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THE
VOL. 85. No. 23
REVIEW
Published Weekly. Federated Business Publications, Inc., 420 Lexington Ave., New York, N. Y., Dec. 3 , 1 9 2 7
8in
*ilo c o°S>er 8 £ £ e n U
How Old Is the Piano
Is Selling Approach
Wiley B. Allen Co. Is Using Advertising Copy
to Replace the Old Pianos in the Homes With
New and Modern Instruments in Period Styles
as part of his troubles,
and in most cases was
only offered the old in-
Out of date? Out of tune? Out of place in your modern home?
strument in exchange
for the new because of
In hundreds of homes the piano is the only thing that is con-
the fact that it was so
spicuously a relic of the past. It may be that sentiment urges
far gone that it was of
you to keep it - - but today there are half a dozen reasons why
little further use to the
it should be replaced.
family. Either that or
it was a "silent" piano
Here are the reasons^
The modern piano is more
and a player or repro-
The advent of
•why you should retire
than a musical instrument.
ducer was purchased to
It is a thing of graceful
your old piano —
beauty, fashioned to har-
supplant it. The ques-
monize with the furniture
-| A new Period Model
tion of style alone did
of today - - - cabinet work
•^ will bring your home-
not apparently enter to
- - modern in price,
of unsurpassed quality with
smartly up-to-date!
any great degree.
in design and in
lines that merge the art or
•^ Wiley B. Allen Co. can
olden days wirh modern
wide range of va-
Since the period model
^ m a l c e a liberal allowance
tastes. And the variety there
riety has inspired
has become so sub-
on your old piano.
is to choose Irom !
this advertisement.
stantial a factor in the
ingenuity of modern
3 The
piano business, and par-
methods of manufacture
has held prices pleasantly
ticularly since the think-
low!
ing minds of the trade
Budget purchase devel-
have come to a realiza-
opments enable you to
tion that not only are
make the exchange without
William & M,ry
some hundreds of thou-
financial burden.
Vjueen Anne
sands of pianos in homes
Complete fall stocks give
Louis XV
out of tune and repair,
you a wide range of
Louis X V I
but that a substantial
choice
Florentine
proportion of them were
In the fill and winter
6 evenings
Latin Antique
absolutely useless from
you will receive
the fullest measure of enjoy-
a musical
standpoint
Jacobean
ment from the new piano!
''Prices from
$ 7 6 ^ to $ 1 1 0 0
and should be retired as
so much junk, there has
been
a
more
or
less
concerted
effort to have
VER 40 per cent of the retail piano busi-
ness during the past few years has been the public replace old instruments with new on
replacement business which means that the basis of keeping up with the times.
in over 40 per cent of retail transactions an
The old-time argument that the piano was
old piano has been taken in exchange and as purchased for a lifetime use has been hard to
part payment for the new. This replacement down, for there are those possessed of pianos
business is not in any sense new. It has been thirty, forty or even fifty years old who main
on the increase ever since the upright piano lain staunchly that they are in as good condition
first began to displace the old square. It has tonally and otherwise as when first purchased.
been accepted as a matter of course, and until These people refuse to believe that any piece
comparatively recently there has been little of mechanism in constant use for a quarte-- of
organized effort to build up this side of the a century or mare must show the effect? of
business to a point where it Wiii represent an wear regardless of how honestly it is construct
increasingly strong factor in the piano market. ed. Tne appeal, therefore, that apparently has
In the past the dealer has accepted the trade-in the most effect on this class is that of keeping
How old is your Piano?
PERIOD
PIANOS
4
5
O
in step with the changing styles in pianos that
are as logical as changing styles in the other
furnishings that go into the home.
If the thousands and thousands of old, oul-
of-style and in most cases useless instruments
now in American homes are to be moved in
any considerable quantities to make room for
modern instruments, including particularly the
period styles, something more than half-way
measures will be required on the part of the
trade. It will require much strong advertising,
as well as direct argument, to convince many
old piano owners that their instruments are
hopelessly antiquated, and that if they really
want to keep up with the neighobrs they must
see to it that the musical equipment of their
homes is in keeping with the other furnishings.
An excellent example of the sort of adver-
tising that is calculated to produce this desire
for a new piano to replace the old was offered
recently by the Wiley B. Allen Co., of San
Francisco, which devoted a large piece of copy
to telling the public that a piano out of date
is likewise out of place in the modern home.
The text does not mince matters, but says very
plainly that in many homes the piano is the
only thing that is conspicuously a relic of the
past.
The Wiley B. Allen Co. goes further by
pointing out that the old instrument has a
trade-in value and is, therefore, not an entire
loss; that modern instruments may be pur
chased at moderate prices, and on terms that do
not result in a financial burden. It is all a
part of the campaign, but the outstanding fea-
ture is the emphasis that is placed upon style.
It is estimated that the furniture in the
average comfortable home to-day is replaced
completely at ten-year intervals. This is not
to say that every piece of furniture is thrown
out after a decade of use, but beyond pieces
that are retained for their artistic or sentimental
value, the dining-room and living-room suites
and often bedroom furniture begins to show
wear and tear and becomes sufficiently out of
style in a decade to make its replacement
highly desirable. It is this replacement that
(Continued, on page 4)