Music Trade Review

Issue: 1917 Vol. 64 N. 10

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
10
Heads of National Association of Piano Merchants
Representative Piano Men in All Sections of the Country, Who, as Officers, Com-
mittee Chairmen, or State Commissioners, Are Working Under the Association Banner
The present administration of the National
Association of Piano Merchants will go out of
office with a record of real accomplishment. It
is true that there have been active officers in
the past, but the present officers have not only
worked hard themselves, but have made an or-
ganized endeavor to so co-ordinate their forces
throughout the country, as to bring the message
of the association directly home to piano mer-
chants in most remote districts through the
personal contact of State Commissioners.
President John A. Turner has given deep
thought to the selection of State Commissioners.
He has endeavored, and for that matter suc-
ceeded, in securing the co-operation of men in
various States, representative of the best in the
trade in those States. He has brought together
a force of State Commissioners who have repu-
tations as workers, who for the most part are
already known in trade circles for their accom-
plishments. His most notable coup, however,
was the appointment of Kdmund Gram as chair-
man of the State Commissioners, for with the
chairman to take active interest the commis-
sioners' should be able to accomplish much
through systematic co-operation, to carry on
the work of the association that has already
been planned and to increase the membership.
A number of State Commissioners have, and are,
taking an active part in local association mat-
ters, thereby linking up the national organization
with the local bodies, naturally to the benefit
of the former.
It is the privilege of The Review, through the
co-operation of the press committee of the Na-
tional Association of Piano Merchants, to pre-
sent in this issue, in supplement form, the latest
portraits of the National Association officers,
committee chairmen and thirty-four of the forty-
one State Commissioners that have accepted ap-
pointment to date. Every man in the list has a
trade standing that is unquestionable.
JOHN A. TURNER, l'ri'wident. Head of the Turner
Music Co., Tampa, Fla. Successful piano man, and
firm believer in the one-price system and in clean
advertising. Member of the Kotary Club and other
active business organizations. A recognized exe-
cutive.
EDMUND GUAM, First VIoe-I'resldeiit and chairuiar
of the Board of State Commissioners. Head of the
Edmund Grain 1'iuuo Mfg. Co., and also the Edmund
Gram Music Co., Milwaukee, Wis. Also president
of the newly organized Milwaukee Association of
Music Industries. Has for many years been very
active in Association matters.
DAN J. NOLAN, Second Vice-President, and manager
of the piano department of the May Co., Cleveland,
O. President of the Cleveland Music Trades Asso-
ciation. Has been very successful as a piano man,
and has long been interested aud experienced in
Association work, having been chairman of the
Press Committee, and also filled other offices.
PERCY 8. FOSTER, Secretary, bead of the Percy
S. Foster Piano Co., Washington, D. C. Has been
secretary of the Association since 1912 aud has won
a reputation as an executive of great ability. Has
rendered valuable services to the Association and is
a strong advocate of square business dealing. En-
tered the trade in Washington in 1895 as manager of
the branch of Sanders & Stayman, of Baltimore,
now discontinued. Started his own business six
years ago and lias been very successful. Very active
in musical circles at the National Capital.
CARL. A. DROOP, Treasurer, member of E. F. Droop
& Sons Co., Washington, D. C. Has acted in the
capacity of treasurer for several years, and has
been very active in Association work generally.
P. E. CONROY, Chairman of the newly organized
Better Business Committee, and State Commissioner
for Missouri. Entered the piano business in St.
Louis in 1887, as a member of the house of Conroy
Bros., which was later succeeded by the Conroy
Piano Co., of which Mr. Conroy is president.
It is one of the most energetic piano houses in the
Middle West. Mr. Conroy is carrying on" a strong
campaign in this city for better business and clean
advertising, and since his appointment as chair-
man of the Better Business Committee has addressed
numerous organizations, with a view to asking their
support of the principles upheld by the Piano Mer-
chants' Association.
ALEX. McDONALD, Chairman, Press Committee. A
successful piano salesman and later equally suc-
cessful trade newspaper man. Now publicity man-
ager for Sohmer & Co., New York. Has done some
in handling the press matter for the
Association, and has elaborate plans under way
for the future.
COL. 1. B. T. nOLLENBEBG, Chairman, Freight
Committee, and head of the Hollenberg Music Co.,
Little Rock, Ark., established in 1853, and the oldest
music house in the State. Mr. Hollenberg has gained
a trade-wide reputation for his Association activi-
ties, aud is chairman of the Advisory Board in
charge of the National Music Show to be held in
Chicago during Convention Week.
