Classic Mode

Presto

Issue: 1920 1773

Page 4 Text:

PRESTO
PRESTO
PUBLISHED EVERY SATURDAY AT 407 SOUTH DEAR-
BORN STREET, OLD COLONY BUILDING, CHICAGO, ILL.
C. A. DANIELL and FRANK D. ABBOTT
Editors
Telephones, Local and Long Distance, Harrison 234. Private Phones to all De-
partments. Cable Address (Commercial Cable Co.'s Code), "PRESTO," Chicago.
Entered as second-class matter Jan. 29, 1896, at the Post Office, Chicago, Illinois,
under Act of March 3, 1879.
Subscription, $2 a year; 6 months, $1; Foreign, $4. Payable in advance. No extra
charge in U. S. possessions, Canada, Cuba and Mexico.
Address all communications for the editorial or business departments to PRESTO
PUBLISHING CO., 407 So. Dearborn Street, Chicago, III.
Advertising Rates:—Five dollars per inch (13 ems pica) for single insertions.
Complete schedule of rates for standing cards and special displays will be furnished
on request. The Presto does not sell its editorial space. Payment is not accepted for
articles of descriptive character or other matter appearing in the news columns. Busi-
ness notices will be indicated by the word "advertisement" in accordance with the
Act of August 24, 1912.
Rates for advertising in Presto Year Book Issue and Export Supplements of
Presto will be made known upon application. Presto Year Book and Export issues
have the most extensive circulation of any periodicals devoted to the musical in-
strument trades and industries in all parts of the world, and reach completely and
effectually all the houses handling musical instruments of both the Eastern and West-
ern hemispheres.
Presto Buyers' Guide is the only reliable index to the American Pianos and
Player-Pianos, it analyzes all instruments, classifies them, gives accurate estimates
of their value and contains a directory of their manufacturers.
Items of news and other matter of general interest to the music trades are in-
vited and when accepted will be paid for. All communications should be addressed to
Presto Publishing Co., 407 So. Dearborn Street, Chicago, III.
SATURDAY, JULY 17, 1920.
TO CORRESPONDENTS.
PRESTO IS ALWAYS GLAD TO RECEIVE NEWS OF THE
TRADE—ALL KINDS OF NEWS EXCEPT PERSONAL SLANDER
AND STORIES OF PETTY MISDEEDS BY INDIVIDUALS. PRESTO
WILL PRINT THE NAMES OF CORRESPONDENTS WHO SEND IN
"GOOD STUFF" OR ARE ON THE REGULAR STAFF. DON'T SEND
ANY PRETTY SKETCHES, LITERARY ARTICLES OR "PEN-PIC-
TURES." JUST PLAIN NEWS ABOUT THE TRADE—NOT ABOUT
CONCERTS OR AMATEUR MUSICAL ENTERTAINMENTS, BUT
ABOUT THE MEN WHO MAKE MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS AND
THOSE WHO SELL THEM. REPORTS OF NEW STORES AND
THE MEN WHO MAKE RECORDS AS SALESMEN ARE GOOD. OF-
TEN THE PIANO SALESMEN ARE THE BEST CORRESPONDENTS
BECAUSE THEY KNOW WHAT THEY LIKE TO READ AND HAVE
THE OPPORTUNITIES FOR FINDING OUT WHAT IS "DOING" IN
THE TRADE IN THEIR VICINITY. SEND IN THE N E W S -
ALL YOU CAN GET OF IT—ESPECIALLY ABOUT YOUR OWN
BUSINESS.
PLACE YOUR ORDERS NOW
Piano and playerpiano dealers must order their instruments from
the manufacturers right now, or get left in the Fall.
When they order, they must not order for any specified or definite
date of shipment, but allow the manufacturer to ship as soon as the
railroad companies will accept shipment. It will be futile for dealers
to order for delivery in September, October, November or early De-
cember; for the plain reason that no shipments can be guaranteed.
There are many carloads of pianos in the factories of Chicago now
that are not shipped, because there are no cars available.
The dealer can see for himself that the railroad companies can not
accept shipments of pianos in July, owing to the use of the cars in
moving the farmers' crops. Furthermore, the railroad companies are
all out of equipment.
Bread grain crops, wheat, oats, rye and barley, aggregate 2,416,-
000,000 bushels in the United States, or 55,000,000 bushels more than
indicated in June and 27,000,000 bushels less than the final returns of
last year. With a prospective corn crop of 2,779,000,000 bushels, there
is a total on the five grains of 5,195,000,000 bushels, or 165,000,000
bushels less than last year. These figures are given in the government
crop report for July, issued last Friday afternoon.
As this grain constitutes the staple food of this nation, as well as
a large part of the sustenance of the rest of the world—civilized, semi-
civilized, sovietized, bolshevickized, long-haired and street-comer-
box-oratorized, king-worshipers and fetish-followers—it is easy to un-
derstand why the transportation managers give its movement priority
over anything as unobstructive as a piano in a wooden box.
There is stagnation of freight everywhere. The Goldsmith Piano
Company of Chicago is one of the industries whose activities are tem-
porarily clogged by freight embargoes. The industry named has three
carloads of lumber standing somewhere undliverd in on of the vast
yards, on which the freight was paid three weeks ago. Many other
manufacturing companies are having similar experiences in dealing
with freight handling transportation companies.
While freight conditions seem to get easier in one locality, they
July 17, 1920.
