Ladies' frocks, dresses and gowns illustrated in Pettigrew & Stephens' sale catalogue, January 1933, for their department store in Sauchiehall Street.
Claims of items "greatly reduced in price" were likely to leave Glasgow customers unimpressed. The economic depression of the early 1930's resulted in a period of deflation, when ordinary prices were already falling. Many Glasgow wholesalers found themselves in severe financial difficulties, as the capital value of their stocks declined.
Wages, and the purchasing power of those who earned them, were similarly affected, as high unemployment brought great competition for jobs. In 1933 the hourly rate of pay for joiners, slaters and plumbers employed by Glasgow Corporation was 1/6d (7.5p), compared to 1/8d (nearly 8.5p) in 1925, a reduction of 10 per cent.
Reference: Mitchell Library, GC 381.14106541443 PET
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Archives
Keywords:
deflation, department stores, dresses, economic recession, fashion, Glasgow Corporation, gowns, Great Depression, joiners, Pettigrew & Stephens, plumbers, prices, sale catalogues, shopping, shops, slaters, unemployment, wages, wholesalers
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