K. H. DKOOl', Chairman, Legislative Committee.
Member of E. F. Droop & Sons Co., Washington,
D. C, and one of the most prominent men In the
industry. Ex-president of the Association. Has
done notable work as chairman of the Legislative
Committee, in keeping in touch with legislation
favorable or unfavorable to the industry, and in
making splendid reports of the steps taken in va-
rious sections of the country to stamp out fraudu-
lent piano advertising. An active and successful
business man.
C. G. CAMPBELL, Chairman, Resolutions Committee.
Vice-president and general manager Knight-Campbell
Music Co., Denver, Colo. Graduate of the Univer-
sity of Colorado, and entered the piano business in
1JMIS. Assumed his present position with the Knight-
Campbell Music Co. on the death of his father
in 190!). Has taken an active part in trade better-
iiitMit work in Colorado and lias been active In
Association matters generally.
B. B. BURTON, State Commissioner for Alabama, with
the Cable-Shelby-Burton Co., Birmingham, and one
of the prominent ligures in the Southern piano trade.
JESSE H. DUNLAP, State Commissioner for Arkansas,
manager of the Little Eock branch of the O. K.
Houek Piano Co., which position he has held for
twenty-three years.
GKO. R. HUGHES, State Commissioner for California,
with the Wiley B. Allen Co., San Francisco. An
active factor in the California trade and a strong
worker for the Association in that section of the
country. Did excellent work during the Convention
held in San Francisco in 1914. Has been connected
with the Wiley B. Allen Co. for sixteen years.
ALBERT NORDHEIMER, Commissioner for Canada.
Head of the Nordheimer Piano & Music Co., Ltd.,
Toronto. Ont. One of the leading figures iu the
Canadian trade, and long an interested and active
member of the National Association of Piano Mer-
chants of America.
II. \V. CLINTON, State Commissioner for Connecti-
cut, with the A. B. Clinton Co., New Haven, Conn
One of the younger generation of piano men who
is fast making his mark as a retail piano man
under his father's direction. A strong Association
advocate and a factor in the Connecticut Piano
Dealers' Association.
J. L. STOWERS, Commissioner for Cuba, and a lead-
ing piano dealer in that country, where lie con-
ducts eight stores as well as having a store in Key
West, where he entered the trade in 1S98. His
energy in introducing American pianos in Cuba has
won the respect of the trade.
O. J. I)E MOLL, Commissioner for the District of
Columbia. Has been in the piauo business twenty-
live years. Has taken a prominent part in Asso-
ciation matters, and is secretary of the Piano Trade
Golf Association.
S. ERNEST PHILPITT, head of Philpitt's Music
Store, Miami, State Commissioner for Florida. Also
conducts a piano and music department in Cohen's
Dry Goods Store, Jacksonville, and two music de-
partments in Washington. For twenty-five years
one of the most prominent figures iu the retail
sheet music trade of the country, and an active
Association worker.
WM. M. BROWNLEE, State Commissioner for Georgia,
vice-president of the Cable Piano Company, Atlanta.
Entire trade experience has been with the Cable
Piano Company, and has proven very successful.
Takes a prominent part in public affairs in Atlanta,
and ranks as an Association enthusiast.
LEROY MADSEN, Idaho Falls, Idaho, State Com-
missioner for Idaho. Manager Eastern Idaho divi-
sion of Consolidated Music Co., Salt Lake City.
JOHN C. MINTON, State Commissioner for Iowa.
Manager for the Guest Piano Co., Burlington. Has
long been actively interested in the work of the
National Association of Piano Merchants.
BEN. M. GRUNEWALD, State Commissioner for
Louisiana. Vice-president and manager of the L.
Grunewald Co., Inc., New Orleans, one of the oldest
music houses in the country. Has been in active
charge of the business since the death of Win. N.
Grunewald in 1915. Graduate of the Louisiana State
University, and has had a practical training in piano
factories. A believer in clean legislation aud busi-
ness methods, and a strong advocate of Association
activities.
M. H. ANDREWS, State Commissioner for Maine.
President Andrews Music House, Bangor, Me., a
position which Mr. Andrews has held ever since the
plan of State Commissioners was adapted by the
Association. Purchased the business in 1890. A
veteran of the Civil War, but still very active.
J. S. REED, president J. S. Reed Piano Co., Balti-
more, Md., State Commissioner for Maryland. Has
long been connected with the piano trade in that
city as manager and most recently as head of his
own business.
EDWIN C. MILLER, State Commissioner for Massa-
chusetts. President Henry F. Miller & Sous Piano
Co. Graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology. Entered the piano business under his
father's tutelage in 1880. Became president of the
company upon the death of his brother, Heury
F. Miller. Ex-president of the Boston Music Trade
Association and deeply interested in Association
work.
