Music Trade Review

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Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
VOL. XLI. No. 3.
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill at 1 Madison Ave., New York, July 22, 1905.
NEWS FROM THE NORTHWEST.
sales, together with some Steinway grands, that
the total makes the smile come to the manage-
Cheerful News from Farming Sections—Op-
ment. July they report opening up fine with
timistic Over Crops—Effect Being Felt in
good promise for a record breaking midsummer.
the
Piano Trade—The Week's
Happen-
"I can show a better trade for June this year
ings in Detail.
than last," said Elmer Brooks, of the Brooks-
Evans Piano Co., "in spite of the rain. Our city
(Special to The Review.)
business in Everetts has been good, and our
Minneapolis and St. Paul, July 17, 1905.
Old-time hot summer weather, dry and clear, country trade in our leader shows marked im-
has come to this section at last, and business provement. I look for a decidedly good year,
men as a whole are looking cheerful as word especially since the weather has cleared up and
comes from the farming sections to the effect we have the hot spell necessary for crops."
Mr. Segerstrom, of the Segerstrom Piano Co.,
that a little weather of the same kind will make
fine crops, and hence bring money into circulation has been laying wires for outside trade, which
are just bringing in results, and he is very en-
throughout the Northwest.
Naturally, this being a new country, much of thusiastic for the outlook for fall, there being
the future of all business lines depends upon unusual prospects from the territory he has
the weather and crops, and when they are prom- tapped.
The New Century Co. have removed their rooms
ising, trade never waits for the actual fulfilment
of the promise but banks upon the future to the from lower Nicollet avenue to a point higher
extent that trade at once picks up. This has up and nearer "Piano Row."
been specially noticeable in the piano industry,
for every one approached, almost without a dis-
PIANOS IN DEPARTMENT STORES.
senting voice, states that sales have appreciably
Reviewed by Our Contemporary, the Dry Goods
increased, and they look for a big month of July.
Economist—Sales Greatly Increased Within
The first to feel the conditions were the small
a Very Short Time by the Department Stores
towns, where there are agencies and branches,
Having Piano Adjuncts to Their Business.
where the orders began to materialize at once
with the good weather. Then followed Twin
The sale of pianos by leading department
City trade, and the outside men and floor men stores is resulting in some very favorable com-
are all busy.
ments being made on the development of this
In some cases there are disputes of the al- branch of the business by leading papers de-
leged bad trade for June, Foster & Waldo and
voted to the dry goods interests. For instance,
the Metropolitan Music Co., of Minneapolis, both in last Saturday's Dry Goods Economist we find
showing that they were not disappointed in June the following remarks which will be found in-
business, while J. Dyer & Bro., of St. Paul, teresting inasmuch as they sum up the piano situ-
showed conclusively that they had a good trade ation from another viewpoint:
in spite of the rainy weather; but. above all,
"The state of the piano trade at this season
there comes word from every source that collec- is not very lively, but indications point to an
tions are unusually good, which is a point in active future, especially so after the vacation
favor of the piano trade in the Korthwest.
period. Many pianos that have been working
"There was a critical stage," said W. J. Dyer, overtime have been carted to summer homes by
"in which it. looked as if the ^rops were about the owners, most of whom have expressed an in-
gone up, but this fine weather has made it look tention to replace them with new instruments
decidedly different, and business has advanced upon their return in the fall.
"Another feature of the trade, and one that,
accordingly. We had a good June trade in spite
of the rains, however, and showed a big improve- points to additional fall business, is the fact that
an exceptionally large number of used and low-
ment over that of the two previous months."
This firm have taken the agency for the Starr grade instruments have been sold and carted
piano,-making an addition to their already ex- into the country for summer practice and begin-
tensive line, which makes it the biggest in the ners. This means, of course, that purchasing
city. S. W. Raudenbush is enthusiastic over hi* of fairer grades for city use will be the natural
new piano, sold under his own name. He thinks outcome later on.
"Right now the better grades are lagging
he, has a winner, of a good grade and lasting
quality. He has many tales to tell of competi- somewhat, not unusually so for the season,
tive sales with other instruments, some of a high though, and dealers all appear cheerful over the
outlook for heavy fall business. Some makes of
grade on his own floor. ,
Grant P. Wagner,, of Howard Farwell & Co., medium-priced instruments have, through vigor-
makes the statement that in spite of the bad ous handling and progressive pushing, been mov-
weather the first part of the season, his records ing with great activity for this time of year.
show' that there is a gain in business over last Reference has been made to the revolution which
year, which is astonishing when the very bad the sheet music business had undergone since
weather is considered. Especially in the higher the advent of the department store music coun-
grades the Fischer and Chickering is this im- ter.
"The same condition in a more modified
provement shown, which proves a demand for
form is noticeable in the piano trade. In that
high-grade instruments this season.
B. R. Dyer, of the Metropolitan Music Co., trade, however, the change has not been so
voices his surprise at the way in which June rapid or so general as it was in the sheet music
business figured up. The house was pretty blue trade, but it is strong enough to cause comment
duping the early days, but the last of the month in more than one quarter.
"To one piano sold within a given period in a
picked up, and there were so many high-grade
SINGLE COPIES, 10 CENTS.
$2.00 PER YEAR.
department store a short while ago, ten are be-
ing sold at present. These sales of the present
are confined to the medium and lower-priced in-
struments, yet they are sufficiently rapid to in-
dicate that there need be no surprise at whatever
turn the future regarding the higher-priced in-
struments may take.
"Hundreds of persons have purchased pianos
of late from the large stores in this city, where
special inducements were offered and original
plans adopted. If this large volume of business
can be manipulated in this section there is no
reason why it cannot be duplicated in other sec-
tions, and the suggestion is at least worthy of
the most serious consideration on the part of de-
partment stores where no pianos are carried,
especially in view of the fact that about nine-
tenths of the sheet music is now being sold
through such stores.
"This would have a great tendency to keep
the department store in touch with possible pur-
chasers of pianos who are constantly buying
music at present, and in many cases using
rented, old or borrowed instruments. It is also
self-evident that a piano department helps a
sheet-music department to quite an extent, and
that both combine to build dividends when prop-
erly, intelligently and aggressively handled."
"PLAYING BALL" IN TOLEDO.
The employes of the leading piano houses in
Toledo are great lovers of baseball, and all avail-
able spare time is given over to this sport. A
very notable game recently was that between
the forces of the Cable Company and the J. W.
Green Co., the Cables being the winner, with a
score of five to fourteen. On Saturday the Cable
Company's team crossed bats with the Starr
Piano Co.'s nine, the decision not being known
at the time of writing.
PURCHASERS OF THE HARDMAN.
James Bellak's Sons, the enterprising dealers
of Philadelphia, have just issued a list of pa-
trons who have purchased Kardman pianos. It
is certainly an imposing one, a credit to the
Bellak institution and to the Hardman piano.
Among the many clubs who are included in the
roster are the New Century Club, the Art Club,
the Bachelor Bardge Club, and the Delaware
Club.
SCHULER BROS. PIANO LINE.
Schuler Bros., who, as already announced in
The Review, will open a piano store in Buffalo
this week, have arranged to represent the Decker
& Son. the Christman, the Worthington and some
other pianos in that city. Both John G. and Al-
bert Schuler are practical piano men, having
been in the piano business since childhood.
PIANOS HIGHER IN GERMANY.
The piano manufacturers of Germany have
marked up the prices of their pianos five per
cent., owing to the increased cost of raw ma-
terial as well as labor.