DE POSITORY DOCUME NTS IWQQQMN I-1335'" Fall and Winter Seasonal“ Ifipparel 6 Q0” no r .x_ 4 x 2 l "- ISSUED BY‘ THE RETAIL TRADE AND SERVICES DIVISION OFFICE or PRICE ADMINISTRATION, UNITED STATES or AMERICA WASHINGTON, D. C. RTD—42 DECEMBER 1942 ‘To aid retailers in pricing certain merchandise which was not gen- erally on sale during March 1942-the month used as a “price base” under the terms of the General Maximum Price Regulation—the Office of Price Administration issued Maximum Price Regulation No. 210 on August 26, 1942. .The Regulation and its amendments provide a method for bringing prices of certain seasonal goods in line with the general price level of March 1942, and cover many types of fall and winter seasonal apparel, hardware and appliances, sporting goods, games and toys, holiday decorations and novelties. This Bulletin covers only the apparel lines affected by the Regulation. For a complete list of the articles covered, see a copy’of the Regulation itself. ‘The Regulation affects only certain items in the following apparel lines: Coats, jackets, vests, pants, shirts, sweaters, hosiery, gloves, footwear, robes, gowns, nightwear, knitted underwear and sleeping garments, and miscellaneous apparel. CA more detailed list of the apparel articles covered by the Regula- tion is shown on the next page of this Bulletin. How to Find Your Ceiling Prices Under Regulation No. 210 TAKE THESE FOUR STEPS If you sell at retail or wholesale any of the fall or winter seasonal apparel listed on page two of this Bul- letin, fi.gur;: your ceiling for each article as follows: 1. Find your “average cos ” for the article. 2. Find your “current cost” for the article. 3. Calculate the “initial percentage mark-up” which you took during the last 6 months of 1941. 4. Apply the “initial percentage mark-up” to the lower of the two cost figures which you found. The result will be your ceiling price. FINDING AVERAGE COST Figure your “average cost” for each artielehyou are pricing as follows: - .2.’ From your invoices or other records and information, find the quantities of the article you bought between January 1, 1942, and August 26, 1942, for sale in the 1942-1943 fall and winter season, and find your total cost of all these purchases, less all discounts except for cash. Then, find your “average cost” for the article by dividing your total cost by the total number of articles in all the lots purchased. If you made, no purchases of this article for sale in the 1942-1943 season, you may disregard “average cost” in calculating your maximum prices, and consider only “current cos .” FINDING CURRENT COST “Current cost” of the article being priced should be calculated as follows: Your figure for “current cost” of an article is the same as the asking price of a supplier from whom you have customarily bought fall and winter seasonal articles in substantial quantities. For this calculation, use your supplier’s price on May 11, 1942. If your ‘supplier did not offer the article for sale until a later date, the price on that later date should be used. If, however, none of your customary suppliers have offered the article for sale since May 11, use as your “current cost” the price asked by a supplier from whom your competitors have been buying in substantial quantities. EXCEPTIONAL CASES If you sold fall and winter seasonal apparel in 1941, but can calculate neither your average cost nor your current cost for an article, you cannot price the article under this Regulation but must price it in accordance with the provisions of the General Maximum Price Regulation. INITIAL PERCENTAGE MARK-UP The following three rules are given for figuring your “initial percentage mark-up.” RULE I: You should use Rule I if you have or can obtain invoices or other records showing the purchases and sales (of the article -which you are pricing) which you made during the last 6 months of 1941. First, find the total of the costs (that is, the total price less all discounts except for cash) for all the lots which you bought to sell in the last 6 months of 1941. Then, for all these lots, find the total of the prices (all discounts disregarded) at which you first offered articles from each lot during the same period. (Cont?‘nu.ed' on page three) APPAREL LINES GOVERNED BY REGULATION NO. 210 If you sell any of the following types of ready-to-wear ap- parel, you must now price them according to the terms of Regu- lation 210, as Amended. COATS, JACKETS, VESTS, PANTS, SHIRTS, ETC. Men's and boys’ apparel, in all sizes except infants’ garments, in the following categories: Coats, jackets, and vests when fully lined or when entire body is lined with cotton flannel, cotton suede, cotton blanket, or any wool or part wool materials.* Mackinaws, swagger, and fingertip coats.