ARTHUR II. HOWES, State Commissioner for Michi-
gan. Manager piano department of Griunell Bros.,
Detroit. Entered the piano trade in Bloomington,
111., in 1883. Has held present position since 1892.
JOHN M. HOWARD, State Commissioner for Mon-
tana. Head of the Howard Music Co., Butte, Mont.
Graduate of New England Conservatory of Music,
and taught the piano before entering the trade.
One of the organizers of the Howard Music Co
six years ago.
W. M. ROBINSON, State Commissioner for Nebraska.
Head of the National Music Supply Co., Omaha,
Nebraska.
J. D. MARINER, State Commissioner for Nevada.
Head of the J. D. Mariner Music House, Reno.
Claimed to lie the oldest established and largest
music dealer in the state. Interested in Association
work for a number of years.
FREDERIC BARLOW, State Commissioner for New
Jersey. President and treasurer of G. A. Barlow's
Son Co., Trenton, N. J. In 1890 succeeded, as
president, his father, who established the business
in 1872. Prominent factor in the New Jersey trade.
E. PAUL HAMILTON, State Commissioner for New
York. Manager of piano department of Frederick
Loeser & Co., Brooklyn, N. Y. Started with Loeser
& Co. as floor salesman in March, 1910, and two
months later became manager. Six months later also
took charge of the Victrola and other music de-
partments. Has been very successful in business
and has taken an active interest in Association mat-
ters for some years, acting on various convention
committees in New York.
C. R. STONE, State Commissioner for North Dakota.
Proprietor and founder of Stone's Music House,
Fargo, N. D. Started his present busiuess in 1894,
and has been uniformly successful. Well known
in the trade throughout the country.
F. B. BEINKAMP, State Commissioner for Ohio. With
the Church-Beinkainp Co., Cincinnati. Ex-president
of the Piauo Merchants' Association of Ohio and a
leading factor in that organization. Has also been
prominent in National Association work.
IIKRHKRT President Heed-French Piano Mfg. Co., Portland,
Ore. Widely known in piano trade circles on the
Pacific Coast. Founded his present company in
190(5 and maintains several branches and agencies.
Has long been a staunch supporter of the Associa-
tion and its work.
M: *V. I)E FOREKST, State Commissioner for Penn-
sylvania. Head of Wm. C. De Foreest & Sons,
Sharon. A veteran piano man and a prominent
figure iu Association work. Has served several terms
as State Commissioner.
ANDREW MEIKLEJOHN, State Commissioner for
Rhode Island. General manager of the Meiklejohu
Co., Providence, R. I., and of the branch stores
conducted by that company. A firm believer in the
one-price system and clean advertising.
RUDOLPH SIEGLING, State Commissioner for South
Carolina. President aud treasurer of Siegling Mu-
sic House, Inc., Charleston, S. C. Business estab-
lished in 1819 by John Siegling, who was succeeded
at his death in 1868 by his son, Heury Siegling.
At the death of the latter iu 1905 the business was
incorporated by his three sons, with Rudolph Sieg-
ling as treasurer. Claimed to be the oldest music
house in the United States.
F. O. GAMBLE, State Commissioner for Tennessee.
Vice-president and general manager of E. Witzmann
& Co., Memphis, Tenn. Entered the factory of the
Anderson Piano Co., Van Wert, O., at the age of
sixteen. Later entered the selling Held and was
connected with retail concerns in various sections
of the country. Later became wholesale traveler
and took up his present work upon the death of
his father-in-law, Emil Wltainann, in 1904. A well-
known and successful piano man.
HENRY P. MAYER, Paris, Tex., State Commissioner
for Texas. A live piano merchant who has been
very successful. Has long been a factor iu Asso-
ciation affairs.
ROYAL W. DAYNES, State Commissioner for Utah.
Manager, Consolidated Music Co., Salt Lake City,
Utah. Well known and popular figure in the West-
ern trade.
A. L. BAILEY, St. Jobnsbury, Vt., State Commission-
er for Vermont. One of the best known piano men
in New England, and conducts a large chain of
music stores in Vermont and neighboring states.
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
SALESMANSHIP
A Complete Section Devoted to Piano Salesmanship Published Each Month
The Question of Time Saving in Closing Piano Sales
Every Unnecessary Call Made Upon a Prospect Before Selling Takes Just So Much Time From
Other Prospects — Efficiency in Handling of Prospects — No To-morrow in Good Salesmanship
S he starts out from the wareroom each morning to begin
A
his day's labor, the outside salesman is generally supplied
with a list of prospects to be worked up on that particular day
or for such a fixed period as the manager may decide, and from
that list the outside man, if he is good or has some luck, may
close a satisfactory number of sales. In closing those sales,
however, there is still another factor and that is, what about
the people that were not closed?
