Music Trade Review
Issue: 1900 Vol. 31 N. 4 - Page 5
Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
business enterprises into the trust crucible
in return for which they have received
only dross.
Happy is the piano manufacturer who
yielded not to the blandishments of the
trust promoter and the oily music trade
editor, for he is now in complete posses-
sion of a business enterprise instead of
having in his pockets a lot of worthless
trust paper. The trusts are on the decline.
VARIED INFORMATION,
these lines have been appreciated, is dem-
onstrated by the many letters which we
have received from dealers in relation to
this subject. A dealer at the national
capital whose store fronts on a busy street,
has a wide, deep window, and recently
dressed his window in a style out of the
ordinary, using small instruments as an ar-
tistic background to a piano display. He
wrote to The Review:
" I was surprised to see how many peo-
ple stopped to look into that window and
apparently took close notice of the instru-
ments displayed there. Men, women and
children, everyone it seemed glanced in.
Just three-fourths of them gave a glance
that was sufficient to give them general in-
formation about the goods displayed, and
then took a visual survey of the interior
of the store."
Tremendous advertising power is too
frequently entirely wasted or injured just
by dealers who maintain window displays
are too much trouble to bother with.
There is valuable advertising space run-
ning to waste.
A NOTHER interesting series of business
talks with dealers is presented else-
where in this paper. Covering completely
every section of the country, we receive
a valuable consensus of opinions of busi-
ness men, regarding topics which are
pregnant with interest for manufacturer
and dealer alike. Thus far the trend of
opinion points toward a comparatively
slight interference with business by the
political struggle which we are about to
enter in the good old-fashioned way.
The opinions as chronicled in The Re-
view indicate that prosperity is general
and that piano merchants as a whole take
a most optimistic view of the future of the
ENCOURAGING STATISTICS.
trade.
HP HE Government reports of exports of
There are indeed few pessimistic replies
musical merchandise for the year end-
to our queries, and the interviews, as a ing June 30 demonstrates that even in
whole, form a most substantial argument what we popularly term the "small goods "
in favor of the retention of the present ad- line, the American inventive and mechani-
ministration. To our minds, no opinions cal intelligence is making rapid headway
can be of greater weight in business calcu- against the antiquated factory system of
lations than those of men who are daily en- Europe. It was claimed by many that
gaged in the struggle for retail trade. our high tariff would render it impossible
Methods of competition, too, have gener- for American manufacturers to build a
ally improved, as will be noted by the trade abroad. We may say that we have
opinions of dealers.
steadily progressed in all lines, but as The
There is decided encouragement in all of Review appeals directly to those interested
the expressions thus far brought out in musical industries, it may not be amiss
for the future of the industry, both in to give figures regarding our growth of ex-
a business and in a moral sense. By all port trade in musical instruments and all
means read the opinions of live and ener- parts thereof exclusive of pianos. In '95 we
getic dealers regarding business prospects exported $241,966 worth of musical instru-
for the fall. Seldom has such an array of ments; in the year ending June 30, 1900,
varied trade information been presented we exported $551,896. Truly not a large
showing when compared with other indus-
in our columns.
After reading the information which we tries, but a verysatisfactory percentage of
present one cannot but feel that the gen- increase. At the beginning of the decade,
eral business situation is promising and in the year 1890, the total exports of small
that confidence is still being stimulated by goods amounted only to $141,182. There
the improved outlook for crops. Every- is a satisfactory percentage of growth for
where it would seem as if the wheels of small American instruments abroad.
In pianos and organs the total export
industry and commerce will be kept
trade for the year amounted to $1,239,947.
steadily moving.
This marks an immense increase when
RUNNING TO WASTE.
compared with the business done abroad a
1T is interesting to note that piano mer few years ago.
chants are appreciating more and more
Imports of musical instruments for the
the value of window displays as the means last year reached practically only the mill-
of attracting customers to their various es, ion point, whereas in 1880 they were valued
at more than one million g^yen hundred
tablishments.
reduced our imports and constantly en-
larged our exports in pianos and musical
instruments. Statistical statements bear
out the predictions made in The Review,
that whenever the American manufact-
urer seriously sought to enlarge his trade
abroad his efforts would be immediately
crowned with success.
