Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
VOL LXVIII. No. 3
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Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman Bill, Inc., at 373 4th Ave., New York. Jan. 18, 1919
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The Question of Price and Profit
P
UBLIC opinion changes slowly; but it does change. Almost always the change is upward, progressive.,,,,
towards better thoughts and actions. An example thereof is before us now. For a quarter century the
conviction has been slowly growing that fair, fixed prices are the only sound basis for national industry; ..
This does not mean mere words; it means that the old notion of every man's business being his own
solitary affair is dying out. It means that we can now dimly apprehend a great truth. This truth is that if one
man in an industry sells at too low a price he hurts the whole industry. He does not hurt himself alone; he hurts
himself least of all. The damage he does is to the industry at large.
The past twelve months have been about as thoroughly exciting as any the music trades have ever known.
Within those fifty-two weeks the industry has experienced a veritable revolution. Old methods have been
forcibly cast aside; new and extraordinary methods have been born. The revolution has been a beneficent revo-
lution and those who wish it to be brought to a standstill are narrow-minded and foolish persons.
There has been a scarcity of pianos. This scarcity has been accompanied by very high prices due, not to
the scarcity, but to the enormous cost of doing business. In consequence, the piano business has come nearly
to getting on to a cash basis. In further consequence, the dealer has made more money than ever before.
Can dealers expect a reduction of prices shortly? It can be said with complete confidence that they cannot.
What is the reason for the probable continuance of high prices ? Simply the fact that the cost of materials
is still very high and shows no likelihood of becoming lower.
Therefore the retail trade might as well resign itself to an era of high prices.
But to call this a process of "resignation" to the "inevitable" is to stretch the metaphor. In reality the retail
trade is going to be forced this year to continue doing business in a businesslike way. That, in fact, is the whole
state of the case.
When prices are very high, the manufacturer cannot, if he would, make a very cheap piano. The piano
he makes must be good. It must, in short, be a piano upon which the dealer can make a fair profit.
Lacking the cheap piano, the dealer cannot seek out the easy type of buyer; the type whose only idea is
to get a cheap box at terms that will run on for years. Such a customer does not care what the price is; he
wants terms.
The piano merchant will not waste his time seeking the buyer of this kind during 1919. The dealer will be
compelled to go after the substantial buyer exclusively. Is this a matter for sighing?
Rather is it a matter for rejoicing! The piano is indeed coming into its own when the public show the
feeling towards it which characterized the winter trade of 1918. That feeling was called into being by the
fact of the prevailing shortage and by the consequent high prices. In a word, it rested upon a new-born public
feeling of respect for music and for musical instruments.
This respect for music is due, in large measure, to conditions brought about by the war. The value of
music in maintaining morale at home and on the battlefield has been so strongly impressed upon the public
during the period of the war that there could not but be a great public awakening to the desirability, the
advantages and the necessity of more music—in the home—in public—everywhere.
To have more music we must have more musical instruments. This simple fact explains the present
enormous demand for pianos, players and other musical instruments of all kinds, and the demand, coupled with
the shortage of labor and supplies, as well as economic conditions generally, is bound to keep piano prices from
dropping materially for some time.
The prices of pianos will perforce remain at a high level. Should we complain? Nay, we should be very,
very glad that we are to be compelled, for another year, to do business on a businesslike basis, to get money for
our goods, and to make profits for ourselves.