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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, FEBRUARY, 1W
Sixteenth Census of the
United S t a t e s : l?40
DEPARTMENT OF COlfiffiRCE
BUREAU OF THE CENSUS
(Preliminary r e p o r t )
WASHINGTON
December 1 4 , 1940
I n d u s t r i e s Nos. 2031,
2032, 2033, and 2039
CENSUS OF MANUFACTURES: 1939
Musical I n s t r u m e n t s and P a r t s
1939
1937
Percent of
Increase or
decrease (-)
35
512
$1,111,252
5,311
$6,123,348
38
561
$1,120,504
5,698
$7,062,299
-8.7
-O.8
-6.8
-13.3
$10,124,236
$20,493,110
$10,368,874
$9,766,777
$21,703,055
$11,936,278
3.7
-5.6
-13.1
Pianos Industry
Number of establishments
Salaried personnel 1/
Salaries 1 / 2 /
Wage earners (average for the year) "jjJ
Yteges 2 / 2 /
Cost of materials, supplies, fuel, purchased
electric energy, and contract work 2/
Value of products 2/
Value added by manufacture 4/
(•)
,
THE MUSIG TRADE REVIEW, FEBRUARY, 1940
Ing should be included in-our business
formulo--for 194O. With constant en-
deavor to secure better wholesale
prices, also should go intensive work
to pare costs, as while perhaps it was
indavisable to do this two or three
years ago, it is now believed that there
will be a constantly growing piano
business which should be handled on
the one aim of getting proper factory
profits—a minimum of 10% net.
T
Q&'
HIRTY piano factories doing a
business of roughly $17,000,-
000.00 for 100,000 pianos
should net $17 a piano—and
by net we mean proper depreciation
and all the other accurate charges
based upon rational cost accounting.
We hear too much about $5 per piano
factory profits. Unless it is a case
where the boss draws out $50,000 for
himself, and then leaving $5 per piano,
there seems no sense for mfrs. to be
working for a pittance. Continuance of
the past 5 years of growth of piano
acceptance, on a profit hand-to-mouth
basis, will find our plants inadequate
to handle the business. Without some
extra dough in the kitty to care for
expansion and the improvement of pro-
duction facilities the industry will find
the dealers on the spot to get pianos
to sell.