grow annoyingly worse in a dozen other sections of this great country.
Railroad managers complain that they are short of everything that
goes for 100 per cent efficiency in hauling merchandise, yet claim that
they are doing wonders considering all the conditions. Just now they
are writing letters asking manufacturers to bide their time in patience;
that all will come out right in the wash.
But piano manufacturers have been fooled too often to be wheed-
led into anything like complaisant waiting by such epistolary cajolery.
They are taking no chances, but are shipping right away to the deal-
ers who have the good sense to ask for immediate action.
In this connection there could be no clearer warning than is im-
plied in the following which is part of the confidential resume of
events supplied to the trade by one of the largest player-piano indus-
tries in New York. It presents cold facts in a way that permits of
no questioning, and is so suggestive of what may happen to piano
dealers who are so afflicted with the putting-off habit that they are
almost sure to be caught short of stock when the fall trade sets in.
The net shortage of freight cars increased 28% from the middle of May to
early in June. The total deficit was greater by about 23,000 cars. This is
definite evidence that no improvement is at hand, but rather that a still greater
stringency is about to obtain. Moreover the pending increase of freight rates
which will be an advance of from 25 to 30% will probably be granted before
September first.
In view of these conditions, merchants should make every possible effort
and arrangement to get their Fall and Winter goods in their establishments at
the earliest possible moment, if they plan to have a normal stock on hand
for this business. Few have given sufficient consideration to what the 25% in-
crease in freight rates means to them.
Business has been rather quiet in the East, and probably will be
so until the latter part of August, unless it becomes possible for man-
ufacturers to make the dealers understand the menace of the freight
embargo so that the trade will place advance orders for fall ship-
ments.
SHEET MUSIC SELLING
The average piano dealer who overlooks the possibilities of sell-
ing sheet music is making a mistake. There is money, and something
more, in a well stocked sheet music department. And there are reasons
why the average piano house should take advantage of a public de-
mand in which there is a good profit, with comparatively small invest-
ment and almost no worry at all.
Of course the large, well equipped music house already has its
sheet music department, in which all popular as well as classic publi-
cations are kept in stock. There the sheet music department is an
essential factor in the business. But in the smaller music store—the
average piano business—the sheet music counter means something
that does not apply equally to the larger one.
The small piano store, conducted by one man, or by the proprietor
and his salesman, must have someone always in the store to keep a
record of callers. If the proprietor is himself the salesman—as often
is the case,—then the outside work necessitates his absence from the
store much of the time. The drop-ins are not numerous enough to
justify him putting in his entire time in the store.
But if the dealer is to prosper, he must keep "open house," and
not make his office under his hat. This means that someone must
be on hand all of the business time. The sheet music counter justi-
fies the presence of a clerk who can take care of chance callers, and
the work of the music clerk may thus easily be made doubly profitable.
Often a young lady is as good a clerk as a man would be. She may
have the music-love and the ability to "try over" new music, and so
help to make the music store a popular point in the activities of the
town.
The sheet music counter, and the stock need not be extensive. It
is easy to make such terms with the publishers as will insure constant
supplies of the latest publications. The shelves should carry the
standard pieces and, as sold, the wrappers should be replenished. The
counter should be Kept up and always present the neat and attractive
appearance which the very word "music" suggests. The sheet music
counter will give to the average, or small, piano store all of the follow-
ing advantages:
A better appearance.
A permanent attendant, if not an actual piano salesman.
An activity impossible to pianos alone.
An attraction to the public which is a strong advertisement.
An asset which, in its material, cumulative character grows rap-
idly.
A prospect-finding influence to which no other effort can compare.
A sure source of revenue and profit.
Enhanced content © 2008-2009 and presented by MBSI - The Musical Box Society International (www.mbsi.org) and the International Arcade Museum (www.arcade-museum.com).
All Rights Reserved. Digitized from the archives of the MBSI with support from NAMM - The International Music Products Association (www.namm.org).
Additional enhancement, optimization, and distribution by the International Arcade Museum. An extensive collection of Presto can be found online at http://www.arcade-museum.com/library/