* . Shirts made of wool, part wool, cotton flannel, or cotton suede. Jackets, loafer, coats and pants made of wool and part-wool kersey, melton, plaid,or fleece, weighing 18 ounces or more per yard on 54-inch width basis. Corduroy coats, suits, jackets, vests, pants, and overalls. Water repellent duck clothing and all hunting clothing in- cluding coats, vests, pants, caps and hats. Smoking jackets. Knitted wool vests, 9 pounds and over per dozen. Women's and girls’ wear, in all sizes except infants’ garments, as follows: Leather coats and jackets when bodies and sleeves are made entirely of leather. Men's, women's and children’: wear, in all sizes in the following lines: Ski and skating outerwear clothing including pants, jackets, mittens, caps and hoods, and combinations of these (except those women's, girls’ and children's jackets, skirts, coats, and skating suits covered by Maximum Price Regulation No. 153, as Amended, and infants’ and children's ski pants up to and including size 14). SWEATERS Heavy winter sweaters made of wool and part wool, as follows: Men's 18 pounds and over per dozen, size 34 and up—— weight calculated on size 42. Boys’ 15 pounds and over per dozen, sizes 20 to 36, inclu- sive—-weight calculated on size 36. Women's pullovers, 12 pounds and over per dozen, sizes 32 to 40 inclusive—-weight calculated on size 36 Girls’ pullovers, 9 pounds and over per dozen, sizes 24 to 36, inclusive-—weight calculated on size 34. Women's sweater coats, 15 pounds and over per dozen, sizes 35 to 46, inclusive—weight calculated on size 42. KNITTED UNDERWEAR AND SLEEPING GARMENTS Men's cotton knitted underwear including union suits, 9 pounds and over per dozen, and shirts and drawers, 7 pounds and over per dozen—weight calculated on size 42 suits or shirts. Men's and boys’ wool and part wool winter-weight knitted underwear, including union suits, shirts, and drawers. Men's and boys‘ winter-weight rib-knitted shirts, shorts and drawers. Boys’ cotton knitted union suits weighing 6 pounds and over per dozen——weight calculated on size 34. Women's knitted union suits, 6 pounds and over per dozen—- weight calculated on size 38. Women's, misses’, and children's heavyweight knitted vests, pants, and bloomers. Winter-weight wool and part wool, and ”snuggy" and "woolie” type knitted underwear. Children's knitted union suits, waist suits, and combination suits, 5 pounds and over per dozen—weight calculated on size 12. Men's, women's children's, and infants’ heavy-weight knitted sleeping garments, excluding men's, boys', and infants’ brushed rayon sleeping garments. Infants’ knitted heavy-weight under- garments. Fleece-lined knitted sweat shirts. HOSIER Y Hosiery made of wool or part wool——female only——all sizes except infants’ but not including anklets. GLOVES Husking gloves and husking mittens. Fully lined work gloves. Gloves and mittens made of (or fully lined with) fur, wool, part wool, brushed rayon or leather, but not including females’ unlined leather gloves or unlined leather work gloves. Single thickness jersey work gloves, made of 9-ounce material or heavier. FOOTWEAR Football, soccer, rugby, and bowling shoes. Roller-skating, hockey, and ice-skating shoes and combination shoes and skates, but not including separate skates except as provided in Regulation 210. Boots and shoes especially designed for hunting, fishing, skiing, snowshoeing, and mountain climbing. Snowboots—specially designed hicut boots, 6 inches or more in height, constructed with a cuff designed to be turned down over the quarter. Shoes made wholly or substantially of felt for winter use. Shoes lined with shearling, felt, flannel, or other similar material. Boot socks made of leather or felt. A . . Slippers designed solely for indoor wear but not incltlcling slippers of casual or loafer type or evening dress slipper. , (Waterproof rubber footwear contained in the "Victory Line” must now be priced according to the provisions of Maximum Price Regulation No. 229, issued September 29, 1942. Sales of certain types of this line must now be rationed under the terms of Ration Order No. 6.) ROBES, GOWNS, NIGHTWEAR, ETC. Female gowns, pajamas, and bed jackets made of brushed rayon. Robes, housecoats, bed jackets, and vesties, made of quilt, suede or corduroy. Knitted bed socks—-all sizes except infants’. Male and female winter nightwear made of flannel or flannel- ette, including pajamas, gowns, and nightshirts. Robes made of wool, part wool, or cotton blanket material—all sizes except infants’. Men's and boys’ pajamas with knitted top and broadcloth pants——all sizes except infants’. MISCELLANEOUS APPAREL Mufflers and scarves, made of wool or part wool. Shoulder- ettes and knee warmers. Ear muffs and parka hoods. Men's spats. Leather and leatherette helmets, but not including athletic helmets, except as provided. Holiday costumes for fall and winter holidays. Muff beds. Fur