Music Trade Review

THE
rro~!~ADE
VOL. LXXVII. No.5. Pablisbed Every Satwrday. Edward Lyman Bill, Inc., at 383 MadisonAve., New York, N.Y.
Aug 4. 1923
SiDg~e2.ioo~:: -i~a~ent.
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The Merchants' Insurance for the Coming Demand
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UMMIKC up the situation as it exists. il1'the piano industry at the present timc, indi cations are that the
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trade is likel y to be confrol!t~~y;itl[ ;~~~l)le: degTee of scarcity during- the coming Fall and vVinter
season. How gTeat this ..cscarci t? ·ll;.1x ,t~~e· 1~~ .~necan say. b\lt unquestionably it will be serious enOl~gh
to cause burdensorne.:. a~::!J?';~l~i?!~~~ to' the merchant who expects to go throug-h hlS best sellmg
season on a basis of hancl- tO~b11oJ,1tli .. , o.rd.er i.ml;{'::~·;;?;:~: ' · .. -" .'
There is no indic~ti~n '~ r m:ivy' ~ t;cks on the merchants' vvareroom floors at the present time. The
factori es, generally , hav e been working almost at capacity during the summer, but a yery large percentage of
this production has been for current demand . In fact, reports are constantl y being receiv ed that in the month
of July shortages have exist ed in seve ral high -grade lines, a truly remarkable condition. Taking the entire
industry it is hardly possible ' that any large accumulations ·Bi stock are in the manufacturers' hands, nor is it
likely that, at the threshold of the Fall ordering season , they will have the opportunity to accu mulate such stocks.
The averag'e piano merchant is not gambling' today by ordering ahead at least a good part of what he
knows will be his requirem ents. The basic prosperity of the country is sound. Industrial employment is not
likely to suffer~~o.y diminution. Conclitions in certain rural sections are not as good as they might be,
and the merchants ~hose clienteles have come from there should move with a ~..a,ry step. 13ut conclitions gen­
erally ~~:~'~~J'l . :tliey have been at this period of the year ~ince the ]lost-war " boom." and perhaps even
better than theri';' for they a re sounder by far.
Every merchant knows what it is to ha~ prospects and no pianos. Every merchant also should know
that he sets an almost impossible task to the manufacturer when he fails to protect himself by future ordering-.
Pianos are not macle in a day. Supplies cannot be had from the supply man on twenty-four-hour shipment.
Delays are unavoidable,. especially when the manufacturers are unable to fig-me to some clegTee of certainty
\"hat their distributors a;'e going to need.
:$ §dti;~ .beCause -Of lack of stock is so ll1uch proht lost. And the worst part of it all is that such a
loss is avoidable iL only the merchant will utilize an ordinary degree of forethought, something which mer
chants in other liries regard as a matter of ordi n ~t1'y business procedure. Future orde ring is common in practi­
cally every line, even in lines w here the products sold arc of a perishable nature. Yel ill the piano trade it has
never been carried to the degTee it sho uld ha ve l)ecJ1 . with the consequent result s of wide fluctuations in pro
ductiol1, the disorganization of productive fo rces- -an (~spec ially important fa ctor due to the part ski ll ed crafts­
manship plays in the procluction of such instruments and the large proportion of factoljl costs that is r tpre ­
sented by labor- and the effects which this has on thc a\Crag-e quality of the in st rument s manufactured.
Some tim~e ago The Re\'iew published a statistical analysis of this situation b;1-sed on information dram)
from the books of a number of manufacturers. The condition revealed in this article showed unmistakably
that it was no hetter than it had been painted. 1t was shown there that lIlerchants regularly con centratc their
orders instead of concentrating their delive ries. The graphic chart s published with this article showecl peaks
that should ne\'er exist and which ar e a potent cause of disorganiz.ation and unnecessary cost in the industry.
The manufacturer in this situation is no free agent; its solution depends entirely upon a ref o rmation of the
clealers' buying- methocls.
Future- orde ring is a form of insurance for the a\-erage merchant. He will insure hil1lself agai nst fire,
und er the employes ' compensat ion acts, and wi ll place insurance 011 his own life, but too often he will refuse to
insure his abi lity to take care of a demand which exists at a peak durin g a certain part of the year. Y ct that
form of in surance is as \' ital, if not more vital. than any of the ffums mentioned herewith.
As f a r as human foresight can go, the retail piano tr~ade should experience a good Fall. Hut the mer­
chant w ho has failed to CO\'er himself to som e deg ree at least is goi ng to suffer from this carcl<:ssness.
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