Page 5 Text:

r
PRESTO
July 17, 1920.
It is certain that every piano merchant who has not installed a
sheet music department will find this suggestion a good one. Stress
has been placed upon the smaller store because the larger ones usually
have sheet music departments, many of them carrying also all, or
nearly all, of the lesser musical instruments. And there are few com-
munities so small that a line of small instruments may not profitably
be made a part of the sheet music department.
If you have not tried the sheet music counter, get in touch with
some wide-awake music publishing house like the McKinley Music
Co. of Chicago and New York, and see how easy it may be done, and
upon how profitable a basis.
TINKERS AND TUNERS
It isn't often that a piano dealer is a practical piano tuner. But
all of them are sufficiently versed in the details of their business to
know when a piano is out of tune. And few of them fail to recognize
the fact that pianos in stock that are not in good tune are not, for the
time being, salable pianos.
Piano tuning is a matter of importance in the store no less, and
perhaps no more, than in the home. Many piano _stores can not em-
ploy their own special tuners. Among the so-called "small" dealers,
there are some who can themselves tune. They are fortunate, for
they not only save the expense, but keep themselves in trim by look-
ing after their stock. Better still, is it to have an arrangement with
some thoroughly competent local tuner who will go over the stock at
intervals and attend to outside tuning on order.
In some places, where the business doesn't justify a staff of regu-
lar tuners, local tuners may be arranged with to call daily for orders,
and to attend to store tuning within a stated time after notification.
Usually small town tuners have their own routes, which they "cover"
at stated intervals; their services may be secured for times between
trips.
Of course if the business is sufficiently large to justify it, the
better plan is to have a regular store tuner. And in most communities
his services can be made so valuable that the wage is a small item, as
compared with the results of his work in both money and the satis-
faction of having him ready to "go over" new arrivals and before the
instruments go out from the store.
A good tuner and repair man is always an advantage, and. today
it is even more essential that he have an intimate knowledge of player
piano construction. In New York there is a large player piano school,
attendance at which costs nothing, and the instructions are invaluable.
Other schools exist, one of them centrally located at Valparaiso,
Indiana, where pupils are taught in a few months to become expert
in player piano repairs. It often pays the dealer well to send trusted
employes to the schools for such equipment of skill as must add
greatly to the efficiency of the store.
It is well known that there are nearly 10,000 separate pieces to
• an ordinary piano, and nearly three times as many in a player piano.
The piano's strings have a combined tension of more than fifteen tons,
and the ever changing temperature and humidity of air causes con-
traction and expansion of all the parts of the instrument. It is not
necessarily playing upon the piano that "puts it out of tune." On the
contrary, an instrument that is properly used will retain its beauty
of tone longer than one that is neglected. So that it is clear that the
tuner is a very important factor in the piano business.
As in all professions, there are all kinds and qualities of tuners.
Some of them, unworthy of the name, may more properly be called
tinkers. No piano merchant can be so blind or deaf, as to permit the
tinkers to put hammer to the instruments in his store or to commend
them, without investigation, and so possibly cause havoc with the
instruments in the homes of his neighbors and customers.
ESTABLISHING A BUSINESS
Having decided upon a location the most vital consideration,
after the inherent energies of the man, is the selection of the right line
of instruments. There are pianos in which the selling power is fixed
and so forceful that they draw trade to whatever store may represent
them.
Of course not all piano dealers can secure those instruments at
the start. They are probably already represented in most of the prom-
ising localities. Consequently the next best thing is to find instru-
ments in which are similar characteristics, and which may in time
become, locally at least, just as salable and profitable.
Most piano dealers do not begin business for themselves until
they have acquired some knowledge of pianos and the piano business.
It is often spoken of as "the game." There is no more "game" to it
than to other high class lines of trade. But there is more to learn
than in some other lines of business.
The successful music store is conducted by hard working, alert