fabrics sold as piece goods. ‘ Not including tailored garments covered by Maximum Price Regulation No. 177 or rainwear garments. Next, subtract the total costs from the total of your first offering prices. The difference, which is your total dollar mark- up, should be divided by the total costs. The result- ing figure is your “initial percentage mark-up.” RULE II: The Regulation allows you to use Rule II if you are unable to use Rule I because of incomplete records. ~ 2 In addition, an amendment to the Regulation gives you the option of using Rule II instead of Rule I if you meet the following three conditions: 1. If your records satisfactorily show the average of “the initial percentage mark-ups” which you took dur- ing the last 6 months of 1941 on all the articles sold in the department in which you sell the article being priced. 2. If Rule II is used in pricing all fall and winter seasonal articles to be sold in this department. 3. If the article was not sold during the last 6 months of 1941 in another department which had an average “initial percentage mark-up” lower than that of the department where the article is now to be sold. How to Use Rule II: Use as your “initial percentage mark-up” the ‘average initial percentage mark-up on all items sold during the last 6 months of 1941 in the department now carrying the article you are pricing. For the purpose of these calculations, articles must not be moved from the department in which they were sold in 1941 to a different department if the change results in a higher percentage mark-up. If your establishment is not divided into departments, or if you sell the article being priced in a department which was not in existence in 1941, use the average for your entire store. Even if your records for the latter half of 1941 are incomplete, you should be able to find a fairly accurate approximation of your average initial percentage mark- up from the figures available to you. The following three examples show some of the methods which you may use. . Example: If you know the first offering prices and the cost of all articles sold in the department, you can find your average initial percentage mark-up by sub- tracting the total cost from the total first offering prices, and dividing the difference by the total cost. Example: If you do not know the first ofiering prices, but know the selling prices of the various ar- ticles and their cost, you can find the average percentage mark-up for the department by subtracting the total cost from the total selling prices, and dividing the difierence by the total cost. The resulting figure, how- ever, probably will reflect some selling prices which were lower or higher than the first offering prices. In this case, it will be necessary to adjust‘ the average percentage mark-up figure upward or downward, to allow for price changes, in estimating your average initial percentage mark-up. Example: If you know the initial percentage mark- ups taken on the various articles in the department (other than the article being priced), but lack other detailed figures, you may take an average of the mark- ups, adjust this average to give the greatest weight to the initial mark-ups of those articles of which you sold the greatest dollar volume, and use the resulting figure as your average initial percentage mark-up. Caution: Obviously, these methods are not exact. By being reasonably careful, however, you should be able to approximate closely your true average percentage mark-up. The figures and calculations which you use to work out any ceiling price under Rule II must be kept available for inspection by the Oflice of Price Administration. Unless your prices are calcu- lated in good faith and are fairly well in line with those of similar stores, you may be required to explain and justify them. RULE III should be used if, in the last 6 months of 1941, you did not sell the article you are pricing, al-3 though you sold other seasonal commodities at that time. In such cases, use the “initial percentage mark- up” of the article most nearly like the one you are pricing, as found under Rule I or Rule II. If you do not have adequate records for pricing the similar article, or if you did not sell a similar article in 1941, you should use Rule II. PRICING A NEW L|‘N'E If you were not engaged in selling any fall or winter seasonal articles during the last half of 1941, the Regu- lation provides that your ceiling must be the same as the legal maximum for the same article set by your most closely competitive seller of the same class. If this method does not fit your case you must base your price on your competitor's article most nearly like the one you are pricing. DISCOUNTS AND ALLOWANCES If you customarily granted allowances, discounts, or other price differentials to different classes of customers during the last 