Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, MAY, 19kl
men familiar with the necessity of get-
ting a minimum of 10%, altho we see
no concern in pianos now getting it.
One of our most distinguished houses
reports sales of $6,000,000 — just
amazing in pianos — with a net of
$400,000. Life Savers, and the Cream
of Wheat Co. each did $4,000,000 and
made $1,000,000 net, but we doubt if
any piano mfr. could ever get 25% net
on factory sales. Pearson Co., oper-
ating 11 stores, did $1,815,000 with a
net of $65,000—but 3|% net on retail
sales.
ERE pianos to now dupli-
cate the results of 1925
with its 3 2 5 , 0 0 0 piano
sales, it would still be
behind 35%—for the population has in-
creased by 25,000,000. Prices then
were higher than now, so in money
volume it would have to be increased
50% to be equal. This is why compari-
sons must be based on conditions of
equal value—thus if we all were to sell
500,000 pianos in 1941, we would
equal 1925, based on present unit of
sale. Actually, 500,000 pianos isn't
enough for a country of 35,000,000
families with a piano saturation of but
17-J-%. Refrigerators are 55% satura-
tion, and on radio—there are 50% more
sets than families. It is not a question
of money—we are inclined to believe
that the other boys in perhaps 35 in-
dustries, are out-selling us.
W
HE piano is an instrument for
the home, which with the
small 17£% saturation, really
is not yet accepted by
the public — is hardly more than a
"maybe" product. It is way down on
the list of "must" articles and we are
still in the stage of bargain promotion
to put pianos into homes. However,
that very able Larry Selz, who is giving
the piano men such valuable prodding
with piano clinics and other alert ideas
on sales development, will soon have
a "piano consumption" that will make
our present sales seem puny. Few
realize the value of the Selz promo-
T
tions, these being of the latest styling
in sales work with all the factors of
merchandising used by other indus-
tries.
S the public scared to buy a piano?
Is this due to the impression that
the piano is only for the rich?
Has there been an aloofness on
the part of the public due to the many
years of telling them that a piano is a
major product, and consequently it re-
quires a major jolt to get proper con-
sideration? Meant by this is that after
everything is purchased, then it is
"proper" to buy a piano. Perhaps if we
all stop thinking that a piano is such a
formidable article and requires so
much routine to get one, then the
public will get into a familiar mood
with pianos, and against the present
situation, think nothing more of getting
a piano than a new rug, sofa, range,
dining room set, garage, etc. Aloof-
ness of the piano as a product for the
home has done more to retard sales
than any other factor—it seems that its
purchasing is "major," which requires
a tremendous mental build up far ex-
ceeding the perfunctory buying habits
for so many other articles.
I
IANO purchasing should be
incidental, and not a 7-day-
wonder in the neighborhood,
latter having been developed
by the industry when the piano was a
mark of distinction. We believe that
the piano industry itself has built up
such a foolish public impression of the
"importance" of buying a piano that
this, in itself, is the brake on sales ad-
vancement. Couldn't we take it for
granted that every home should have a
piano, and that it is an incidental pur-
chase. Why should ownership of a
piano be a "mark of distinction" any
more than a refrigerator, washer, bath-
room, or bed? "What, you haven't a
piano in your home? I am surprised"
should be the comment rather than the
one used: "You must be a big man to
own a piano." Anything that works is
good, and it is suspected that pianos
put into the "must" classification by
promotion will get better than our
present method of "pedestal" tactics.
P