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THE
RLMFW
ffUJIC TIRADE
VOL.
LVIII. N o . 16 Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill at 373 Fourth Ave., New York, April 18, 1914
E
SING
$ 2E OO CO PE I R S VE°AR ENTS
VEN those people who have only a superficial knowledge of inner trade conditions realize
how the player-piano is constantly narrowing the proportion of sales between the straight
and the player-piano, and at the present rate it will not be very long before they will be
running neck and neck.
The astonishing growth in the player-piano demand during the last two or three years is bring-
ing about new conditions, and I am going to repeat what I have said in former issues, and that is,
unless the dealers themselves fully understand the conditions which they face, and change their
methods, some of them will be trading themselves out of business.
When a player-piano is sold and a straight piano taken in part payment, the piano merchant
is selling the player-piano, which represents a considerable investment, and is accepting as part pay-
ment thereof an instrument which he must resell at a profit before his original transaction will
have become completed. In brief, he is undertaking two transactions. He is selling a player-piano
and buying a straight piano, which I have termed a trade-in. Obviously, until this trade-in is sold
again at a profit, there is no complete sale.
Now, because a great many dealers have taken trade-ins in transactions of this nature at sur-
prisingly high valuations is the chief reason why they have not made money.
I recall many years ago, I was in a wareroom chatting with the proprietor of a well-known
Western piano business, when his bookkeeper announced to him the result of the year's business.
He scanned the report and shook his head in a doubtful way.
The bookkeeper showed considerable surprise, and said: "Why, Mr. B
, that is a splendid
report. Look at what you have made."
"Ah! yes," replied the dealer, "a splendid report on paper, but let us figure it out. Here you
have got as the chief part of my assets a big stock of second-hand pianos stored in the downtown
building for which we are paying rent for storage purposes, and in this store as well. I will take
your leases at their face value, but you have got thousands of dollars carried here as assets which
to my mind are capable of shrinking to one-quarter from their present value. For instance, you
have got an old B
square piano at $150. Its actual worth is $25 to $30. Young man, when we
accept a report like that we are fooling ourselves."
This old piano man has passed away, but I never have forgotten the statement which he made
regarding that old stock, and I think what was true in those days is true at the present time.
I never have known of a failure in the retail trade but that in the assets of the firm appeared
a lot of worthless junk in the shape of trade-ins inventoried at high rates. This antiquated prop-
erty, of indefinite value, was traded in at high rates, and the salesmen, instead of trying to get rid
of these pianos, would always concentrate their energies on new pianos. Hence, year after year,
the trade-in stock increases and is carried on the books, in many instances, at the original prices,
and I repeat that the allowances made are absurd.
A well-known dealer from Pennsylvania was in my office this week, and he is much interested
in the articles which appear in this paper anent the trade-in problem, and complimented us upon
our work.
He said, in line with our efforts towards establishing a national system for trade-ins, that one
of his dealers last week called upon a party who had been visited by a salesman from a competing
house.
(Continued on page 5.)