Npw Ypen's AD oNLY $60

Use this low cost opportunity to deliver New Year's greetin$s to customers, friends and suppliers. Your business card will appear in a Special Section in our January issue, orposing your message at an extra tow prlce. Cards will be reduced slightly, to 2-3/ 8" x 1 -3 / 8"

Celebrate the New Year by communicating with the trade. And at a price that can't be beatl

Start 1994 right by sending thanks and best wishes to customers, friends and suppliers. Happy New Year!

Union Survey Glaims Ernst Customers Unhappy

Survey results published by the no way of lmowing whether those who union battling Ernst Home & Nursery reslnnded shopped at Ernst once or 50 in a labor dispute were debunked by times in the past year." both the company and a research poll- Nancy Holland-young, assistant to ster. union president Joe peterson, said the

More than 400 people responding union never intended to perform a scito advertisements placed by the union endfic survey. She maintainel54Vo of thought Ernst's seattle, wa., area those polled reported deficient service stores had high prices, poor service at Ernst utd 64vo said Ernst's prices and that competitors were doing a bet- were higher than the competition. "If ter job, the union claims. Ads., w-lich pollsteri want to give us tips, we'd be were carried by Metro buses in King more than happy to listen to them," County during August, urged dissatis- she said. fied Ernst customers to call a toll-free

When Home Depot entered the number. Those that did, answered a market a year ago, -E*st had about questionnaire with ttreir answers used 35Vo of Seattle's-home improvement for the survey. business, neady three times that of

A union official said 69Vo of those HomeBase, Reeie said. responding think service is better at ,,Joe peterson would be better off other home improvement^ilgilt:^t*g- rocuiing on rhe issues and working for gesting Ernst_is losing businesp Eu- the employees than running them gle Home & Garden and Home Depot. Oo*o," said Reese.

Monty Reese, Emst v.p.-marketing

The union and Ernst have be unable and advertising, said the y1i-on- is mak- 19 agree on a new labor contract since ing up its infomtation. "We have re- the -former contract expired in Nov. seafch feports to indicate that's not the lgg2case," he said. "Ernst continues to be the leader in market share in King and Pierce counties."

Pollster Jim Hebert, Hebert Research, Bellevue, thinks the survey has a major flaw because it asked only unhappy customers to respond. Calling the survey unprofessional and unreliable, he said, "The best thing I could say is that the survey focused on Ernst customers, but the results don't even come close to representing what Ernst shoppers feel. For one thing, there's

Southern Pine Goes Western

Southern pine continues to move across the Roclry Mountains !o captune westem markets. Even Sunset Magazine, the "Bible" of western home owners, gardeners, chefs and do-ityourselfers, has succumbed.

A20 tt garden center designed and built by senior writer Peter Whiteley will be on permanent display at Sun- setb test garden in Menlo Parh Ca. A million readers learned how to build it in a three page, four color feature in the March issue of the magazine.

Designed with sections measuring 4 ft. wide, 84 in. high and 24 in. deep, the unit used treated southern pine 4x4s, 2x4s and 2x6s with a translucent roof of fiberglass.

Southern Pine Marketing Council supplied the lumber through California Cascade,-a treating firm located near Sactamento, Ca.

Dimension's Share Climbs

Dimension lumber continues to dominate western wood production, with the structural products claiming a record share of production in 1992, according to Western Wood Products Association.

Lumber produced at western mills was 53.47o dimension (not including studs), the highest percentage since WWPA tracking began in 1971. Commons were the second leading product by grade, at l5.7Vo of production, followed by studs, 11.57o; shop, 9.87o; timbers, 5.7Vo; selects, 3.37o, and other,0.67o.

Dimension's share began topping 504o n 1986. In the 1970s dimension accounted for 4749Vo of production, falling la 43Vo during the recession of the early 1980s.

Hardboard Association Ads

The American Hardboard Association, Palatine, Il., will feature 1994 Home of the Year competition winners in its advertising. Association members include ABT Building Products, Georgia-Pacific, Masonite, TempleInland Forest Products and Weyerhaeuser.