DESIGN KLEPTOMANIA.
JUDGING from some comments which
we have heard, the article published
recently in The Review anent a judicial
decision in Massachusetts, whereby the
rights of zither manufacturers in making
instruments of certain shape, were pro-
tected by law, has aroused considerable in-
terest. It may be possible that in the
near future some piano manufacturers
will make a test case of an imitator. There
are a limited number of manufacturers
who have not hesitated in the past when
an attractive and salable design was placed
upon the market, to make a copy of it and
put it out as their own production. Some
have not gone so far as to make an ex-
act reproduction, still they have not hesi-
tated to copy in every detail the style and
ornamentation of some of the notable
case designs which have been placed upon
the market in recent years.
The worst of it is that the imitators
have been among the cheap manufacturers.
There are no words strong enough in
the English language to condemn this con-
temptible practice, and it is no wonder
that some of the manufacturers are trying
to protect themselves from these piratical
concerns by copyrighting their designs.
The practice of copying designs shows
inability to produce anything original or
of merit. It is also the cause of disturb-
ing values. Besides it is not good policy,
it is not honorable nor good business judg-
ment and any one engaged in design klept-
omania should lose the respect of the gen-
eral trade.
**T~\EAD stock," remarked a piano mer-
chant recently, " to my mind in
this trade is considerable of a ghost, as the
more one tries to find it the more it eludes
your search, or the more you try to look
after it the less worry it becomes."
There are indeed few industries in which
the item of dead stock and out-of-date
goods figures in as light a way as it does
in this industry. The very fact of direct-
ing your mind towards dead stock brings
it to life and perhaps it was only sleeping
through neglect. When the attention is
directed to certain pianos more than to
others they will naturally be the first that
the customer will be talked into buying.
Simply thinking of them makes them get
That The Review's utterances along thousand dollars, This shows ^hat we h&ve at every opportunity that comes along,
THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW
business enterprises into the trust crucible
in return for which they have received
only dross.
Happy is the piano manufacturer who
yielded not to the blandishments of the
trust promoter and the oily music trade
editor, for he is now in complete posses-
sion of a business enterprise instead of
having in his pockets a lot of worthless
trust paper. The trusts are on the decline.
VARIED INFORMATION,
these lines have been appreciated, is dem-
onstrated by the many letters which we
have received from dealers in relation to
this subject. A dealer at the national
capital whose store fronts on a busy street,
has a wide, deep window, and recently
dressed his window in a style out of the
ordinary, using small instruments as an ar-
tistic background to a piano display. He
wrote to The Review:
" I was surprised to see how many peo-
ple stopped to look into that window and
apparently took close notice of the instru-
ments displayed there. Men, women and
children, everyone it seemed glanced in.
Just three-fourths of them gave a glance
that was sufficient to give them general in-
formation about the goods displayed, and
then took a visual survey of the interior
of the store."
Tremendous advertising power is too
frequently entirely wasted or injured just
by dealers who maintain window displays
are too much trouble to bother with.
There is valuable advertising space run-
ning to waste.
A NOTHER interesting series of business
talks with dealers is presented else-
where in this paper. Covering completely
every section of the country, we receive
a valuable consensus of opinions of busi-
ness men, regarding topics which are
pregnant with interest for manufacturer
and dealer alike. Thus far the trend of
opinion points toward a comparatively
slight interference with business by the
political struggle which we are about to
enter in the good old-fashioned way.
The opinions as chronicled in The Re-
view indicate that prosperity is general
and that piano merchants as a whole take
a most optimistic view of the future of the
ENCOURAGING STATISTICS.
trade.