6 months of 1941 you must continue such practices. You may not change such customary adjustments if the change results in a higher net price. RECORDS YOU MUST KEEP To aid in the enforcement of this Regulation, every retailer and wholesaler is required to keep certain records for inspection by the Office of Price Adminis- tration. Preserve all existing records showing the cost of fall and winter seasonal articles you bought for sale during the last 6 months of 1941 and the prices at which you offered them for sale. Prepare and preserve-—in a form which will permit filing on demand with the Office of Price Administra- 3 tion—records which show the basis on which you set» each maximum price. These records should include the “average cost,” the “current cost,” the “initial per- oentage mark-up,” and the purchasing, offering, and selling prices wherever required in any step in your cal- culation of a maximum price. Identify articles by the supplier's name, address, and style or lot number. You must continue to keep records of the same kind as you have customarily kept, showing the prices you actually charged for the fall and winter seasonal articles you sold and continue to sell after the effective date of this Regulation, August 31, 1942. PRICE POSTING REOUIREMENTS The Regulation provides that dealers in fall and winter seasonal articles must follow the posting require- ments of Section 13 of the General Maximum Price Regulation, which provides, in general, that anyone ofiering “cost-of-living” commodities for sale at retail must mark the maximum price of each article in such a way that it can be seen and understood clearly by the purchaser. - For complete: details of ; the posting requirements, obtain a copy, of the General Maximum Price Regula- tion from your nearest OPA ofice. I ENFORCEMENT PROVISIONS Persons violating any provision of Regulation No. 210 are subject to criminal penalties, civil enforcement actions, suits for treble damages, and proceedings for suspension of licenses, all as provided by the Emergency Price Control Act of 1942. Anyone having evidence of violations is urged to communicate with the Office of Price Administration, Washington, D. C., or their nearest OPA field office. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION This Bulletin contains only the highlights of Maxi- mum Price Regulation N o. 210. Every retail and wholesale dealer in fall and winter seasonal apparel is required by law to price his merchandise in the manner described in Maximum Price Regulation No. 210, as Amended. .« ~ A copy of the Regulation itself and Amendments No. 1 to 7, may be obtained by writing or visiting your nearest District, State, or Regional OPA Oflice. Garments Containing Replacement Materials GOVERNEO av NEW REGULATION Certain articles of seasonal apparel, in which the materials have been changed, are affected by Maximum Price Regulation No. 273, effective November 25, 1942. The Regulation, however, applies principally to manu- facturers and wholesalers. This Regulation afi'ects only knitted underwear, knitted sleeping garments and knitted sweatshirts, formerly made of combed yarn but now made of carded yarn. The manufacturer or wholesaler is required to notify retailers that the materials have been replaced, state the old and new wholesale maximum prices for each garment, and give certain other information to assist you in establishing your ceiling prices for these garments. Any reduction in manufacturing costs will be passed on to you through a reduction in the price which you pay to the manufacturer or wholesaler. For seasonal apparel covered by Regulation No. 210 and affected by Regulation No. 273, you must calculate ceiling prices in accordance with the provisions of Regulation N o. 210. ARTICLES MUST BE LABELED When sold at wholesale or at retail, such.articles must be labeled with the symbol “-R-” to indicate the re- placement of material. ‘ Otlier Retailers Bulletins The Ofiice of Price Administration has issued a num- ber of Retailers Bulletins covering certain articles in which you may be interested. If any of the following apply to merchandise which you carry, write or visit your nearest District, State, or Regional Office and ask for a copy of these Bulletins: WATERPROOF RUBBER FOOTWEAR: Retailers Bulletin No. 1, which summarizes the princi- I. I. GOVIIIIIIT PIIITIIO OFFICE pal features of Maximum Price Regulation No. 229. WOMEN’S NYLON H OSIERY: Retailers Bulle- tin No. 3, based on Maximum Price Regulation No. 95. WOMEN’S SILK H OSI ERY: Retailers Bulletin No. 13, based on Maximum Price Regulation No. 274. WOMEN ’S FUR GARM EN TS: Retailers Bulletin No. 12, based on Maximum Price Regulation No. 178. 4os4o7° 'aaua.ne;e1 eminl Jolson; mo/K up weqi doe); 'uonsuuo;u; mo/C 40; O vdo Kq pa.mdeJd sunonng smllileu moods lo sons: 3 lo euo 9| suu