JOSEPH NATHAN AND COMPANY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20708, 4 May 1929, Page 8

JOSEPH NATHAN AND COMPANY.

ANNUAL MEETING. STEADY IMPROVEMENT. ‘ “ * , (From Our Own Correspondent,) LONDON, March: 14., Mr Alec. Nathan presided at the annual meeting of Messrs Joseph Nathan and Co. He said that the accounts, both in the balance sheet and in the profit and loss account, showed a gratifying' improvement over last year. ' Referring to the figures, Mr Nathan, said that on the left hand side of the balance sheet they would find, first, the new item of reserve account £20,560 This was made up, first, of the £SOOO allocated from the 1027 profits; secondly, of £IO,OOO which had been held. in re serve pending the settlement of the excess profits duty accounts; and, thirdly, of £5560 which they were successful in obtaining as a repayment. They were glad that this long outstanding matter hail been finally settled, and that, as a result they were able to add more than £15,000 to. reserve.. . • With the £SOOO which they proposed allocating from the balance of appropria tlon account, the reserve account would stand at the sum of £25,560. This was a highly satisfactory position. Sundry creditors were greater than last year, by some £16,000, but this increase was a normal movement in this item. Bills payable showed a slight reduction, while advances from bankers were down by the important amount of £54,000, -being £07,237, against £151.908 in last year’s accounts. ,On the other side of the balance sheet freehold properties showed a slight reduction, but actually no change of importance took place in this, item. Compared with the joint' total in last year’s balance sheet there was a reduction of about £28,000. This was principally duetto the transfer from subsidiary companies’ investments to sundry investments of a holding which, under the new Companies Act, could not bo regarded as a holding in a subsidiary company, but was a holding in an associated company. Sundry debtors and. debit 1 accounts showed, a reduction of £20,000, while advertising and sundry payments in advance also showed a fall of £2200. Stocks were down by £IO,OOO. All of these varia tions were, normal trade movements. Cash resources, as represented by cash in hand, plus bills receivable, were up £9OOO, the two items representing a total of £83,000,. Trade marks, patent .aid developments accounts was an unchanged item, all expenses of maintenance ■■ of trade marks, patents, and further developments having been provided for before arriving at the net profits. Interest, account showed a saving of nearly £2OOO on. the year, while the balance ,to appropriation account, after transferring direct to reserve the repayment of excess profits duty, was £61,216, against £55,474 last year. TRADING PROFIT.: The trading profit for the year was increased by £II,OOO, Net rents and sundry incomes were approximately the same while dividends brought in were £6BOO. This reduction in dividends received was in ■- part due to a rearrangement of the accounts of some of-the subsidiary companies. The subsidiary companies were in a healthy state and were all showing progress and increasing business. "With the net profit of £01,216 and the balance forward from last- yea; - the appropriation, account had a total credit of £lo7,3B3,”'said the chairman. " From this sum has to be provided allocation to reserve for 1927, £SOOO, and a year’s dividend on. the preferred ordinary and ‘ A ’ preference shares. \Vo have, therefore, a balance of £51,383 4s. After providing for the half-year’s reference dividend paid, on January 1 last, we are paying a fuJI year’s dividend on the preferred ordinary capital, warrants for which will be posted on the 28th inst. We propose to repeat last year’s allocation; to reserve account by transferring a further £SOOO, and to. place to provision for income tax the sum of £3500. We shall thus carry forward a, net balance of £9383 45.” . SUNSHINE GLAXO. - "In regard to your main proprietary, Glaxo, there has been an'important development,” continued the chairman. "This has been made possible by the separation and concentration of a taste-’ •less and odourless vitamin D. The chief problem we had'to solve was to find out the precise quantity of Sunshine vitamin D to be added. Feeding trials lasting over two years had to be carried out before we were able to arrive at the correct quantity. This Glaxo is now sold under the'name of ‘ Sunshine Glaxo.’ It has met with a gratifying reception and approval of both doctors and nurses. We look forward with assurance to its future success. ’ ' “ In the past. one has had to depend upon the;butter-fat in the food or the addition of codlivet oil to baby’s dietary to ensure baby obtaining a sufficient supply of this vitamin D/ Neither one nor the other was a good method. One never knew if there was too great a quantity or a deficiency of vitamin D present. Yet a sufficiency is allimportant -for the proper growth and development of a baby. The addition of precise and correct quantity of vitamin D in Sunshine Glaxo ensures the infant assimilating the calcium (lime) in the food, and, as you know, without an adequate supply of lime, baby cannot hhye sound bone, firm flesh, or good quality teeth. Sunshine Glaxo ■ has several other important advantages, but those I will not go into here. They are,however, such that. they justify that feeling of optimism I have already referred to. “ During the period under review the process which produces vitamin D in a tasteless and odourless form has been commercially developed, and we were successful in acquiring the rights under the patent for Great Britain. Your directors had no hesitation in adopting this process, though it involved the scrapping or some thousands of pounds of plant and machinery.” ■ Seventy export markets. ' The chairman referred to the comments recently made by the Prince of Wales on salesmanship, and showed how the company had been particularly engaged in building up and strengthening their foreign connections. They were now working in no fewer than *7O export markets. “With a highly organised export staff, added Mr Nathan, “we have not only been able greatly to increase our export, trade, but also to assist, other manufacturers to sell successfully their products. This service we can extend to a limited number of other progressive firms who desire to foster their export business. They also can benefit from our many years’ experience and our fine organisation, but . unless they are progressive and prepared to produce their products m such form as will be acceptable m those countries we cannot* help them to successful export trade.” .. , t JF’ ace y> one of the directors from New Zealand, spoke of the dairy industry in the Dominion. - . With regard to the company’s factories, he could tell the shareholders with every confidence and full.knowledge of what he said that those factories were now well equipped, fully hygienic and efficient, ftnd they uero beimr economically conducted. They were in charge of .experienced managers and directed by a competent chemist; indeed perhaps the best-chemist on milk and milk products in New Zealand. These things weie essential to. the success of the department. . They in New Zealand also had to deal

with the merchandising of butter, aiid cheese. Competition there . was keen but the company’s organisation was never better than it was at the .present' tinie The Officials there were keen to do their best, and-every department ’was bein« conducted with spirit. The result was he said it with -some sense of satisfaction—that they in, New Zealand had sonic . pride in contributing their quota towards the improvement in the company’s’ accounts for this year. One of the results of his visit to this country was that he ■ felt a strong confidence in the-future of the company. The report and accounts were adopted.