PRESTO
January 26, 1924.
WOULD CHANGE TIME
OF STOCKTAKING
Head of United States Music Co. Advocates
Dropping Ancient Business Custom So
as to Save the Best Days of the Busy
Season.
you fail to secure the
agency for the See-
burg O r c h e s t r i o n s
and coin-operated pi-
anos you miss an all-
year-round source of
profit—a maximum of
results for a minimum
of effort.
WHY NOT IN JUNE?
Arthur A. Friedstedt Suggests That Year's Balancing
Would Be Better if Done in the Days When
Trade Is Slowest.
''We need a change in some of our business cus-
toms," said Pres. Arthur A. Friestedt, of the United
States Music Co., Chicago. "The antiquated custom
of adjusting the year's business at the close of the
calendar year is not suited to the growing affairs of
a large business. It may have been well in earlier
times, but at this period in the world's progress the
that probably few have given any thought to the
change to which the head of the U. S. Music Com-
pany draws attention.
Mr. Friestedt has referred the proposition to the
Music Industries Chamber of Commerce, and he be-
lieves that the revenue departments of the govern-
ment at Washington would be willing to consider the
change, so far as the income reports are concerned,
to meet requirements.
It is not a matter for trade paper conclusions, fur-
ther than that the idea seems a good one because it,
following the suggestion of Mr. Friedstedt, enables
the manufacturers and merchants to take up the
book-balancing work at a season when things are nat-
urally dull, instead of breaking into the invaluable
days of the mid-winter rush of business.
Most Important Consideration.
Of course, there can be no special advantage in
business making its final entries when the calendar
year ends. Any other time would be just as well,
once business had become accustomed to it. And it
must seem that the most important consideration in
such matters is that of accommodating details of
stock-taking, and the summing up of the years' af-
fairs, for purposes of individual needs and taxation,
to the well being of business and its continued pros-
perity, which is also the nation's prosperity.
In any event, ideas in business are always valu-
able. It is certain that, with his accustomed energy
and serious views of what is best for the music busi-
ness Mr. Friestedt will discover the feeling of others
in the matter of the change to which this article has
drawn attention.
GOOD POOLE BUSINESS
IN YEAR JUST CLOSED
Pleasant Fact Disclosed at Recent Annual Meeting at
Which Election Was Held.
v The annual meeting of the Poole Piano Company,
Boston, was held last week at the offices and the
reading of reports for the year just closed disclosed
very cheering facts. The outline of plans for the
further expanding of the sales of Poole instruments
was a pleasant contribution to the business of the
meeting by D. E. Fabyan, sales manager.
At the election the old officers were re-elected as
follows: Ava W. Poole, president and general man-
ager; E. C. Parkhurst, treasurer; H. L. Davis, factory
superintendent; and D. E. Fabyan, sales manager.
Mr. Fabyan said every day brought assurances of
the strength of the Poole Piano Co.'s line in the sales
field and of the loyalty of the Poole dealers. These,
he said, were representative of the best in th trade,
dealers who appreciated reliable instruments of a
high quality kind.
They appeal to the
very best class of trade
because of their real
musical efficiency and
artistic appearance.
ARTHUR A. FRIESTEDT.
They represent the
acme of durability and
simplicity of construc-
tion. "The sales stick."
Write for catalogs
and full information.
J. P. SEEBURG
PIANO CO.
Factory
Offices
1508-16 Dayton St.
1510 Dayton St.
CHICAGO, ILL.
midwinter days are too valuable to be given over to
details which might as well be attended to in the sum-
mer season, when there is little else to do."
Of course Mr. Friestedt referred directly to the
exigencies of the music trade and industry. As the
head of a large music roll industry, the arms of which
reach over the entire country, and a good part of the
world beyond, he knows what it is that may interfere
with business, and he has made a study of such details
as that of casting up accounts at the calendar period
instead of arranging for a fiscal accounting at a
time more suited to conditions.
Too Busy in Mid-Winter.
"In mid-winter we are busiest," continued Mr. Frie-
stedt. ''To go over every detail of factory, sales and
stock at the very time when we are crowded with the
effort to get out the goods and supply our customers,
is a serious interference with the smoothly moving
affairs. It necessitates almost a suspension of trade.
It calls for .the calling in of traveling salesmen, and
the slowing down of the factory wheels.
"It is a serious interruption of progress at the time
when we need every hour of time, and every ounce of
power, to keep up. It is my idea that if a fiscal year
could be agreed upon by which, say June 1st, in-
stead of January 1st, could be made the date of the
annual accounting, things would move more smoothly
and satisfactory to the manufacturers in many lines—
certainly in ours, and enable industry to keep going
the year 'round. In any event, I'd like to have the
suggestion broadcasted by the trade press, and I be-
lieve the idea would be approved by all branches of
the music industry and trade, in any event."
Head of Big Industry.
Mr. Friestedt has developed a large industry in his
special line of the music trade. The United States
Music Co. is now a large employer of skilled labor
and experienced salesmanship. Mr. Friestedt has
shown that he knows how to promote a special line
of business and, of course, he is a man who looks
ahead and sees the changes which may improve busi-
ness conditions. The custom of closing the books
at the close of the calendar year has become so fixed
LONGVIEW, ONLY YEAR OLD, HAS
WELL EQUIPPED MUSIC STORE
Town That Sprung Up Within a Few Months Se-
lected for Sherman & Clay Branch.
Sherman, Clay & Co. have put in a branch store at
the new city of Longview, down the Columbia river
on the Washington side, fifty miles from Portland,
Ore. The new branch is a departure from the firm's
past plan of having branch stores only at the largest
coast cities, and supplying the smaller cities and
towns on the coast by consignment. The new branch
will be in charge of C. T. Sawyer, who has been with
the firm for the past eleven years, the last six having
been their field representative. The musical mer-
chandise department will be in charge of R. R. Rob-
inson, formerly of Chicago, and the leader of the
newly organized band at Longview.
The city of Longview sprang from nothing within
the past year and has been planned from the ground
up by the interests of the Long-Bell Lumber com-
pany, one of the biggest lumber concerns in the
world. Conservative people estimate that Longview
will be a city of over 50,000 within the next five
years.
NEW GENERAL MANAGER.
Herbert D. VerVecr has been appointed general
manager of L. M. Pierce Co., with headquarters in
Springfield, Mass.
Mr. VerVeer recently arrived
from Grand Rapids, Mich., where he was associated
with Chaffee Bros., furniture dealers, who have a
large piano and talking machine department. Mr.
VerVeer was graduated from Kalamazoo, Mich.,
Normal. He taught school for a short time. Later
he entered the employ of Chaffee Bros, as book-
keeper and soon was promoted.
Schedules in bankruptcy were recently filed by
Philip Pravder, Inc., New Rochelle, N. Y., dealer in
pianos and phonographs. Liabilities at $61,569 and
assets at $29,771 were reported.
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