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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
11
DETROIT PIANO DEALERS ACTIVE AS FALL SEASON BEGINS
Michigan State Fair Well Attended, But Business Was Below Expectations—Hudson Co. Conduct-
ing Thirty-sixth Anniversary Sale—Many Concerts During the Coming Season—Other News
DETROIT, MICH., September 10.—The Michigan
State Fair wound up on Sunday, with an at-
tendance for the ten-day period of close to a
half million people. While this is a larger at-
tendance than previous years, there is a general
complaint that this year the people who came
did not buy as they have in the past. Whether
they will buy later on remains to be seen, but
those having exhibits seem to be of the same
opinion in that regard—that it was a lean year
as far as securing orders was concerned.
The piano exhibits this year were made by
Grinnell Bros., Detroit Piano Co., Clough &
Warren, Bush & Lane Piano Co., J. Henry
Ling.
They were attractive and in several
instances special offers were made, but the
total amount of actual goods sold would not
even be considered a good week's business for
any dealer at his store. Some dealers did not
sell a single thing up to Friday. All the deal-
ers seen by The Review correspondent com-
plained of business this year, and were at a
loss to explain why it should have been so
quiet. No doubt the war had something to do
with creating such a condition—there isn't any
question that many people want to buy and will
buy a piano, or player, but for the time being
they are sitting tight.
Whether all the dealers who had exhibits this
year will exhibit again in 1918 remains to be
seen. Some of them said they would not, al-
though there was a lot of time to think the mat-
ter over.
Grinnell Bros, go after fair business more
than any piano concern in the State. Not only
do they always have a large exhibit of their
complete line at the Michigan State Fair, but
they have exhibits at the other fairs around the
States and particularly the county fairs, pro-
viding they are within reasonable distance of
one of their branch stores. Grinnell Bros., as
a consequence, get more real business out of
fairs than other dealers in Michigan.
The J. L. Hudson Co. is this week conducting
its thirty-sixth anniversary sale, which is by
far the most important event of the year. Big
sales are conducted in every department, the
buying being done months and months ahead of
time. In the piano store, Manager E. P. An-
drew is offering for 1 the sale "The Apollo-
Phone," made by the Melville Clark Piano Co.,
of Chicago. The caption of the announcement
reads: "The first time presented to the public
by the Hudson Piano Store exclusively in De-
troit."
It's a combination player-piano and
talking machine—the latter will play Victor,
Columbia or Edison records. Another part of
the announcement reads: ''We wanted to an-
nounce it at our anniversary celebration as the
piano store's big surprise. No one was told
that hidden away on the top floor of the piano
store was the greatest musical invention of this
decade." The price at which this instrument is
being offered during the sale is $700. Public
recitals are being given continuously in the piano
FOTOPLAYER
for the finest
Motion Picture
Theatres
store demonstrating this new combination mu-
sical instrument.
It's not the best place in the world, but it's
better than many others—we refer to the coming
season's concerts of James Devoe, comprising
many of the world's greatest musical artists who
will appear at the Light Guard Armory. This
place is to be fitted up so that it will be more
attractive both to the public and the artists.
Really it looks like a big musical year so far
as business for the visiting artists is con-
cerned. Three musical courses are being of-
fered by various persons, and the sales for all
three courses are very good. People are buy-
ing subscription tickets for the entire series,
which not only saves them money but shows the
tendency of Detroit people.
A traveling man whom the writer met in one
of the piano stores last week stated that he had
just returned from an extended trip through
the West, where he found less talk about the
war than he did further East. In fact, this
traveler stated that the further East he came
the more he found people interested in and dis-
cussing the war. In the West, however, they
were doing things in the regular way, forgetting
that there is a war and "sawing wood." In
his opinion, the more war is discussed the worse
effect it has on business conditions.
Clough & Warren recently increased the city
sales force at its Detroit branch by giving Man-
ager Roy Dupraw two additional men: E. E.
Watson and William M. Kuhn. The latter is
acting as assistant manager. Mr. Dupraw says
he expects to do a big fall business on the new
$175 Manophone models, which he has just re-
ceived. The Manophone is a talking machine
made at the Clough & Warren factory in Adrian.
The Detroit Piano Co. had one Emerson, one
Mehlin and one Lindeman grand at the Michigan
State Fair last week; also twelve players and
uprights. This means an exhibition of fifteen
musical instruments. The exhibit was in charge
of Fred M. Ramsdell, Joseph Fisher and J. J.
Baust, most of the time the three of them be-
ing on the job, but always at least one. This
firm took a few orders, but not as many as was
expected. General business for the first eight
months of 1917 is reported as being good by
President Ramsdell.
Orders for $50,000,000 worth of airplane
motors and airplane equipment were placed last
week with Detroit manufacturers.
Detroit
banks are assisting'the Government in financing
the concerns who received the orders, if they
needed the assistance.
Wool
Is Scarce,
Prices are
Jumping,
But
Schmidt
Hammer
Quality
Never
Drops
Below the
Standard.
NEW APPOINTMENT FOR R. S. DUNN
Will Cover Territory Formerly Handled by W.
B. Williams for C. Kurtzmann & Co.
BUFFALO, N. Y., September 10.—Roy S. Dunn,
who has been traveling as wholesale representa-
tive for C. Kurtzmann & Co., for several years
covering the Central Western States, has been
given the territory formerly in charge of W. B.
Williams, who recently resigned. Mr. Williams'
resignation was due to his desire to leave the
road, and though his future plans have not yet
been announced, it is probable that he will form
a connection in the trade which will enable him
to spend more time at his home, near Phila-
delphia. Mr. Dunn is widely known in piano
circles, and it is understood that he will shortly
begin an extensive tour visiting the dealers in
his new territory.
Have You
Inspected a
Set Lately?
NEW KNIGHT=CAMPBELL BRANCH
AMERICAN PHOTO
PLAYER CO.
San Francisco
New York
Chicago
The Knight-Campbell Music Co., of Denver,
Colo., will open a new branch store at 805 North
Main street, Pueblo, Colo., in a few days. Dis-
trict Manager J. A. Cooley has been supervising
the arrangements for the opening of the new
store, and A. J. Gates wrll act as manager when
the store is opened.
David H. Schmidt Co.
I
POUGHKEEPSIE, N. Y.