and resourceful business men, who realize that music is essential to
human happiness and is a part of every community's everyday life.
The well conducted music store is made the center of the kind of
community refinement that counts for the intellectual advancement
of the people. It draws the best people in the place. Its manager
must be correspondingly ambitious to see that his part in the general
uplift is of the right kind. And the "new" dealer's beginning will
largely settle his ultimate success and progress. That is why it is
essential to start with good instruments, in which the commenda-
tion will be hearty, and the character of the merchant fixed in a large .
sense by the character of the goods he offers for sale.
The first thing, then, for the new piano merchant is to secure a
fine instrument for his leader. It must be an instrument that will sus-
tain, his best enthusiasm and move forward side by side with his own
name, or the name that appears on his signs and letter-heads. Next,
he must have a good "second"—one that will also sustain his best
efforts. And he must have at least one reliable instrument of the
so-called popular grade. It will not matter much how many makes
he carries, but it is usually well not to overdo in that respect. The
manufacturers are more apt to value the business of a dealer who
places a good share of his faith and his efforts in their own products,
and refuses to scatter over too wide a field in the choice of the instru-
ments he sells.
Don't handle "stencil pianos." They hurt the dealer often, and
even if the profit at first seems large, in the end the depreciation is
great and the net results do not justify the effort which is too often
misdirected. Stick loyally to the manufacturers whose instruments
you represent, and build up a local trade which in time will prove
valuable to you because you control, in your territory, the instru-
ments whose names you have made known upon a foundation of their
substantial beauty and quality.
What has been said in this editorial may serve as a reply to let-
ters which frequently come to this paper from active men who are
considering the piano business. It is a common event for the trade
papers to have prospective dealers, or salesmen in other lines, ask
about the prospects and possibilities of this line of merchandising. It
is easy to make answer. There is no other business in which energy,
persistency and correct principles more surely meet with liberal re-
ward or in which success comes with a greater sense of satisfaction
of doing and overcoming in the peaceful battle of life.
Primarily, inspiration is the well-spring of many an idea, but
the faculty upon which imagination and business plan are built is
observation. The observing reporter holds his position, the unob-
serving reporter does not; nor does the unobserving traveling man
last long. A man is on the road to losing his job when he can find
in the world before him only a dull blank, with nothing left remark-
able in it.
The twist of time and the force of genius in promotion have
brought some of the small pianos of a few years back to the forefront.
The same forces, in reverse ratio, have left some of the one-time,
great pianos high and dry on the shoals of doubt and decay. But
there are not many of the latter kind, and there will be still fewer cf
them.
* * *
It's a safe bet that the next President of the U. S. A. will be a
small-town newspaper editor. And equally safe that he will be an
Ohioan. It was once the popular idea that only lawyers made first
class law-makers. But with an editor following a school teacher,
what may we not expect next? Possibly a piano maker!
There are many educated persons who have little better pro-
tection against delusions and sophisms than the uneducated; for the
simple reason that their education, though prolonged and elaborate,
was still not of a kind to train their judgment and reasoning powers.
Close attention to business, care in the use of money, ability to
estimate rightly demand and supply, prudence in making investments,
good executive ability—all these are recognized as elements of busi-
ness success.
* * *
Better order more instruments while you are about it; as it is
you may have to wait a few days longer for them. By that time you
will have sold what stock you have, and the customers will be wanting
more.
Enhanced content © 2008-2009 and presented by MBSI - The Musical Box Society International (www.mbsi.org) and the International Arcade Museum (www.arcade-museum.com).
All Rights Reserved. Digitized from the archives of the MBSI with support from NAMM - The International Music Products Association (www.namm.org).
Additional enhancement, optimization, and distribution by the International Arcade Museum. An extensive collection of Presto can be found online at http://www.arcade-museum.com/library/

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