Music Trade Review
Issue: 1906 Vol. 42 N. 21 - Page 6
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THE
6
MUSIC TRADE
RLYttW
EDWARD LYMAN BILL, - Editor and Proprietor
J. B. SPILLANE, Managing Editor
Executive and Reportorlal Staff:
REVIEW
this matter was fairly adjusted it would settle forever the status
of special brands, termed by some "stencils," and would give a
true position to every piano manufacturer's product. No other
trade publication in this industry has advocated this principle, and
it is, therefore, gratifying that the resolutions which were intro-
duced, resolving "that the National Association of Piano Dealers
of America is unqualifiedly in favor of the absolute establishment
of the one price system that will prevail throughout the country,"
shows the effect of newspaper work, even if the hitter's part of the
resolution—"that the manufacturer should fix the price in his con-
tract with the dealer"—was stricken out by those opposed to this
measure later.
G»o. B. KxiiLKB.
W. N. TTLBB.
F. H. THOMPSON.
BMILIE FRANCES BADBB.
L. B. BOWBBS. B. BBITTAIN WILSON, Wir. B. WHITE. L. J. CHAMBERLIN. A. J. NICKLIN.
BOSTON OFFICE:
RHNEST L. WAITT, 278A Tremont St.
CHICAGO OFFICE:
E. P. VAN HAHLINQEN, 195-197 Wabasb Ave.
TELEPHONES : Central 414 ; Automatic 8643.
PHILADELPHIA OFFICE: MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL: ST. LOUIS OFFICE
R. W. KAUFFMAN.
A. W. SHAW.
CHAS. N. VAN BUKEN.
SAN FRANCISCO OFFICE: ALFRED METZQER, 425-427 Front St
CINCINNATI. O.:
NINA PUGH-SMITH.
Published Every Saturday at 1 Madison Avenue, New York.
Entered at the New York Post Office as Second Class Matter.
SUBSCRIPTION,(Including postage), United States, Mexico, and Canada, $2.00 per
year; all other countries, $4.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS. $2.00 per Inch, single column, per Insertion. On quarterly or
yearly contracts a special discount Is allowed. Advertising Pages, $50.00; opposite
reading matter, $75.00.
REMITTANCES, In other than currency form, should be made payable to Edward
Lyman Bill.
Directory ol Piano The directory of piano manufacturing firms and corporations
found on another page will be of great value, as a reference
Manufacturers for dealers and others.
Exposition Honors Won by The Review
Grand Prix
Paris Exposition, 1900 Silver Medal.Charleston Bxpoistion, 1902
Diploma.Pan American Exposition, 1901 Gold Medal. .St. Louis Exposition, 1904
Gold Medal.Lewis-Clark Exposition, 1905
LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONE—NUMBER 1745 GRAMERCY
NEW
YORK,
MAY 26,
1906
EDITORIAL
M
ANY of the trade papers presented in The Review last week
are worthy of close reading, and some of the matters which
were carefully reported at the business sessions of the dealers'
association will bear a second perusal.
The discussion over the establishment of one price, and that
price by the manufacturer, was really the most interesting topic
taken up for open debate. Some of the dealers were opposed to
the manufacturers naming prices at which their instruments should
be sold at different points, and one argued that the dealer himself
should fix the prices at which he should sell his goods, making it a
point in his argument that the faraway dealer could not sell as
cheaply as a dealer who did not have to pay excessive freight rates.
H
ENRY F. MILLER stated in reply that in his opinion it
would be impossible to have a uniform price for pianos
unless they were first established by the manufacturer. He took
occasion to say in the course of his remarks that he believed he
voiced the sentiments of the manufacturers as a whole when he
said that they did not, in assuming this point, wish to arbitrarily
dictate to the dealer at what prices he should sell except that the
pianoforte should be placed on the market at the value at which it
is advertised from one end of the land to the other, barring the
allowance which would properly be made for excessive freight
charges.
Mr. Ide, who followed Mr. Miller, stated that he believed
"that it was up to the manufacturer" to establish a one price sys-
tem, pointing out in his line of talk that almost every other busi-
ness had established a successful selling system without being
accused by the dealers of adopting arbitrary methods.
Mr. Ide stated further that the manufacturers seemed to be
afraid of one another, adding, if they would get together and
establish a one price system the dealer would fall in line, because
he would have to do so.
O
THER speakers followed who differed somewhat with the
earlier expressions, but it was conceded by many dealers
to be the most vital point brought up for trade discussion.
This publication has taken the ground for years that when
T
HIS question of the establishment of the one price at which
pianos shall be offered to the purchaser is the one important
issue which dwarfs all others, and its discussion this year shows
that it has aroused deep interest. Next year it will come up again,
for The Review will continue to advocate it as a trade measure of
vital importance, and will then be handled in a larger way.
