Music Trade Review

Music Trade Review -- © mbsi.org, arcade-museum.com -- digitized with support from namm.org
DECEMBER 11,
1920
THE MUSIC TRADE
11
REVIEW
GREA TER COHESION IN THE MUSIC
INDUSTRIES CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
Forward Strides Made During the Past Year by This Important Trade Organization
and Its Plans for the Future Outlined by General Manager Alfred L. Smith
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The past year might be called a period of graph branch of the industry remains unor-
transition in the history of the Music Industries ganized. However, several of the important
Chamber of Commerce. It has passed from a phonograph manufacturers are individual mem-
loosely organized state, due to the great speed bers of the Chamber.
Internally, the departments of the Chamber,
with which it grew and the urgency of the war
conditions which caused its growth, to a more known as bureaus, have been brought together,
closely knit unit for the effective representation not only physically but also from the stand-
of the music industry.
point of policy and activity. The bureaus have
During the first few years of the Chamber's lost their characteristics of separately oper-
existence the piano manufacturers and the music
merchants were its chief support.
Some
branches of the trade were not organized and
others were drifting into an unorganized state
as a reaction from the war-time pressure toward
organization. The Chamber therefore faced the
problem of strengthening some of the national
trade associations comprising its membership
and making them more effective as members.
First the supply trade was organized, and now
the Musical Supply Association of America is
the third largest association in the industry
from the standpoint of membership and financial
strength. It is second to none in the volume and
importance of its activities. At the time of the
convention in June of the Organ Builders' Asso-
ciation there was considerable uncertainty as to
the future of that member. However, the organ
builders were given a better idea of the Cham-
ber's valuable work for the advancement of
music and the protection of trade interests, and
were assisted in developing a program of work,
with the result that new vigor and enthusiasm
Alfred L. Smith
were created. The music publishers were like-
wise brought into closer practical contact with ating units and have become highly specialized
the actual workings of the Chamber. More groups of a single operating staff under one
or less similar work has been carried on with administrative head responsible directly to the
the other associations and there has been de- board of directors.
veloped a closer contact between the Chamber
The great and immediate task of the Chamber
and individuals constituting the member asso- is the protection of the music industry from
ciations. This makes possible individual work unjust taxation during the next Congressional
on the problems facing the industry.
Session. In this work the effectiveness of the
This has brought increased revenue to the association will be much increased by the in-
Chamber, but, above all, it has created in all ternal reorganization which it has been
branches of the trade a realization of their im- through. The contact at Washington will be
portance in the organization and the importance through the Chamber's General Counsel, who
of the Chamber as the operating mechanism for is in charge of the Legal Bureau. To this
all the music* trade associations. Only the phono- bureau will be given the task of planning the
Chamber's campaign. This work will necessi-
tate much publicity and activity with the public
to awaken the people to a true realization of
the essential nature of music, thus decreasing
the likelihood of a "luxury"'attitude at Wash-
ington. The National Association of Music
Merchants, offering as it does representation in
almost every community, will be used in or-
ganizing the work throughout the country.
The work of the Chamber's National Bureau
for the Advancement of Music should be par-
ticularly important and successful during the
coming year, not only because of the great need
for it, but because there are more and more in-
dications all the time that people everywhere
are responding to the work and to the appeal
of music as an integral part of industrial, edu-
cational, public and home life.
Export business for the time being is very dull,
due to the adverse exchange situation and to
a slowing up of business abroad similar to that
here. However, before the year has ended a
tremendous revival in export trade is expected.
In the meantime 'the Chamber will be especially
active in interesting the industry ' in ex-
port opportunities and assisting in the es-
tablishment of this bureau. The work of this
Export Bureau during the coming year will be
largely along present lines, but should grow
greater in volume and value.
The work of the Chamber to eliminate unde-
sirable and unfair business practices will be con-
tinued. The new Trade Service Bureau, which
has been created to supplement the activities
of the Better Business Bureau, will be devel-
oped during the coming year. Because of the
nature of this work, the development will be
slow, but this bureau has as great if not greater
possibilities than any of the others. In a word,
it will be the Chamber's tool to assist the trade
in effecting more efficient and economical meth-
ods in the industry and to assist in eliminating
trade wastes. The success of such work in other
trade associations has been marked. Problems
of cost accounting, insurance, labor, sales, ad-
vertising, technical development, are among
those which the bureau will help to solve.
S THE HANDLING OF TRADE CREDITS
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FROM A PRACTICAL STANDPOINT
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Methods Whereby the Credit Grantor Can Judge the Advisability of Extending
Credit Pointed Out by Julius Schneller, of Henry Haas & Son, N. Y, C.
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Credit in its commercial application is defined
as confidence in the willingness and ability of the
borrower to pay a certain amount of money at a
time and place previously determined. Confi-
dence is the basis upon which all credit transac-
tions must rest. When the borrower obtains the
confidence of the credit grantor he obtains the
desired credit. The problem he must solve is
how to obtain this confidence and the problem
of the credit grantor is how to apply it and
how to extend it.
To obtain a line of credit is simple. Extend
confidence and you will obtain it. A clear and
accurate statement of facts revealing your con-
dition will in all cases bring the desired result,
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11 1 , 11111
where the extension of credit is justified. In
these days of active competition, when we are
passing from the sellers' to the buyers' market,
credit men are anxious to be convinced of the
desirability of the customer. A financial state-
ment segregated as to current, working and fixed
assets and current and other liabilities, reserves
and proprietorship, with income, profit and loss
statement, showing gross and net sales, cost
of sales, administrative, selling and other ex-
penses, will be sufficient in most cases for the
credit man. Exceptional cases may force the
credit man to search for more information. This,
however, will be determined by the statements
and the character of the applicant for credit.
When, the credit man is trying to determine
whether or not credit shall be extended the dis-
cussion as to amount and length of time is a
more difficult one and he must take many fac-
tors into consideration. The underlying princi-
ple may be expressed in mathematical terms,
when we say character plus capacity plus capi-
tal equal credit. These are the three basic prin-
ciples and the three combined will make up the
credit. The credit man will find they differ in
every case, from excellent character, good
capacity and sufficient capital to every possible
state of condition. The three combined will have
to make up the credit and where adding the three
(Continued on page 13)