February 23, 1929
LATE TRADE NEWS
FROM NEW YORK
Interesting Items Show Activities in Various
Phases of the Trade and Attitude of Deal-
ers, Jobbers and Manufacturers
Are Represented.
The Baldwin Piano Company's store at 20 East
54th street, New York, is experiencing a livelier trade
since the first of February, according to W. H.
Weilage, the manager, who is very much encouraged
over the first few weeks' business in February. H. C.
Dickinson, general manager at Chicago, was at the
New York store for three or four days recently. It is
always a pleasure for the New York salesmen to have
Mr. Dickinson at the store.
G. J. Sexton on Piano Permanence.
Wissner & Sons is having pretty fair mid-winter
trade at its store, 24 West 50th street, New York.
G. J. Sexton, the manager, has some clear-cut ideas
about the changes that are likely to take place in the
piano trade in 1929. He said that personal contact
is the only selling force that can endure in the piano
business. He has grown up in it, having worked at
the bench in his younger days and selling and man-
aging stores for a great many years. He has long
believed that the piano business cannot be cornered
and conducted by great syndicates. The permanent
business in pianos for the future, he believes, will be
carried on in a more moderate way—each individual
dealer with his own group of customers where per-
sonal contact and acquaintance will count for making
sales rather than any glowing advertisements of
gigantic corporations. Wissner & Sons is still manu-
facturing its own pianos at its plant in Brooklyn.
Krakauer Man's Travels.
A. S. Zeisler, of Krakauer Bros., made a short trip
this week to the cities and towns of Eastern Penn-
sylvania.
B. K. Settergren on the Road.
B. K. Settergren, of the B. K. Settergren Piano
Co., Bluffton, Ind., who has been stopping at the
Hotel Woodstock on West 43rd street, New York,
checked out on February 3, and is now on the road
somewhere hustling for orders.
Laffargue Trade Is Fair.
Max de Rochemont, president of the Laffargue Com-
pany, was seen at his factory office, 455-59 East
147th street, New York, on February 6. He said he
had kept the factory running and the company had
a fairly good January. He is confident that the piano
is with us to stay, for he says without pianos there
could be no piano music radioed; without pianos,
orchestral instruments could not be tuned; without
pianos the whole system of music would fall flat.
And the world is so musical today that it will never
want to give up its music as it is revealed and un-
folded by the marvellousness of the piano's range.
Everybody has some sense of music, Mr. de Roche-
mont says—if they can't sing, they'll whistle. And
who wants to fall on plain whistling when he has a
daughter or a wife at home who can play the piano
divinely?
Summer Band Concerts.
A plan has been agreed upon by the Park Com-
missioners of New York for broadcasting summer
band concerts on the Mall in Central Park, at the
Stadium of the College of the City of New York and
in Prospect Park, Brooklyn.
Great Mergers Squeeze Smaller Concerns.
In chatting with George Doll of the great Doll
& Sons manufacturing plant in the Bronx, I asked
him what he thought were the causes of such strenu-
ous conditions in the piano business; that is, why it
was more difficult to conduct a great piano business
now than it was just a few years ago. He gave as
one of the reasons that there were too many mergers
of great corporations. Great banks were running to-
gether to form greater banks; great systems of tele-
graph and telephone companies were merging; chain
stores were springing up with new systems over
night, and of course many of the smaller concerns
had to buckle up under the fiercer competition of the
giants. But, he said, like everything else, those
changes were self-regulatory. And he firmly believes
that the changes that are coming in the piano busi-
ness will put the whole trade on a better basis.
Kelso & Co. Quitting Business.
Kelso & Co., piano manufacturers at 421 West
28th street, New York, Miss M. C. Kelso, owner, is
closing out its business. Miss Kelso said that she
expected to close up the place at the end of this
month and cease manufacturing pianos altogether.
The reason she gave was the general decline of the
piano business. Miss Kelso owns a beautiful home
li
PRESTO-TIMES
in Tenafly, N. J., where she expects to reside quietly
for a time and then do some traveling in foreign
lands.