It is difficult indeed to establish radical measures which revo-
lutionize the conduct of a business, but there can be no one price,
unless that price is established by the manufacturer. What a mix-
ing up of values there would be if one dealer setting his own price
say on a "Washington" piano in Cleveland, ()., offers it at $300;
then a dealer in the city of Toledo, who has boomed the instru-
ment particularly well so that it has acquired quite a reputation
locally, asks $400 for the same piano, while a dealer, we will say, in
Sandusky, advertises the identical instrument for $250. The papers
containing the advertisements of these pianos are easily circulated
in the various towns, and purchasers get an entirely incorrect idea
of piano values, and the idea is also encouraged that there is no
fixed value to the "Washington" piano. Suppose each dealer who
had fixed prices which we named above had held absolutely to his
own price, would not the variety of prices asked confuse the public ?
So in this way we get back to the original question—that of the
necessity of the manufacturer fixing the retail prices at which his
product may be offered. This has got to be settled by the manu-
facturers, but the mere fact that the dealers discussed it so promi-
nently at their meetings proves how closely they are thinking along
these lines of genuine one price.
We said over one year ago jn advocating this measure that it
might take years to prepare the trade for it, but eventually it must
be enforced, else piano stability would surely disintegrate.
T
HE talk on organs by W. P. Dorough was an interesting one.
particularly when we figure that the organ is still a live
factor in the Southern music trade. Mr. Dorough says, as a rule
the country customers to whom organs are sold seem to regard
their obligations more sacredly than do their city cousins who pur-
chase pianos. By this we are to understand that the rural folk
have a greater respect for their monetary obligations than those
who reside in the bustling cities. Mr. Dorough makes the point
that an organ customer is pretty apt to become a purchaser of a
piano later on, and he makes the interesting statement that the
organ business is best when the piano busines is poorest. He says
the organ work brings the dealer in close touch with the class of
constituents which are the best patrons of the mail order houses,
and in this way he says that the mail order business can be always
shut out by argument, for according to Mr. Dorough's belief the
mail order houses fatten on the ignorance of the public.
That may be, but certainly the mail order houses, with their
immense catalogues and seductive statements, win people who are
not wholly ignorant. We know of a certain piano man who stated
a little while ago that his wife had made a number of purchases
through a mail order concern, and we may state that this particular
man is not noted for his ignorance. The slogan of the mail order
houses, "From factory to the home," is a strong argument in their
favor, and it wins with a whole lot of people.
We can name a few piano men who are advertising broadly to
cut the dealer's profit and urging the people to buy direct from the
factory, thus saving one profit. Men in advancing v this line of
argument in their advertising do not appeal wholly to ignorant
people, but they appeal to those who are always looking for bar-
gains and who imagine that real opportunities present themselves
for saving money through some inducing announcement made in a
glowing advertisement.
THE
6
MUSIC TRADE
RLYttW
EDWARD LYMAN BILL, - Editor and Proprietor
J. B. SPILLANE, Managing Editor
Executive and Reportorlal Staff:
REVIEW
this matter was fairly adjusted it would settle forever the status
of special brands, termed by some "stencils," and would give a
true position to every piano manufacturer's product. No other
trade publication in this industry has advocated this principle, and
it is, therefore, gratifying that the resolutions which were intro-
duced, resolving "that the National Association of Piano Dealers
of America is unqualifiedly in favor of the absolute establishment
of the one price system that will prevail throughout the country,"
shows the effect of newspaper work, even if the hitter's part of the
resolution—"that the manufacturer should fix the price in his con-
tract with the dealer"—was stricken out by those opposed to this
measure later.
G»o. B. KxiiLKB.
W. N. TTLBB.
F. H. THOMPSON.
BMILIE FRANCES BADBB.
L. B. BOWBBS. B. BBITTAIN WILSON, Wir. B. WHITE. L. J. CHAMBERLIN. A. J. NICKLIN.
BOSTON OFFICE:
RHNEST L. WAITT, 278A Tremont St.
CHICAGO OFFICE:
E. P. VAN HAHLINQEN, 195-197 Wabasb Ave.
TELEPHONES : Central 414 ; Automatic 8643.
PHILADELPHIA OFFICE: MINNEAPOLIS and ST. PAUL: ST. LOUIS OFFICE
R. W. KAUFFMAN.
A. W. SHAW.
CHAS. N. VAN BUKEN.
SAN FRANCISCO OFFICE: ALFRED METZQER, 425-427 Front St
CINCINNATI. O.:
NINA PUGH-SMITH.
Published Every Saturday at 1 Madison Avenue, New York.
Entered at the New York Post Office as Second Class Matter.
SUBSCRIPTION,(Including postage), United States, Mexico, and Canada, $2.00 per
year; all other countries, $4.00.
ADVERTISEMENTS. $2.00 per Inch, single column, per Insertion. On quarterly or
yearly contracts a special discount Is allowed. Advertising Pages, $50.00; opposite
reading matter, $75.00.
REMITTANCES, In other than currency form, should be made payable to Edward
Lyman Bill.
Directory ol Piano The directory of piano manufacturing firms and corporations
found on another page will be of great value, as a reference
Manufacturers for dealers and others.
