R.N. Speirs must have been the town's proudest Pinex promoter- this is the second slide of theirs which shares the virtues of this timber. Slides from this firm also promote electric heaters and ovens (presumably- the spelling of 'Speirs' is different in the latter slide). This slide dates from around the 1950s/1960s. The text below is from their first 'Pinex' slide which can be found on Kete.

 R.N Speirs had a long history in Foxton- Kete Horowhenua records show them on the town's Main Street as far back as 1905. They were still in Main Street in 1960 with their premises between Cook and Union Streets. Records do not show them there in 1965 so this cinema slide must have been made before then. R.N Speirs were timber merchants and this slide was made in the middle of the 1950s/1960s building boom. Advertising Pinex (made in New Zealand since 1941) would have been important in the 1950s- exotic pine was replacing native timbers as the preferred building material of choice due to pine being fast growing. Native forests were becoming depleted and pines were being planted in more accessible areas. This cinema slide showed the new wood as safe, cheap and easy to build with. This slide was shown locally but similar slides wouldn't have been shown down South- amble supplies of native timber there meant that the pine did not take over until the 1960s. 

R.N Spiers, who feature in other MAVtech cinema slides as a timber merchant, have been recorded on Foxton's Main Street as far back as 1905 and as recently as the early 1960s. It seems that they also sold ovens as well!

The 'Champion Commodore' was named after a senior navy rank (the former Holden car having the same background). A navy officer is seen, slightly out of focus, behind the women in this slide. 

'Radiation (N.Z.) Ltd' made whiteware goods  and a 'Champion' range of kitchen appliances  was in stores from the 1920s up until the 1970s according to online records. A price list for Champion stoves from 1961 has been recorded. 

The allure of automatic cooking was front and centre with this ad- 'just set it and forget it!'

Cooking with gas became popular in New Zealand from the 1880s, with local Councils often providing the infrastructure and service. To make sure the service remained profitable, Councils advertised the benefits of gas to those still using coal ranges.

The Levin Borough Council used this advertising slide in cinemas to spread the word about the benefits of gas cooking. Other slides in the series (available to view on Kete) talk about the virtues of gas for hot water supply.

Local Government lost control of gas (and electricity) supply during government reforms in 1989.