EMPIRE SHOP

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 74, Issue 121, 25 May 1931, Page 2

EMPIRE SHOP

NEW ZEALAND DISPLAY. A letter received from a lady residing in Birmingham, England, gives an interesting account of the opening, of the 4 ‘Empire Shop” under the auspices of the Empire Alarketing Board. The shops has been leased for some months and New Zealand and other parts of the Empire will each have a lease of it for a fortnight. The first Dominion to display her produce was New Zealand and crowds poured into the shop—which is in one of the busiest parts of the city—on the opening day. Such an alluring array of New Zealand butter, cheese, honey and lamp filled the windows that the passing housewife was tempted inside. All day and each day the depot was thronged. The men were also very interested ami came in with their wives and watched the assistants wrapping butter into sample packets as fast as the machine would work. Cheese, honey and butter were on sale in sample size packets, and these found ready purchasers. In the demonstration kitchen housewives learned new ways of cooking New Zealand lamb. Special noney cakes were made and the women of the Al idland city were introduced to toheroa soup. Women experts gave free cooking demonstrations three times a day and nothing but New Zealand butter was used during the Dominion’s fortnight tenancy. There was a rush of customers to the shop and considerable increase in the sales of New Zealand butter. A good story is told by a writer of one enthusiastic grocer who decided that the best; way to break a customer’s habit of saying “a pound of Danish,” was by enlisting the shop assistants’ persona 1 feelings. He had the New Zealand butter displayed on thte counters, and all the Danish was kept in the cellar. Every time a customer asked for Danish the assistant had to walk to the back of the shop, descend a long flight of stops and carry up the order. In a few months he was selling nothing but New Zealand butter. A BRIDGE PARTY. Mrs F. F. Newman was hosteess at her home, ‘‘Arlington,” on Thursday at a delightful bridge party. The artistic decorations wore carried out in chrysanthemums and autumn leaves. The guests included Afrs J. A. Neamc, Mrs Ran wick, Airs D. Wilson. Airs Russell Grace, Airs Nanearrow, Miss Blythe, Miss H. Afarshall, Misses Bayly (2), and Stanford (2).