OPS Announces Adjustments for Wholesaleis', Retailers' Margins

(GOR'33 -- Adjustments lor \flholesolers and Retailers under Section 402(k) of the Act)

August 27-An adjustment procedure to comply with 1952 requirements of the Herlong Amendment to the Defense Production Act of 1950 was provided today by the Ofifice of Price Stabilization. The Herlong Amendment now requires that OPS regulations, whether issued before or after July 31, 1951, provide resellers with their customary pt'e-Korean margins or charges above cost for commodities they handle.

In announcing today's procedure (General Overriding Regulation 33, efiective August 27), the agency saicl that although it is of the opinion that most regulations already provide wholesalers and retailers with their customary May 24 to June 24, t950, margins or charges, there is a possibility that OPS may not have complete data on the wide range of trade groups and products covered by the Amendment, and, therefore, today's procedure is provided.

Any reseller who claims that existing regulations do not provide his industry with its customary pre-Korean margin or charge may apply to OPS, Washington 25,D. C. The application must contain evidence to establish the proper margin or charge. Adjustments will be granted for groups of sellers comprising an industry or for groups of products sold by an industry. This follows the intent of Congress, the agency said, in not providing Herlong adjustments for individual sellers or on individual products.

Additional details of today's adjustment procedure to comply with the Herlong Amendment to the Defense Production Act of 1950 follow:

For purposes of today's adjustment, resellers' customary preKorean margins or charges must reflect actual selling prices of

Curtis Companies, Inc. Holds 4-Day Sales Con(erence

Sales executives and sales representatives of Curtis Companies, Incorporated, Clinton, Iowa, attended a four-day conference on August ll, 12, 13 and 14, at which time many new Curtis Woodwork products were introduced.

The meeting opened on August 11, at the American Plywood Division of Curtis at New I-ondon, Wis., where Curtis New Londoner Doors and other plywood products are manufactured. The entire group, about 75 in number, spent the morning in the big door plant inspecting hollowcore door and solid core door production. The afternoon was devoted to a sales session, with H. O. Sugg, Curtis Manager at New I-ondon, and several members of his organization in charge of the program.

The group then left for Clinton, Iowa, Curtis home of,frce, and the following three days were spent there. L H. Ramsey. sales manager, was in charge of the program, and was assisted by sales department heads, who displayed an outstanding new line of Curtis products. These included new Curtis kitchens, doors, entrances, windows, trim, and other designs of the broad Curtis Woodwork line.

commodities, rather than !'list" prices to which they apply customary trade discounts. For example, a group of distributors customarily had a list price representing a 40 per cent markup over cost of certain goods. However, all sales of the goods in the base period were made at prices representing a 30 per cent markup over cost. Their customary margin is 30 per cent.

Another example: The net invoice of an item to retailers was 40 cents in July, 1947 ; 42 cents in October, 1948; 44 cents in January, 1949; and 42 cents in May-June, 1950. For the same periods, their prices generally were 80 cents, 84 cents, 88 cents. and 84 cents. This would indicate a customary percentage margin of 100 per cent.

The previous example could be stated in dollars-and-cents margins to which today's adjustment also applies.

"Net invoice cost," OPS explained, is the cost on the supplier's invoice to a reseller less all discounts which could have been taken. Generally, today's action uses net invoice cost as the basis on which customary margins or charges are taken. Ilowever, where industry practice treats other costs of acquisition as costs of the commodities, these additional costs may be considered by an applicant as part of the cost of his commodities.

Where the May 24-June 24, 1950, period is not considered representative of normal sales of a reseller's industry, today's action permits selection of a nearest alternative period of industry sales. A seller must substantiate in his application the contention that the May 24 to June 24, 1950, period is not representative of normal operations for his industry.

The complete new line of "women designed" Curtis kitchens was the high-light of the sales meeting and a broad advertising campaign will open in the fall to promote the new cabinets. Curtis sales representatives are now introducing the new material^s 1e the trade.

Imports Hiqh Quclity

Woodworking Mcchines

Attention is drawn to the ad on another page of Novitas Co., Los Angeles, importers of high quality woodworking machinery from Germany. This ad shows a Weinig automatic moulder shaper which has a production capacity up to 30,000 feet an hour. This machine can be dblivered with two or four cutter heads, and it has a capacity for an almost infinite variety of operations.

The owner of Novitas Co. is Pierre Picura. 2016 South Beverly Glen Blvd., Los Angeles 25. The telephone number is CRestview 6-4672.

This company also sells the famous heavy duty smoothing Schmaltz planer, with finishing knives from 3 to l2tl inches. This manufacturer has over a century of experience, and recently exhibited machines at the German Industries Fair at Hannover.