Music Trade Review

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THE MUSIC TRADE REVIEW, FEBRUARY, 1M0
N.
Y.
Clinic
proved increasing interest in piano promotion
as nearly 300 dealers and salesmen
discuss trade problems
(The following is in part a running re-
port of discussions which took place at
the Piano Salesmen's Clinic. Owing to
limited space speeches that are not
herewith printed will be published in
future issues Editor.)
HE growing popularity of the
Retail Piano Salesmen's Clinics
which were inaugurated last year
under the auspices of the National Piano
Manufacturers Association was strik-
ingly manifested in New York on Jan-
T
Pleads for Better Merchants Association
Mr. Jacob, who was assigned the subject
of "Pride in our Industry," then said: "My
first knowledge of pride was gained at a very,
really very early age. I had a very lovely
old grandmother and whenever I thought I
was doing particularly well at anything she
cautioned me that "Pride goeth before a fall."
So, with your permission, I will just put off
the talk on pride for a little while and touch
en a few other things that I think are perti-
nent.
terest to music merchants that could be prop-
erly controlled by the officers of a strong mer-
chants' association. Whenever I get a chance
I make a plea for that.
"You have a president who is on his toes
and who would be just willing to go places
with the Merchants' Association. I think he
deserves the wholehearted support of everyone
in the retail part of our industry. To do this,
I think that the Merchants' Association has
to really adopt something that can be carried
on as a, what shall I say, a banner, that all
A striking picture of the Eastern Piano Salesmen's Clinic held in New York on January 15, 1940
uary 15th when nearly three hundred
dealers and salesmen from the eastern
section of the country sat down for an
all-day session at the Hotel New Yorker.
The meetings were opened promptly
at 9.30 A. M. by Lawrence H. Selz,
publicity counsel for the association,
who presided throughout the morning
and evening sessions. After a few well-
chosen words in which he stated the pur-
pose of the gathering and congratulated
the guests on the splendid attendance
he called in C. Albert Jacob, Jr., pres-
ident of the NPMA, after a brief intro-
duction and welcome asked the guests
to rise in a moment of silence as a trib-
ute to Ralph Hitz, president of the Hotel
Management Co. and head of the Hotel
New Yorker, who was slated as one of
the speakers, but who passed away sud-
denly two days previously.
"I find it difficult to stand here and not
talk about the National Piano Manufacturers'
Association. It is not a large group, but I
believe it is a very efficient group. We have
practically 100 per cent membership. We have
the active cooperation of all members, and
we have a real program of things that we
wish to accomplish for the betterment of the
industry, such as our publicity campaign, the
sales clinics and many other things.
"Now, as an association of manufacturers,
we really are only able to consider half the
problem. It strikes me that the dealers must
handle their half of it. There are retail dis-
tribution, retail advertising, retail service
problems, retail terms, retail allowances, and
matters of that sort, that should properly be
considered and controlled by the Merchants'
Association.
"I am a strong advocate of a strong mer-
chants' association. I think it is most desir-
able. The Merchants' Association should have
a much larger membership than it has. Its
plans should have a broader scope—they should
go beyond just conducting a convention and
acting as a glorified banquet committee. There
are many, many things that are of vital in-
merchants could be enrolled under. I would
like to see the adoption of standards of retail
merchandisers in the industry. I don't say a
"code of ethics."
"I started in the piano business in 1911,
and, as a youngster, attended conventions, and
I well remember there were several sanctimo-
nious old scalliwags that used to get up on
the platform and talk about ethics until the
word had a sort of an anemic look to me. It
was overdone. And these particular fellows
you know darn well, when the convention was
over, went back to start "puzzle scheme" ethics,
and so forth. So let's talk about a code of
ethics and make it some standard—standard
of advertising, standard of sale, service—that
would protect not only the dealer but would
protect the public from the unscrupulous dealer
and at the same time protect the legiimate
dealer from unfair competition.
"And if you do get such an organization to-
gether and get people signed up on the dotted
line, don't be afraid to kick somebody out if
he doesn't behave! It would be the best thing
for the Association.
"If this really can be accomplished, if the
dealers will get together and get behind it, ancj