The talking machine world (Jan-Dec 1910)

THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD. 39 From our Chicago headquarters ROOM 806, NO. 156 WABASH AVENUE, E. P. VAN HARLINGEN, MANAGER. Closing Months of 1909 Record Breakers Say Talking Machine Men — Greatest Volume of Business from Larger Towns and Cities — Country Trade Expected to Improve This Year — Lyon & Healy's Big Victrola Sales — General Increase Noted — Talking Machine Co.'s Fine Report — Grand Opera Season at Hand — Amberola "Makes Good" — Trade in Iowa — "Tiz-lt" Popularity — Live Columbia Co. Items — "B. & H." Fibre Needles Gaining Ground — Among the Visitors — Some Kansas City Notes — Compartment Filing Cabinet Co.'s Plant Destroyed by Fire. (Special to The Talking Machine World.) Chicago, 111., Jan. 8, 1910. Hooray! 1909 made a g-g-glorious f-ffinish. With all the big talking machine houses in Chicago November and December were reported as record breakers. It is hard to analyze the returns and to determine whether the two months made as big increase in wholesale as in retail business. The former certainly made a strong gain as compared with the corresponding month O'f last year. As could have been prophesied from the tendency apparent in the early fall a very large percentage of the business has been in the concealed-horn machines — a greater proportion than at any time since their introduction. It is interesting to note that the greater volume of business in the aggregate came from the larger towns and cities. There is reason to hope that the country districts will make a better showing in 1910 than in 1909, but that is another story and will be told to some extent in next month's Chicago correspondence. Lyon & Healy's Fine Retail Business. The retail holiday business at Lyon & Healy's is the talk of the trade. The Victrola sales were something simply phenomenal. On one day there were sold twenty-four Victrolas, twenty-two 16s and two 12s off the retail floor. There were other days that nearly equalled this. The delivery wagons were kept busy for a week or so before Christmas, and the day before the holiday forty Victrolas were delivered to city purchasers. Marquette Healy, treasurer of Lyon & Healy, gave your correspondent these statistics regarding the talking machine business of the house, wholesale and retail combined. November, 1909, showed an increase of 57 per cent, over the same month in 1908, and 22 per cent, over the corresponding month of 1906, which is the largest November they had ever had up to that time. December, 1909, showed a gain of 44 per cent, over 1908 and 23 per cent, over 1906. which was their largest previous December. Manager L. C. Wiswell inaugurated some decidedly ingenious plans of procedure and they panned out big. The Talking Machine Co.'s Big Trade. The Talking Machine Co., have closed the books on a remarkable year. It showed a big, round increase over 1908 and November and December were heavier than any previous similar months in the history of the house. December was a hummer and strained the resources of the house force to the utmost. The Victrola sales were immense, but all types except the lowest priced Victors were in excellent demand. Manager Geissler and Sales Manager Roy Keith opened up some mighty fine accounts last year, and they came to the fore in the holiday trade with a rush. The Talking Machine Co.'s creed, which was printed in the July issue of The World, has evidently been adhered to faithfully and the logical results are in evidence. The Ad. Man's Chance. There is going to be an opportunity for some mighty strong exploitation of grand opera records between now and May 1. The Boston Opera Company comes to the Auditorium Theater January 10 for two weeks' engagement. The list of principals numbers quite a few artists whose names appear on record labels. On April comes the Metropolitan Opera Company with Caruso and a lot of stars, new and old. The advertising man and the window trimmer ought to fairly revel in this chance for effective exploitation. Next season we are going to have a solid twentyweek season of grand opera. The player-piano people are preparing to get into the game with a rush and the professional talker advocates will, no doubt, be right up to the minute. The Amberola's Debut. Quietly and unobtrusively the Edison Amberola, the latest of concealed-horn machines, has shied its castor into the trade ring, and the result is prophetic of big things to come. The National Phonograph Co. were evidently not in position to make deliveries to any great extent, but the few which arrived here went a-scooting out on previous wholesale and retail orders. Aside from the new and colorful tone, the automatic stop and other valuable features attract a great deal of admiring attention. About Iowa Trade. F. H. Hird has been in Chicago for a day or two on his return from his home town, Boston, where he spent the holidays, to the State of Iowa, where he ably represents the National Phonograph Co. He said that business in "Golden Iowa" had been of very fair dimensions the past year. Such distributers as Harger & Blish at Dubuque and Des Moines, Early music house, of Fort Dodge, and Hopkins Bros. Co., Des Moines, all report an increase somewhere in the neighborhood of 40 per cent, for 1909 as. compared with 1908. Everywhere jobbers and dealers are confident of the mighty good trade for 1910 and basic conditions appear to amply support such optimistic expectations. The "Tiz-lt" Is It. Mr. Kreiling, of Kreiling & Co., manufacturers of the "Tiz-it" all metal, ball joint, horn connection for cylinder machines, reports that the year was a very good one for his specialty. The jobbers everywhere are sending in repeat orders, and the future is O. K. Mr. Kreiling is working his inventive genius overtime and a couple of fine new children of his fertile brain will shortly make their appearance. Some Columbia Items. W. C. Fuhri, district manager of the Columbia Phonograph Co., is -well pleased with what the past year brought in a business way, and all of the important southern and western cities comprised in the extensive territory over which he has jurisdiction. The Columbia branches or dealers had a fine trade in December, surpassing by an important figure that of the corresponding month of 1908. The various types of Columbia Grafonolas (concealed-horn machines) were greatly in vogue. The only difficulty was in getting enough of the handsome instruments from the factory to supply the demand. Local Manager C. F. Baer has taken out the partition between two of the record rooms and has converted it into a handsome redecorated and rerugged Grafonola room. The library type is proving an especially fine seller. F. G. Cook, formerly with the Chicago office, and who for some months past has covered southwestern territory for the St. Louis branch, has returned to this city and has become assistant to Retail Floor Manager Herri-man. H. H. Myers who travels Iowa, Michigan and Indiana, and Earl Zerkle, -whose usual stamping ground is Wisconsin and Upper Michigan, have swapped territories for a single trip in order, of course, that they may have a mutual back-patting seance when they return. E. C. Plume, western wholesale manager, is advertising in the daily papers for a dozen ablebodied, strong-tongued torn cats and a carload of A number 1, specially inspected, pure cow cream. He shaved his luxuriant mustache recently, but his wife and sturdy young son have failed to recognize him. Plume is trying his best to raise another hirsute adornment, but he finds it necessary to secure the cats and cream in order that the law of capillary attraction may do its perfect work. The "B. & H." Fibre Needle. Dealers who have taken the pains to explain the use of the "B. & H." fibre needle and have shown customers how to make the bamboo pin go through the record, if it shows any hesitancy at the first trial, are not only having excellent "B. & H." sales but find their machine and highgrade record business benefited greatly. One firm of distributers who has taken the pains to study the "B. & H." and give the results of this study to their retail and wholesale customers placed an order for 200,000 needles with the "B. & H." Fibre Mfg. Co. in September and followed it up with a purchase of 300,000 the latter part of November. One concern on the Pacific Coast is buying 100,000 every three or four months. Telegraph orders for 25,000 at a clip are a frequent occurrence. Consideiing the fact that the retail price of the "B. & H." fibre needle is $1 for 250, this is certainly "going some.'' Some Recent Visitors. Two Victor travelers, Mr. Hippel, South Dakota, and Mr. Fitzpatrick, Michigan, were in the city a few days ago on their way from the East to their respective territories. Rudolph Wurlitzer, of the Rudolph Wurlitzer Cc, visited the Chicago branch house Christmas week. He said that November and December cf the local branch broke all previous records. The remodeled store is very beautiful, one of the very finest to be found anywhere. T. C. Berg, of the Berg Piano Co., La Crosse^ Wis., and Guy Conklin, Fort Wayne, Ind., two distinctly Twentieth Century and enterprising dealers recently called on the local trade. B. Blumberg, general manager of the Regina Co., Rahway, N. J., has been in the city several days this week looking over the past year's records with Chicago Manager M. J. Faber and planning his campaign for the new year. Mr. Blumberg was manager of the Chicago office until he went up higher, but the eastern ozone must l:e agreeing with him as he is a sight for sore eyes. He wears the same beautiful smile as of yore, but it covers a larger territory. Kansas City Humming. Your representative had the pleasure of spending a couple of hours among the Kansas City trade recently. There is a fine bunch of jobbers and dealers in the city on the Kaw and the former are certainly making things whoop in the several States they do business notwithstanding a certain apathy which exists in the very small towns. J. W. Jenkins' Sons Co. were found doing a nice business which showed up in marked contrast with those of the previous years. Burton Pierce, manager of the talking machine department, was very optimistic regarding the coming year. Furthermore, he said that the thorn needle for which the house are the exclusive distributers, is steadily gaining in strength. The Schmelz'er Arms Co. have one of the finest retail talking machine warerooms in their recently occupied building at 1216-18 Grand avenue that the writer remembers having seen. Manager A. A. Trostle said that they had had a big year in a wholesale as well as a retail way. They deserve it because they have worked hard for it and have a larger force of salesmen on the territory than ever before. At the Columbia Phonograph Co.'s branch manager Smith was getting a full share of the holiday business with the aid of a coterie of able and loyal assistants. He was well pleased with the way wholesale business was showing up.