The Hardwood Industry on The Pacific Coast

(Continued from Page 20) popular misconceptions and build up the demand for hardwoods.

In Southern California the wholesale dealers began, about ten years ago, to cooperate in advertising hardwoods to the public. For several years bill boards were maintained, showing attractive pictures of interiors finished in hardwoods, and bearing the slogan, "Hardwood Interior Finish makes the home beautiful, costs but little more." The dealers also united in maintaining a booth in the Metropolitan Building Material Exhibii in a prominent down town building, where finished hardwoods were on display and samples and literature available for distribution to architects, builders and home owners. This exhibit is still maintained in the new Architects' Building, and is a very effective medium for stimulating the interest in hardwoods. Many of the dealers have, during this time, persistently.circularized arshitects, builders, and applicants for building permits, informing them of the beauiies and advantages of hardwood finish, the increased value it gives to a building, and the comparatively small cost per room, as compared to the cost of one piece of furniture.

Similar methods employed in all the other Pacific Coast cities have brought about a greatly increased consumption of hardwoods, both domestic and imported.

The wholesale hardwood dealer occupies an important place in the economic structure. By maintaining large and well assorted local stocks he saves the retail dealer and manufacturer the necessity of tying up his money and maintaining yards and $arehouses for carload lots of lumber. By maintaining efficient dry kilns he provides thoroughly kiln dried lumber which has not. reabsorbed a lot of moisture or become otherwise damaged in transit. By carefully regrading the stock when it arrived from the mill, he saves the retail dealer and manufacturer the grief and the loss which often accompanies direct shipment-.

An event of far reaching importance to the entire hardwood industry on the Paci6c Coast was the formation in 1924 of. the Pacific Coast Hardwood Dealers Association. On account of their great distance from the producing mills, the dealers had, prior to this time, felt themselves t6 be at a considerable disadvantage in securing high class stock, ,settling claims, and otherwise securing the cooperation which was enjoyed by dealers who could have -a close personal contact with the shippers. The National Hardwood Lumber Association had no inspectors on the Coast to arbitrate disputes as to grades, so the dealers often felt the mills were shipping inferior grades and the mills, on the other hand, considered the Pacific Coast dealers too rigid in their inspection and unreasonable in their claims.

Therefore, when representatives of all the principal wholesale hardwood firms from San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Oakland, Portland, Seattle and Vincouver, met at Del Monte in January, 1924, to organize an association which should be for the benefit of the industry as a whole, a great forward step was taken in the merchandising of hardwoods on the Pacific Coast. Some of the benefits were immediate, otheis have been cumulative in effect.

One of the immediate results of the conferences held at this first meeting was that the members, practically as a body, joined the National Hardwood Lumber Association, and secured the establishment at convenient points on the Coast of official inspectors to arbitrate any differences which should arise as to the grade of lumber. This has resulted in a much more satisfactory relation between the mills and the dealers, as the dealers can now obtain satisfactory adjustments and the mills no longer feel that the dealers are taking advantage of the distance from the shipping point to make unreasonable claims. The consumer, too, is greatly benefited, as the grades of shipments have been greatly improved, because the mills will no longer risk shipping stock to the Pacific Coast which will not pass inspection in accordance with the rules of the National Hardwood Lumber Association.

Another great benefit of the Pacific Coast Hardwood Dealers Association, not only to its members, but to the consuming trade, is the improvement in the methods of handling hardwoods, the methods of kiln drying, and the standards of service, resulting from the exchange of ideas among the members. The more effective advertising which has also resulted from these conferences has greatly extended the knorvledge of hardwoods and increased their use.

The hardwood industry on the Pacific Coast, in common with all other branches of the lumber business, has gone through a severe testing time during the deflation which has been going on since the boom times right after the war. Like the overproduction which took place in all lines at that time. more hardwood vards were established than normal consumption could support. The solution lies in rigid economies; careful and effficient otganization,,and a realization on the part both of the dealer and consumer that their interests are mutual and each must be able to realize a fair, but not exorbitant reward for his efforts. The measure of any concern's value to the trade is the service it renders, and the wholesale hardwood dealer who earnestly, sincerely, intelligently and effectively serves the retail dealer, the manufacturer, the builder (and indirectly the home owner) can look forward with confidence to increasing security and increased opportunities for service.