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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW.
H
ENRY DREHER, president of the B.
Dreher's Sons Co., Cleveland, O.,
was in town this week. When asked how
business was, Mr. Dreher said, "Superb;
never had such a year's trade. Our sales
have exceeded our greatest expectations.
I am just here on a flying visit; shall go
back to Cleveland and hustle for the new
year."
"Hustle"—a much abused word, butit is
just the word that is peculiarly applicable to
the "Dreher boys," because they are hust-
lers to an eminent degree. They have by
their persistence and energy developed a
large trade in Cleveland and vicinity, and
they have done this by close application to
their business, and the following of modern
and progressive lines. As we have chroni-
cled previously, since they have taken the
agency for the Steck piano, they have had
unusual success with that meritorious in-
strument.
At Christmas time they sent several tele-
graphic orders for pianos. There is no
doubt that with the agency of this renowned
instrument in the hands of such a firm as
the Drehers, the Steck sales will be largely
augmented in Cleveland and vicinity.
- # *
During the past year we have called upon
dealers from the northernmost part of the
Queen's Domain to the country ruled by
President Diaz, in the South. Everywhere
we have found evidence that the dealers,
taken as a whole, were fairly well satisfied
with the year's business. They all are look-
ing for the steady upbuilding of better
times, but in very few instances have we
found that they anticipated any special
boom. Chatting a while ago with one of
the best known dealers of the Empire
State, he said:
" I have found that to get trade now-
adays we must get out and hustle for it.
The da} r s have gone by when we had only
to maintain good warerooms, keep a fair
stock, and when people who desired pianos
would come in and see us, have the sale
effected and all the details arranged in a
very short time and without any particular
annoyance or work on the part of the sales-
men. Those days have departed, and in
place of them we are face to face with the
fact that a salesman has to work harder, the
proprietor has to work harder, and the mar-
gin of individual sales is materially re-
duced. We have to make in our district a
thorough and complete canvass. It is not
only one call, but twenty calls, perhaps,
before a sale is effected, and the customer
brought to a full sense of realizing that a
certain make of pianos is just the one which
he or she needs. My salesmen follow up
possible customers, and devote much
time outside of regular business hours to
the furtherance of our business.
It is
really the time of hustle hard for what you
get, spend a lot of time and money in getting
it, and when you do get it, the profit
doesn't amount to very much anyway.
But still we must follow it up, or we drop
behind in the procession. I think every
dealer's experience must be similar to my
own, and I am confident that in future it is
a question of making large sales to make up
the fair profit for the year's business. The
day of big profits on individual sales has
gone by."
THE stock of instruments carried by
Rohland Bros., Lebanon, Pa., was seized
by the sheriff Friday of last week on an
execution, and will be sold.
MR. THOS.
HUTCHINSON, of
Woodstock,
Ont., has been appointed manager of the
St. Thomas branch of the Karn Organ and
Piano Co., in place of Mr. H. C. Hunt.
THE Oglesby Piano Co. has changed its
intention of renting the Reilly Building in
South Chester, and the lease has been signed
for the new mill erected by John Larkin,
Jr., in Marcus Hook. The latter is two
stories high and is 45x85 feet. The place
is now being cleaned out preparatory to
placing in an engine and boiler.—Chester,
Pa., Times.
THE new firm of Mauch & Whitcomb,
dealers in musical instruments, Fitchburg,
"What do you think of the cheap piano?" Mass., have made a good start. They have
secured the agency for the Knabe, Wissner
we asked.
and Haines & Co. 's pianos, and have laid in
"The cheap piano?"
a
fine stock of musical merchandise. They
"Yes, the very cheap piano. The piano
will
occupy a portion of the large store in
for$ioo or less, say twelve for a"$i,ooo."
.the
Y.
M. C.A. Building".
"While we have had our experience with
them, I quite agree with the editorial in
THE Nashville (Tenn.) Piano and Organ
last week's Music TRADE REVIEW, that they Co. have removed from 228 North Summer
were simply an emergency, a bridge, as it street to 'the Mills Building, on Church
were, over the hard times.
Everywhere street.
people were planning for cheap goods, low
WM. T. BOHBITT, piano dealer, 822 Olive
prices.
The piano trade had to do some-
street,
St. Louis, who was arrested Wed-
thing to keep in line with all the other man-
nesday
of
last week on a warrant Charging
ufactures. The result, they brought out the
assault
and
battery in connection with a
cheap piano, something that was termed an
disputed
piano
bill, has been honorably ac-
impossibility a short time ago."
quitted.
"Have you not been surprised at just
ALDRICH & LLEWELLYN have opened up a
what has been produced for a small amount
new
music store in Sterling, 111. Mr.
of money in the piano business?"
Aldrich
was formerly connected with
"Surprised; well, I should say so. And
Mahan's
establishment
in Sterling.
sometimes I think that there are still
further surprises in the same direction.
MILLS & HUIT is the name of a firm
But 1 we have had an awful lot of trouble which recently opened a music store at 218
with our cheap pianos, and for myself, I Main street, Streator, 111.
prefer rather to tie up a good medium
JOHN HARTUNG, of Pittsfield, 111., has
piano, sell it at a fair profit, and sell it for
what it is. My idea is that a great many sold out his stock of musical instruments
of the dealers will not sell a cheap piano for to J. W. Boren.
THE "new woman" is becoming a factor
a cheap piano."
"Then if goods are sold in their class," in the music trade. Mrs. S. E. Gibbs has
we ask, "you consider it naturally no fraud opened a fine establishment at Waukon, la.
upon the purchaser?"
THE agency for the Estey piano in Buffa-
"Certainly not. How can there be? If lo has been secured by F. S. Slade.
a man gets what he pays for he is all right,
is he not?"
DEALERS READ " T H E MUSIC
"But the question is," we queried, "Does
TRADE
REVIEW" BECAUSE IT IS
a man, as the very cheap pianos are sold
NEWSY, AND WHAT IS PRINTED
to-day, get what he pays for?"
"Well, not in all cases."
IN IT THEY KNOW TO BE TRUE.