Exposition Honors Won by The Review
Grand Prix
Paris Exposition, 1900 Silver Medal.Charleston Bxpoistion, 1902
Diploma.Pan American Exposition, 1901 Gold Medal. .St. Louis Exposition, 1904
Gold Medal.Lewis-Clark Exposition, 1905
LONG DISTANCE TELEPHONE—NUMBER 1745 GRAMERCY
NEW
YORK,
MAY 26,
1906
EDITORIAL
M
ANY of the trade papers presented in The Review last week
are worthy of close reading, and some of the matters which
were carefully reported at the business sessions of the dealers'
association will bear a second perusal.
The discussion over the establishment of one price, and that
price by the manufacturer, was really the most interesting topic
taken up for open debate. Some of the dealers were opposed to
the manufacturers naming prices at which their instruments should
be sold at different points, and one argued that the dealer himself
should fix the prices at which he should sell his goods, making it a
point in his argument that the faraway dealer could not sell as
cheaply as a dealer who did not have to pay excessive freight rates.
H
ENRY F. MILLER stated in reply that in his opinion it
would be impossible to have a uniform price for pianos
unless they were first established by the manufacturer. He took
occasion to say in the course of his remarks that he believed he
voiced the sentiments of the manufacturers as a whole when he
said that they did not, in assuming this point, wish to arbitrarily
dictate to the dealer at what prices he should sell except that the
pianoforte should be placed on the market at the value at which it
is advertised from one end of the land to the other, barring the
allowance which would properly be made for excessive freight
charges.
Mr. Ide, who followed Mr. Miller, stated that he believed
"that it was up to the manufacturer" to establish a one price sys-
tem, pointing out in his line of talk that almost every other busi-
ness had established a successful selling system without being
accused by the dealers of adopting arbitrary methods.
Mr. Ide stated further that the manufacturers seemed to be
afraid of one another, adding, if they would get together and
establish a one price system the dealer would fall in line, because
he would have to do so.
O
THER speakers followed who differed somewhat with the
earlier expressions, but it was conceded by many dealers
to be the most vital point brought up for trade discussion.
This publication has taken the ground for years that when
T
HIS question of the establishment of the one price at which
pianos shall be offered to the purchaser is the one important
issue which dwarfs all others, and its discussion this year shows
that it has aroused deep interest. Next year it will come up again,
for The Review will continue to advocate it as a trade measure of
vital importance, and will then be handled in a larger way.
It is difficult indeed to establish radical measures which revo-
lutionize the conduct of a business, but there can be no one price,
unless that price is established by the manufacturer. What a mix-
ing up of values there would be if one dealer setting his own price
say on a "Washington" piano in Cleveland, ()., offers it at $300;
then a dealer in the city of Toledo, who has boomed the instru-
ment particularly well so that it has acquired quite a reputation
locally, asks $400 for the same piano, while a dealer, we will say, in
Sandusky, advertises the identical instrument for $250. The papers
containing the advertisements of these pianos are easily circulated
in the various towns, and purchasers get an entirely incorrect idea
of piano values, and the idea is also encouraged that there is no
fixed value to the "Washington" piano. Suppose each dealer who
had fixed prices which we named above had held absolutely to his
own price, would not the variety of prices asked confuse the public ?
So in this way we get back to the original question—that of the
necessity of the manufacturer fixing the retail prices at which his
product may be offered. This has got to be settled by the manu-
facturers, but the mere fact that the dealers discussed it so promi-
nently at their meetings proves how closely they are thinking along
these lines of genuine one price.
We said over one year ago jn advocating this measure that it
might take years to prepare the trade for it, but eventually it must
be enforced, else piano stability would surely disintegrate.
T
HE talk on organs by W. P. Dorough was an interesting one.
particularly when we figure that the organ is still a live
factor in the Southern music trade. Mr. Dorough says, as a rule
the country customers to whom organs are sold seem to regard
their obligations more sacredly than do their city cousins who pur-
chase pianos. By this we are to understand that the rural folk
have a greater respect for their monetary obligations than those
who reside in the bustling cities. Mr. Dorough makes the point
that an organ customer is pretty apt to become a purchaser of a
piano later on, and he makes the interesting statement that the
organ business is best when the piano busines is poorest. He says
the organ work brings the dealer in close touch with the class of
constituents which are the best patrons of the mail order houses,
and in this way he says that the mail order business can be always
shut out by argument, for according to Mr. Dorough's belief the
mail order houses fatten on the ignorance of the public.
That may be, but certainly the mail order houses, with their
immense catalogues and seductive statements, win people who are
not wholly ignorant. We know of a certain piano man who stated
a little while ago that his wife had made a number of purchases
through a mail order concern, and we may state that this particular
man is not noted for his ignorance. The slogan of the mail order
houses, "From factory to the home," is a strong argument in their
favor, and it wins with a whole lot of people.
We can name a few piano men who are advertising broadly to
cut the dealer's profit and urging the people to buy direct from the
factory, thus saving one profit. Men in advancing v this line of
argument in their advertising do not appeal wholly to ignorant
people, but they appeal to those who are always looking for bar-
gains and who imagine that real opportunities present themselves
for saving money through some inducing announcement made in a
glowing advertisement.
Future scanning projects are planned by the International Arcade Museum Library (IAML).