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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
were due to unfamiliarity with the work or lack of appreciation of
its scope. But nevertheless they were made.
It is believed that the achievements of the past year which
will be presented at the sessions of the Chamber and thus the in-
dustries in general will give a better idea of what has really been
accomplished.
The Results of Chamber Committee Work
At the coming convention will be found what may be properly
termed a new type of Chamber—one that functions through com-
mittees of representative and experienced men rather than through
individuals who had to rely upon their own initiative in meeting
the different problems. Under this committee plan many channels
have been brought to light through which the Chamber can operate
to the greatest good and for the greatest number. Plans and
methods have been developed for the immediate and ultimate assist-
ance of the retailer as, for instance, credit systems which, by pro-
tecting the supply man and the manufacturer, in turn protect very
directly all interested divisions of the trade.
There is a depreciation schedule on used pianos upon which a
strong committee is working and other activities which, although
they may be not flamboyant in character, nevertheless are progress-
ing steadily and satisfactorily. It is but natural that the discussion of
such problems as that affecting trade-ins should find a place at
more than one meeting, and it is therefore also natural that both
in the Chamber sessions and in the sessions of the various associa-
tions thought will be given to these important matters from various
angles, with the idea that, under such a method, a solution may be
found satisfactory to all. This will develop a closer co-operation
between trade divisions to their common advantage.
All Trade Branches Represented
The problems of the piano manufacturer and merchant, the
musical merchandise dealer, the supply man in the various divisions,
the sheet music dealer, the band instrument manufacturer and the
talking machine manufacturer will find a place in the general pro-
gram whether or not all the divisions have matters to come up for
discussion before the Chamber meeting proper. It is, therefore,
in every sense a national convention of the allied music trades, and
if those who attend the sessions give the proper amount of consid-
eration to the business transacted therein, the effect upon the
industry generally will prove beneficial.
The Problem of the Trade-in
Perhaps the main topic will be the trade-in and how it may be
handled sensibly and at the same time profitably. The committee
representing the Chamber of Commerce, of which C. Alfred Wag-
ner is the head, has been working for some months on its compila-
tion and, although the work is not yet complete, the results to date
will be shown and explained both in the Chamber meeting and in
the merchants' gathering.
Much attention has been given to the trade-in problem in the
columns of The Review for some time past. In April a countrywide
survey of the used piano situation was presented for the informa-
tion of those who realize some of the evils that have crept into
that field and who are seeking either individually or in co-operation
with other members of the trade to place the handling of used
instruments on a sounder basis.
Although the discussion regarding the proper handling of used
instruments, particularly as it concerns the making of allowances
on the prices of new instruments, applies most directly to the piano
trade, it is of general interest to the music industries for the reason
that talking machine dealers, and to a certain degree band instru-
ment dealers, are beginning to have their troubles in that direction
and are likely to be in a position to profit through any example set
by the piano men as a result of their wider experience in replacing
old instruments with new ones.
The Question of Advertising
The retail advertising contest in connection with which there
will be featured a display of advertising used in national magazines
by individual manufacturers is expected to prove most interesting
from several angles, most especially that of bringing to the fore the
sort of advertising likely to lend dignity to the business of piano
MAY
26, 1923
selling and inspiration to those who would improve their publicity
if they had the proper examples before them and knew how to
proceed.
The failure of the plan, discussed at last year's convention in
New York, for carrying on a co-operative national advertising cam-
paign for the exploitation of the player-piano has made it very
desirable that, although the advertising question as a whole be kept
before the trade, it be presented in a new form. The exhibition
of the newspaper advertising entered in the contest and of the copy
used by piano manufacturers in national campaigns is designed to
accomplish that end.
Trade Credits and Standardization
Since the last convention the Trade Service Bureau of the
Chamber of Commerce has developed with more or less rapidity
and has launched a number of movements to aid the music mer-
chant in handling his various problems. It is expected that the
manager of the Trade Service Bureau will have a particularly inter-
esting report to make at the convention and to point out the results
that have actually been accomplished, some of which are unfortu-
nately not so apparent to the average association member as they
might be. It is believed that after the presentation of the work
of this Bureau before the trade in Chicago the co-operation of the
merchants and manufacturers upon which the success of the Bureau
largely depends will be forthcoming to a more generous degree than
formerly.
For many years the music industry, particularly the piano trade,
has been criticized generally for its lax credit methods. But
through the efforts of the Chamber a great deal has been accom-
plished during the past few years towards placing the industry on a
much sounder basis not only through the establishment of a direct
credit service for supply men and manufacturers, but through the
work of the Chamber in co-operating in the prosecution of those
in the retail trade who perpetrate frauds in credit matters. This
phase of the work is of distinct benefit to the retailer inasmuch as
it will relieve him from the competition of those who are able to
cut prices and lengthen terms to an unsafe degree because they are
under no direct obligation, in their minds at least, to pay for the
goods.
Another matter of interest to the various trade divisions is the
question of standardization which has for some time been receiving
the attention of committees representing the Musical Supply Asso-
ciation, the National Piano Manufacturers' Association, and among
other bodies the New York Piano Manufacturers' Association. As
a matter of fact little has been accomplished in the standardization
of piano parts, but a start has been made at least and anything
that results therefrom which will facilitate piano production and
enable it to be carried along upon a sounder, economic basis, is of
advantage to the retailer because of the saving in time and money.
Between the opening session of the Chamber on Monday, when
the accomplishments of the year will be reviewed, to its second and
final session on Thursday afternoon for a discussion of the happen-
ings of the week, there will be held a half dozen conventions of
affiliated organizations. The various programs indicate that little
time will be lost in useless discussion, but that efforts will be cen-
tered on finding a solution for those problems that are uppermost
at the present time.
Many Exhibits Being Arranged
The fact that arrangements have been made for the holding
of exhibits at the Drake Hotel during Convention Week is likewise
of interest, for it indicates that the displays of the new products are
considered well worth while and are not regarded as interfering
seriously with the business sessions of the convention, fear of which
served to bar exhibits from the convention hotel for several years.
The warnings issued by the President of the Chamber of Com-
merce, and by the Presidents of the Manufacturers' and Merchants'
Associations, that exhibits must be kept closed during the business
• sessions and must not be allowed to interfere with the regular asso-
ciation work by keeping delegates away from the meetings should be
regarded seriously by fair-minded exhibitors who realize the justice
and wisdom of this request. Despite similar warnings and requests
in the past, there have been exhibitors whose anxiety for business
has caused them to consider their own desires first and the conven-
tion's rights second—in fact, because of the actions of these exhib-