Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE
ffUJIC TRADE
VOL. LXXI1I. No. 14
Published Every Saturday by Edward Lyman BUI, Inc., at 373 4th Ave., New York.
Oct. 1, 1921
Copies 10 Cents
ft.OO Per Tear
The Value of Statistics to the Piano Trade
T
HOSE members of the music industry who have been apt during the past few years to make frequent
comparisons between the music industry (particularly the piano trade) and the automobile trade should
be interested in a statement recently issued by an automobile expert regarding the possible future
market for automobiles in this country.
In presenting his arguments the automobile man offers facts and figures to show the widespread use
of the automobile, stating, for instance, that at the end of 1920 there were forty-two cars in use for each one
hundred white men of voting age, and in certain States there were sufficient cars registered to transport the
entire population of the State, regardless of age, race, creed or color.
In the Pacific Coast section the average was sixty cars for every one hundred white men of voting age;
in the West North Central, fifty-seven cars, and in the East South Central the lowest average of twenty-two
cars. The increase in the number of cars since 1912 is indicated by the statistics compiled by the Automobile
Association, which show that, while in that year the ratio of population to cars was 114 to one, that ratio
decreased to thirty to one in 1916 and to twelve to one in 1920. In 1920 there were registered over nine
million cars, upon which number the percentages have been based.
By a very interesting process of elimination the automobile man arrives at the conclusion that out of a
total population of 105,000,000 there are 19,000,000 people who may logically be considered prospects for
cars. About half of these already own cars and, eliminating the poorer classes from the remainder, there
are still several million Americans who may be expected to buy automobiles in the future.
The piano man may regard these figures relating to the automobile trade as of little direct interest to his
industry, but it would be a mighty fine thing if members of the piano trade had definite figures available showing
the number of pianos in use, the proportion of the population logically in a position to buy such instruments, the
number that have been supplied and the number remaining to be supplied.
The automobile trade, with an output of over a million cars a year, is beginning to talk about reaching
the point of saturation. The Ford plant alone, however, turns out more cars in one year than there are pianos
turned out by the entire industry, so that the question of reaching the saturation point does not enter into our
trade figures in any sense.
Would it not be valuable for the trade to learn j ust what proportion of the population had been supplied,
and what proportion should be regarded in the light of possible customers ? Perhaps such figures would serve
more than any other single factor to stimulate increased activity on the part of the distributing factors of the
trade.
The task of compiling a census of musical instruments has been handled with more or less success by a
number of dealers in a limited radius. It would appear that a national census, accomplished through the aid
of retail houses, should produce figures of real interest and importance, even though they were not as accurate
as might be. It seems somewhat incongruous to talk learnedly of the opportunities offered by foreign markets
for the sale of musical instruments without knowing with any degree of accuracy what real, solid opportunities
for the sale of such instruments we have right here at home.
i n the matter of collecting, and later on distributing, facts and figures regarding their industry the auto-
mobile people seem to be considerably in the lead, even though they have official registration figures to guide them.
Despite the lack of any such official aid in the compilation of facts and figures regarding musical instruments
the music industry nevertheless should be able to glean, without an undue expenditure of energy or money,
sufficient fac'ts concerning the distribution of pianos and other instruments to enable it to size up the retail field
from a national standpoint. Such a census would be of great value right from the start, and if compiled
each year, or every two years, would grow in value accordingly.