Great Musician Dies at 91.
August Arnold, conductor of choral society and
teacher of music, died on February 14 at his home,
79 Thomas street, Bloomfield, N. J. Mr. Arnold
was born in Bremen, Germany, and was 91 years old.
At one time he gave several concerts in New York.
Several years ago he was leader of the Germania
Club and was founder of the August Arnold Con-
servatory of Music, which he supervised twelve years.
IMPORTANT PURCHASE
AT ZANESVILLE, OHIO
Negotiations by Spence Music Company to
Buy H. D. Munson & Sons Music
Store Are Successful.
Purchase of the H. D. Munson & Sons music stores
in Newark and Zanesville. Ohio, by the Spence Music
Company of Zanesville for a reported consideration of
$50,000 was announced last week by E. O. Callander,
Shale and McConville Both on the Road.
manager of the Spence interests. Present plans call
J. H. Shale, president of the R. B. Chase-Emerson for the continuance of the Newark store in the west
Corporation, 11 West 42nd street, New York, is on end of the Arcade, while the Zanesville store may be
a trip through the central west, including Chicago, discontinued as the Spence company has a store in
and Charles McConville, Chase-Emerson general trav- that city.
eler, is on a trip through New Jersey and Pennsyl-
E. H. Frame, who has been manager of the New-
vania. At the Chase-Emerson offices it was learned ark store for the past sixteen years, voluntarily retires
that piano orders are coming in much better this and will enter other business. B. S. Swingle of Zanes-
month than in any other month this winter.
ville took charge of the local store in the capacity of
W. B. Armstrong Touring Florida.
temporary manager.
W. B. Armstrong, Fifth avenue and 44th street.
The taking of inventory in the two stores of the
New York city, capitalist and stockholder in the Munson company has been begun and plans for the
American Piano Company, is now touring Florida in operation of the agencies will be announced later by
his own machine. He makes his southern headquar- the board of directors of the Spence Music Company.
The sale of the H. D. Munson & Sons Company
ters at Miami, but this time he is determined to see
the whole state of Florida, and is finding much marks the passing of one of the oldest piano and
pleasure in exploring it. He will be back in his music store firms in southeastern Ohio. The business
was started by the late H. D. Munson in 1869, and
office, 535 Fifth avenue, New York, in March.
has been continued by his sons and their associates.
D. L. Loomis on Good-Will Trip.
The Spence Music Company was organized ten
Delbert L. Loomis, executive secretary of the Na-
tional Music Merchants' Assoc:'ation, 45 West 45th years ago in Zanesville and a large business has been
developed through a progressive policy. The direc-
street. New York, was in Tampa, Florida, February torate includes the following men: Hon. C. T. Mar-
17. At his office it was said that he is touring the shall, chief justice of the Ohio Supreme Court; H. J.
south in the interests of the Association, securing new
Knoedler, president of the Old Citizens' bank; Guy
members and working as an ambassador of good will. Fergus, of the Fergus Electrical Company, and E. O.
George G. Foster at Miami, Fla.
Callander, manager of the firm.
George G. Foster, stockholder in The American
Piano Company, and in The Chase-Emerson Piano
AID TO EXPORTER.
Company, New York, who recently opened beautiful
The fifth edition of "Manufacturers of America
new offices at 270 Madison avenue, New York, is Registered for Export" has just been published by
(Continued on page 16)
the Commercial Museum, Thirty-fourth street below
Spruce, Philadelphia. The book is sent throughout
CLOSING-OUT SALE.
the world and is a great aid to foreign business men
A closing-out sale of the stock of the C. R. Left- in forming connections with American business con-
wich Store, owned by the late C. R. Leftwich, has cerns. In it are the names of 218 Philadelphia con-
cerns which carry on an export business and the
been announced. The stock includes a number of
names of 100 other Pennsylvania manufacturers.
high grade pianos and small musical merchandise.
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