HP HE Government reports of exports of
There are indeed few pessimistic replies
musical merchandise for the year end-
to our queries, and the interviews, as a ing June 30 demonstrates that even in
whole, form a most substantial argument what we popularly term the "small goods "
in favor of the retention of the present ad- line, the American inventive and mechani-
ministration. To our minds, no opinions cal intelligence is making rapid headway
can be of greater weight in business calcu- against the antiquated factory system of
lations than those of men who are daily en- Europe. It was claimed by many that
gaged in the struggle for retail trade. our high tariff would render it impossible
Methods of competition, too, have gener- for American manufacturers to build a
ally improved, as will be noted by the trade abroad. We may say that we have
opinions of dealers.
steadily progressed in all lines, but as The
There is decided encouragement in all of Review appeals directly to those interested
the expressions thus far brought out in musical industries, it may not be amiss
for the future of the industry, both in to give figures regarding our growth of ex-
a business and in a moral sense. By all port trade in musical instruments and all
means read the opinions of live and ener- parts thereof exclusive of pianos. In '95 we
getic dealers regarding business prospects exported $241,966 worth of musical instru-
for the fall. Seldom has such an array of ments; in the year ending June 30, 1900,
varied trade information been presented we exported $551,896. Truly not a large
showing when compared with other indus-
in our columns.
After reading the information which we tries, but a verysatisfactory percentage of
present one cannot but feel that the gen- increase. At the beginning of the decade,
eral business situation is promising and in the year 1890, the total exports of small
that confidence is still being stimulated by goods amounted only to $141,182. There
the improved outlook for crops. Every- is a satisfactory percentage of growth for
where it would seem as if the wheels of small American instruments abroad.
In pianos and organs the total export
industry and commerce will be kept
trade for the year amounted to $1,239,947.
steadily moving.
This marks an immense increase when
RUNNING TO WASTE.
compared with the business done abroad a
1T is interesting to note that piano mer few years ago.
chants are appreciating more and more
Imports of musical instruments for the
the value of window displays as the means last year reached practically only the mill-
of attracting customers to their various es, ion point, whereas in 1880 they were valued
at more than one million g^yen hundred
tablishments.
reduced our imports and constantly en-
larged our exports in pianos and musical
instruments. Statistical statements bear
out the predictions made in The Review,
that whenever the American manufact-
urer seriously sought to enlarge his trade
abroad his efforts would be immediately
crowned with success.
DESIGN KLEPTOMANIA.
JUDGING from some comments which
we have heard, the article published
recently in The Review anent a judicial
decision in Massachusetts, whereby the
rights of zither manufacturers in making
instruments of certain shape, were pro-
tected by law, has aroused considerable in-
terest. It may be possible that in the
near future some piano manufacturers
will make a test case of an imitator. There
are a limited number of manufacturers
who have not hesitated in the past when
an attractive and salable design was placed
upon the market, to make a copy of it and
put it out as their own production. Some
have not gone so far as to make an ex-
act reproduction, still they have not hesi-
tated to copy in every detail the style and
ornamentation of some of the notable
case designs which have been placed upon
the market in recent years.
The worst of it is that the imitators
have been among the cheap manufacturers.
There are no words strong enough in
the English language to condemn this con-
temptible practice, and it is no wonder
that some of the manufacturers are trying
to protect themselves from these piratical
concerns by copyrighting their designs.
The practice of copying designs shows
inability to produce anything original or
of merit. It is also the cause of disturb-
ing values. Besides it is not good policy,
it is not honorable nor good business judg-
ment and any one engaged in design klept-
omania should lose the respect of the gen-
eral trade.
**T~\EAD stock," remarked a piano mer-
chant recently, " to my mind in
this trade is considerable of a ghost, as the
more one tries to find it the more it eludes
your search, or the more you try to look
after it the less worry it becomes."
There are indeed few industries in which
the item of dead stock and out-of-date
goods figures in as light a way as it does
in this industry. The very fact of direct-
ing your mind towards dead stock brings
it to life and perhaps it was only sleeping
through neglect. When the attention is
directed to certain pianos more than to
others they will naturally be the first that
the customer will be talked into buying.
Simply thinking of them makes them get
That The Review's utterances along thousand dollars, This shows ^hat we h&ve at every opportunity that comes along,
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