There are. of course, a large number of prospects on the
list of every house who never buy a piano, who are anxious to
own one, and perhaps have actually made known their desires,
but who, for financial or other reasons, are not in a position to
become purchasers. There is also, of course, the usual pro-
portion of loss to a competing house, maybe through superior
salesmanship on the part of the competitor, through some feature
of his line that makes a special appeal, or for other reasons
that cannot be so readily explained. The real question, however,
is that of the prospect who ultimately purchases from the house
first securing the name. What about that prospect? Why the
delay in selling him? If it takes twelve calls to convince a pros-
pect that he should become a customer, why could it not have
been done in six, or, if it takes six, why could it not have been
done in three? A call made by a salesman without direct results
costs the house he is working for money. He may be drawing a
salary based upon a certain quota of sales and may exceed that
quota regularly and make a commission on the additional busi-
ness, but the calls he makes without results are still to be checked
up against him. Probably it is not his direct fault that results
have not been obtained, but it is his prospect and he is
responsible.
In the brilliant articles on salesmanship, there has been
frequent mention made of the man who likes a hard nut to crack,
who passes by the easy sales with scorn and dives right into a
doubtful proposition. As a matter of fact it is human nature to
take the easiest way. If an outside man has twenty prospects
to call upon, and actually knows that five are practically ready
to buy and that the five at the other end of the list have not
yet been convinced that the piano is of any use to them, he i^
going after those who are ready to buy. The supersalesman
we sometimes read about would abandon them to some of the
weaker sisters of the sales-force and spend his time convincing
the hard ones, but the average man, the salesman with the quota
in front of him, is going to pluck the easiest ones first every time.
When it comes down to the more difficult ones, however, and
becomes a question of what can be said or done that will con-
vince them to make a quick decision, that is where the sales-
man can either save or spend money for his house.
There may be a legitimate reason for putting off buying
that can be so recorded on the card and the minimum of calls
arranged to keep the prospect in line until he is ready to capitu-
late. Then there are cases where there is no real reason for
holding off buying. The prospect is simply "stalling" and prob-
ably shopping around. Every visit the salesman pays to that
prospect without selling means just one visit taken away from
some other prospect. It means just so much time taken from
the work of the house. It means just so much lost opportunity
for him to increase his sales total, and sales and time undoubted-
ly represent money, whether the salesman is working on salary
or commission.
There is no "manana" in piano selling. The salesman who
has the assurance or feels that the sale can be closed on the next
call should pound just that much harder to close the deal at once.
He should be less willing to accept "no" for an answer, for that
next call if given to another prospect may mean still another
sale. There always is the question of lost interest. When pros-
pects take the trouble to inquire about the details of a piano or
player-piano, or to visit the warerooms and inspect the line,
they are interested. That's certain, although they may not be
interested sufficiently to buy on the spur of the moment. The
fact remains, however, that if a prospect is ignored or is not.
followed up closely, that interest, in most cases, lags with the
passing of time.
When the piano is^ first seen it is much admired. The pros-
pect feels that he must have it. The next call—it is a very fine
instrument and he would like to have it. The third call—he
wishes he could spare the money to buy it. The fourth call—
he can't see how he will be able to finance it, and so on.
There is an old undertaker's slogan to this effect: "Get the
money while the tears are in the eyes," which, although rather
gruesome, can be applied in some degree to piano selling. In
other words, get the contract signed while the glamor of the in-
strument is still in the eyes of the prospect.
Some Pointers on Selling Rolls for
I
N a recent interview with O. R. Bowman, of the Chicago branch
of Bennett & White, Inc., he gave some valuable pointers to the
salesman who is interested in the selling of music rolls. Speaking
of the value of personality in salesmanship, he said:
"Your greatest asset is your individuality. Your traits set you
off, distinguishing you from others. Proper use of your individu-
ality is your great key to success. Neglect of it or misuse of it will
be your greatest obstacle. With these two points in mind you can
Player-Pianos
probably find a source from which you can draw enormous power.
"If you do not wish to make personal applications in your study
of these you can make them solve for you many of the puzzling
cases of success and failure among the player roll departments of
your acquaintance.
"In short, this one principle applies to every phase of the busi-
ness and goes far towards unraveling the whole story of the roll
(Continued on page 12)

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