhape for reorganising the phartnacy industry had. its origin in the desire to protect tlio trade from tho competition of largo outside combines. Originally the Pharmacy Board asked for protection only for the dispensing branch of its business. After ii considerable amount of investigation, recommendations have now been brought down by a. special industries and commerce committeo. The proposal, that; specially concerns the dealers referred tu is that the sale of proprietary medicines should bo practically restricted to „chemists' shop 3. They say that this would take away fully 75 per cent of the business they are now doing.

In proof that they are fulfilling n useful and acceptable function in the community, representative dealers stated yesterday that the largest firm of the kind in New Zealand started business only six years ago, and now has 185 individual dealers covering every part of. the Dominion. Each works in an exclusive territory, supplying his own clientele personally. They have, invested sums ranging from £SO to several hundred pounds in the? business, and the granting of credit is onei of the services that they give to customers. They operate not only in the cities, but also in the distant backblocks. Out of 71 products that they sell, more than 50 are manufactured in the firm's New Zealand laboratories.

There are other enterprises operating on similar lines, though on a smaller scale, in New Zealand, and the total number of men liable to have their livelihood taken away bv the proposed legislation is well over 200. They say ,that the chemists have not.asked for any such restriction, and that it would be a quite unnecessary interference with a service that is being increasingly appreciated by the public.