File:Canadian forest industries July-December 1919 (1919) (20344625788).jpg

Title: Canadian forest industries July-December 1919
Identifier: canadianforjuldec1919donm (find matches)
Year: 1919 (1910s)
Authors:
Subjects: Lumbering; Forests and forestry; Forest products; Wood-pulp industry; Wood-using industries
Publisher: Don Mills, Ont. : Southam Business Publications
Contributing Library: Fisher - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: University of Toronto

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December 15, 1919 CANADA LUMBERMAN AND WOODWORKER 43 Retail Lumberman Gets Small End of Profit Carries Larger Stock, Gives Better Service and Works Longer Than Ever Yet is Making Less—District No. 6 O.R.L.D.A. Considers Timely Questions Matters of vital interest to the retail trade were discussed at the annual meeting of District No. 6 of the Ontario Retail Lumber Dealers' Association, which was held in Orangeville. Ont., on De- cember 5th. NotwitlLstanding the unfavorable weather there was a representative nttendance, and the interchange of thought and opin- ion on stocks, deliveries, grades, collections, competition, merchan- dizing methods, cost accounting, profit figuring and other kindred subjects proved to be highly satisfactory and instructive. For near- ly three hours the members, who gathered in the Orangeville Coun- cil Chamber, had a heart-to-heart discussion. It was a sort of round- table conference, in which everyone took part and expressed his views freely. One particular feature that the meeting brought out was the scarcity of stocks, particularly in hemlock, th** shortage and abnor- mal demand for shingles, occasioned by the recent severe wind- storm in Ontario, when many barns and other buildings were un- roofed, and the necessity of securing a. fair margin of profit on all materials handled. It was stated that a retail lumberman was doing more work, carrying larger stocks and giving better service to-day than at any period in his history, yet he was earning less money and winding up the year with a smaller sum on the right side of the ledger. This, one of the members stated, was due to the fact that they were not conversant with their actual costs of doing business, and did not know how to compute profits properly. Another member declared "we are too fond of exchanging an old dollar for a new one, and there is no .satisfaction in that. We buy our lumber for a certain sum and sell it at a certain figure, and think the difiference represents profit, when in many cases, consider- ing the prices we have to pay to replenish stocks, it really means a loss. I do not see any particular merit in turning over a stock witli- out being able to make a little money in the transaction, and that is what we have not been doing for a long time. When the market is advancing our prices should be on the basis of current quotations nather than on what the material cost when it was put into our yard"?. Retailer Entitled to Betteir Profits "Yes," spoke up another member, "we work long hours, have to invest a large amount of money in stock, handle it in small quan- tities and give the best of service and material, and at the end of the year have little to show for our work and worry. The retail lumber- man is entitled to a better profit and should get it, and the sooner he institutes aggressive business methods, the better for him and his future. I believe that the manufacturer and the wholesaler are making all the money that is being cleaned up to-day in the lumber business. It is certainly not the retailer, and 1 know whereof I speak." In the discussion it was stated that some dealers were handling cements, and that they had not been protected by the cement manu- facturers, who also sold to contractors, but lately, owing to an agi- tation carried on, the companies had decided to give the retail merch- ants a slight concession on each sack, so as to make it worth while stocking this material. The question of closer relations with the farmers, the matter of extending patronage exclusively to those lumber firms who protected the interests of the yardman and did not sell shingles, lath or other supplies to hardware men, blacksmiths, waggon makers, etc., w^as endorsed. Retail men will naturally support those who stand by the legitimate interests of the trade, and recognize that the yard man is the best, most satisfactory and all-round available means of dis- tribution. The question of drawing up some recommendations in regard to better and more uniform grading of lumber was discussed, and somr; instances were pointed out of the very wide difference in interpreta- tions placed by certain firms upon certain grades of stock and what percentage of good stuff a car should contain. At present there are too many confusing terms without any recognized exact application, and the term "merchantable" had been extended in meaning until it practically took in everything except read culls and scoots. It was, however, deemed advisable not to make any recommendations on this point at the present time in view of the scarcity of stock and the fact that deliveries have been rather slow on a number of lines The Provincial Gathering in Hamilton Other live matters discussed were collections, a uniform order' form, shipping arrangements, cost of unloading cars, the best method of keeping stock, the Ontario Business Assessment Act, the Mech- anics' Lien Act, etc. On some of these questions a definite decision will be reached and brought up at the'annual convention of the On- tario Retail Lumber Dealers' Association, which will be held in Hamilton on Tuesday and Wednesday, February 10th and 11th. It is expected that this will be the, most representative and interesting meeting- ever held in the historv of the retail lumber industrv of the Province. One member declared that it might be thought building would stagnate owing to rapidly rising values, but his experience has been that the higher prices went the more activity there generally was in the building line, for the simple reason that there always seemed a large class in any community who did not undertake anything in structural operations until the peak was reached, and then they sud-
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