Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
thousand or two piano salesmen as sub-
scribers, and we presume that there are
others.
RELATING TO CLEARANCE SALES.
A REVIEW reader asks our opinion con-
cerning the clearance sale idea in the
piano trade. The clearance sale has been
adopted in almost every line of business as
a permanent feature, and in scanning the
advertising columns of papers in almost
every city, we invariably locate some such
announcements.
Now, whether they are profitable, or
whether they are quite the thing for this
trade is a pretty difficult question to an-
swer. This industry is steadily conform-
ing to the rules which govern general
trade, and applying strictly mercantile
reasons, it would seem as if the clearance
sale was all right.
Admittedly a clearance sale is a forced sale
and disturbs the natural flow of trade, for
it throws out the inducements in the way
of reduced price, tempting the public to
buy before there is an actual demand.
But, after all, what percentage of piano
customers really contract the buying habit
without having first received the warmest
kind of encouragement from salesmen ac-
centuated by advertising literature to which
their attention is constantly being brought?
In our opinion, the clearance sale should
not occur too frequently, and then only to
clean out an accumulation of unsalable
goods. The practice of holding these sales
at too frequent intervals is bound to cur-
tail the business of the concern holding
them during the remaining months before
the next sale; for if they adopt regular
periods for clearance sales the public is
pretty certain to wait until such occasions
arise before becoming purchasers. Apply-
ing sound business principles to the selling
of pianos, it cannot be a profitable hand-
ling of the goods at cut prices, for the fre-
quency of the sale is educating the people
to wait until such sales before making their
purchase.
There are many dealers with whom we
have discussed this subject who argue that
clearance sales bring them many new cus-
tomers who otherwise would not gravi-
tate to their stores were it not for their
announcement of unusual bargains.
Although it may not be generally real-
ized, the practice of clearance sales, if con-
tinued, is bound to bring about a condi-
tion which later on will be regretted. We
refer wholly to the regular clearance sales.
The educating of the people to wait for
these sales will cause the business of the
months between sales to fall off to an
alarming degree, for it is reasonable to
suppose that the public will buy when it
can buy the cheapest, and a month or two
will make no material difference with the
buyers of pianos. They can wait for the
sale and take advantage of the cut.
Close observers of trade conditions in
various localities say that the steady trade
that once prevailed in certain cities has
been interrupted, and the dull months are
becoming more frequent and unsatis-
factory.
It cannot be said that it is because of
the increase or over-doing of the business
in the city, for the increase in the number
of stores and the capital invested has not
kept pace with the increase of population.
Clearance sales disturb existing condi-
tions, and these sales must reduce the
profits if the goods are really sold at a re-
duction. If they are generally adopted
the result will be disastrous, for every
dealer who holds a sale must make the in-
ducement large enough to attract a buyer
—and that can bs only in reduced profits.
Still, there are times when a clearance
sale becomes a business expediency. Deal-
The ONLY music TRADE paper which
received any award at the Paris Exposi-
tion of 1900 was The Husic Trade Review
which was given the GRAND PRIX, the
HIGHEST official recognition obtainable
for any exhibit in any division of art, me-
chanics or industry.
ers have accumulated a lot of unsalable
stock—we will say instruments that are
out of date. They are simply cumbering
up valuable show space which could be
better utilized in displaying more salable
wares. It becomes a matter of straight
business to get rid of such goods at some
price. So there are kinds of clearing sales
which exercise a beneficial effect upon mer-
chandizing of all kinds.
HIGH-GRADE BUSINESS.
THHE bettered conditions of the country
have favored what we may term the
high-grade piano manufacturers.
While we were drifting along in the
days of Cleveland and free soup kitchens,
the innings of the high-grade manufactur-
ers were not strongly emphasized, for
their output was materially curtailed, ow-
ing to the reduced purchasing power of
the people.
No matter if the natural inclination of
the people leaned in the direction of high-
priced pianos, the depleted condition of
their pocket-books compelled them to pur-
chase the cheaper makes. In fact, for a
while there was a craze for the "cheaps"
which virtually swept the country. It
was a question of price and the quality
was of secondary consideration.
The
question oft propounded to the weary
traveling man was, "How cheap can you
sell me a piano, not how good, but how
cheap?"
With the recrudescence of good times
all that has changed and the darkness
which for awhile obscured the progress of
the high-grade manufacturers has been
illumined by the business sunshine of
these later days.
If we run the entire gamut of the high-
grade manufacturers we will find that the
activity prevailing in those lines has been
pronounced during the past year, while
there has been a corresponding shut down
upon the distribution of the "cheaps,"
which, by the way, are now being con-
stantly bettered and advanced to the me-
dium-priced field.
Those makers among whom we class in-
termediate piano manufacturers, have also
been extremely busy. The American peo-
ple, when they have the money, may be
depended upon to exercise discriminating
taste in the purchase of their auxiliaries of
home comfort, and they usually incline to
high-grade and high-priced articles.
The Review has always contended that
the cheap piano—that is, the very cheap
piano—belonged clearly to the emergency
class, born out of the starvation era, with
which this country, thank God and Mc-
Kinley, is not at the present time afflicted.
""THE cool weather for the past week had
a very stimulating effect upon trade
and many retail warerooms report a satis-
factory enlivenment of conditions. Un-
less we have really cool weather retail
trade in New York does not show great
activity before about the first of October.
The cold weather has sent the people
scurrying back from the various summer
resorts and there has been as a result ac-
tivity in all lines of local trade. The fall
season is now well on.
D U T your life into even the smallest task;
whether you preach, study, sell goods,
till the soil, saw wood, clean lamps, cook
food, or milk cows, do your best. There is
no task so small, no honest occupation so
common or menial, that it cannot be digni-
fied and ennobled by the character of the
doer. Not the thing you do, so much as
the doing reveals the character, the true
man. Everything you do can be made the
revelation of a great soul.
T H E man or the machine that quickest
works at maximum power is the most
effective. One man excels another not so
much by greater natural capacities as by
being able to bring them all into instant
play at full power. Some men are "all
there," as we say, every faculty alert and
ready, their highest intensity available at
otice for any work required.