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Published by The Music Trade Review, 420 Lexington Avenue, New York
H ere
ur Real
Market
By B. BRITTAIN WILSON
I
F they won't come to look at and hear the
band, bring the band to them. That, in
brief, is the plan followed by H. A. Wey-
mann & Son, Philadelphia, in building up
band instrument business with schools, military
and semi-military units and other organizations.
It works on the principle that seeing is believ-
ing, and it has been found that what was
formerly a lukewarm interest has been de-
veloped into a buying urge by just this method.
Take a high school, for instance. For one
reason or another the authorities are cool to-
wards the organization of a band. Perhaps they
claim that funds are not available for it, that
the parents are not interested, or that it will
interfere with the regular work of the school.
What is the Weymann answer? Simply to drive
up before that school with two or three bus-
loads of uniformed, youthful bandsmen from
Elks' Bugle Corps, Berwick, Pa.
tion. It costs some money, of course, to en-
gage the busses and to provide refreshments if
necessary, but where a potential order of $2,500
or more in band instruments rests in the bal-
Military organizations, fraternal organizations, and the
grade and high schools constitute the great market for
band organization, but H. A. Weymann & Son, of Phila-
delphia, work all channels and find this market a unit
some school in the vicinity and give a concert.
In nine times out of ten that demonstration
brings the result. The school authorities, for
instance, resent having a neighboring institu-
tion outshine them and are quick to give their
consent. The students, too, respond to the
spirit of rivalry and proffer their services for
the band. The result is a new school organiza-
ance, Weymann & Son feel that the investment
is well made.
Here is a thought for the dealer who has had
his problem in convincing the authorities of his
local schools, his local veteran organizations,
or the executives of his local fraternities that a
brass band would be a mighty fine thing, not
only as a means of entertainment, but as a
medium for advertising the organization and
the town in which it is located.
It does not require any advance student-
psychology to appreciate the feeling of the
students of a high school or the members of
an American Legion Post to have the band of
some rival organization from a nearby town
give a snappy band concert. The usual result
is to see a strong drive started for a band and
its equipment. The means for obtaining the
funds are many and varied, but the object is
definite, and when the instruments are bought
it is likely to be the dealer who started the
movement who gets the order.
Dealers often complain that manufacturers
and wholesalers frequently go into thgijr terri-
tories and equip bands, thus denying ^ihe local
man the profit to which he is justly entitled.
Yet Mr. Weymann declares that in a great
many cases this invasion of territory is really
the fault of the dealer himself, who either be-
cause of lack of capital or energy—quite fre-
quently the latter—does not prepare himself to
give the service necessary to secure the busi-