The talking machine world (Jan-Dec 1914)

44 THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD. They are telling us that the three Columbia "Tipperary" records— song, march and dance— are to-day the biggest things in the industry. (Write for "Music Money," a book "full of meat" for those dealers interested in quick and frequent turnover of capital.) Columbia Graphophone Company Wool worth Building, New York GAIN OVER LAST YEAR'S BUSINESS IN ST. LOUIS. With the Majority of Dealers the Low Priced Machines Have the Call— Improvement in General Business Helps Trade — Announcement of New Aeol ian-Vocaloi n Arouses Interest— Good Reports from the Country Districts — Interesting News of the Month. (Special to The Talking Machine \v orld.) St. Louis, Mo., December 7. — Local talking machine dealers — except those specializing in lowpriced machines — are looking forward to an excellent Christmas business. They say that they have many prospects for holiday sales on file and that new inquiries are coming daily and that these sales indicate, almost wholly, the sale of high priced machines, those from $7o up, with records extra. It also is a fact that practically all St. Louis houses that make talking machines a department in the selling will show gain this year over last if the Christmas business is fair. December 1 saw a neat gain recorded in sales totals for the year in most houses and a gain in practically all. There may be a few exceptions, but there are no notable stores in the list, if confidential information is to be relied on. While the general depression of .business, from which St. Louis is now beginning to emerge, has shattered plans made a year ago and totals January 1 will be far below the figure set as the mark, but the business, in spite of the practical sweeping away of all of the "wage earner'' purchases, will be sufficient -to maintain the record of "greater business every year" for the talking machine trade. There are two elements at work in the matter of fewer small machine sales, the new one being the fact that many wage earners have been out of employment and those who have had regular work have been apprehensive of further slowing down and have he Id tightly on to what money they got. The other is the fast spreading belief that only a higher priced talking machine is worth while. The class of customers who formerly saved $25 and bought a machine for that sum as a cash sale is becoming less very rapidly, and the amount that formerly made the entire purchase now is being used for a first payment in the belief that they are getting better value. Except for special purpose and for use in addition to a large machine, the small priced talking machine is disappearing from the market, and -in many local stores the number of machines sold this year will not be more than half that of two years ago, while the total business will be much greater. There perhaps will be one change this year that will be welcome in the shipping rooms. This will be that business conditions will curtail the demand to somewhere near the ability of the factories to meet all orders, and there will not be the effort to ship something to every dealer who has an order on file. So far this year the distribution has been NEW JERSEY PRICE TALKING MACHINE CO. VICTOR DISTRIBUTOR (Exclusively) We can supply ALL your wants on time. NEWARK ample and practically complete orders are leaving the local jobbing houses without delay. Heretofore it has been the worry of the merchandise superintendent and the shipping clerk to divide twenty machines among fifty-three orders, or some other impossible fraction. Record stocks are said to be in excellent shape, and any dealer who wants a late rush order will be safe in entrusting it to St. Louis jobbers, as they all avow with one accord that they are going to be able to meet all demands and will have their shipping rooms keyed up to make a perfect record, and in this way boost the yearly totals to the best figure possible. The spirit displayed by all hands here is that when business is under a handicap that is the time to put on extra steam. Much Interest in New Aeolian-Vocalion. The trade here has been greatly interested in the news printed in The Music Trade Review late in November that the Aeolian-Vocalion had been displayed to the trade in New York City. All sorts of rumors had been current here as to the intention of this company for future merchandising of talking machines, and the limited statement given out from the New York Aeolian Hall appeared to answer the general question ; that the Aeolian Co. was making its own talking machines and that it would lie different in some respects from any machine on the market. Harry Levy, of the talking machine department at Aeolian Hall here, declined to discuss, the new machine, except to say that he expected to have some of the machines on display early in the New Year. "In the meantime," he said, "I am very busy keeping pace with the demands of our rapidly expanding retail department." Aeolian Hall has been conducting an active advertising campaign on Lehalf of its talking machine department, but other dealers, who, naturally under the circumstances, have been watching the advertising closely, professed to see in it more talking machine and less of the boosting of a particular instrument. Some Popular Columbia Styles. At the Columbia warerooms Retail Manager Duffy says the demand has been centering largely on the Favorite and Mignonette styles with record ejector attachments. The sales of these machines, he says, is practically limited to the supply placed at the disposal of the retail department. The extraordinary demand for dance records continues with the Columbia Co., and the use of these records, coupled with the specialized advertising, has served to open a wide field for machine sales which, it is anticipated, will expand as the wage earners return to their usual occupations. C. R. Salmon, of the wholesale department, reports excellent business in all parts of that trade territory except in the cotton country. "Our late orders are running heavy," he said, "and we may yet experience trouble in supplying all holiday wants, although we still are shipping promptly. We now are caring for the last of the regular holiday orders and we will then be in shape to anticipate the late special or rush orders. "I have sent our J. J. Bennett out on a flying trip through southern Illinois and other near-by territory. He is out to put a little 'pep' into the dealers who fail to grasp the holiday possibilities, and the reports he sends in are very encouraging."' Manager I. B. Reid, of the Columbia warerooms, made ' a short visit to Chicago the first of the month. Manager Robinson, of the Thiebes Piano Co. talking machine department, was detained at home the first of the month by illness. Mark Silverstone, president of the Silverstone Music Co., Edison jobber, was heels over head in work at the month end, planning an energetic advertising campaign for the holidays. Mr. Silverstone recently has made his advertising on a more general basis, boosting the Edison machine more than the Silverstone service, with frequent references to the number of dealers handling the machines. The Silverstone Co. reports business in excellent condition and attributes the mounting totals of this store and the other retail salesrooms of the Edison machines to the fact that they have been seeking, since the disc machine was put on the market, to urge the sale largely on higher priced machines, and that this class of trade has suffered less this winter than the lower priced trade. A heavy shipment of machines received the first of the month taxed the capacity of the Silverstone ample warerooms, but an extra shipping force put on duty soon cleared the decks by getting them out to waiting dealers. Better Conditions in Country Districts. E. -C. Rauth, of the Koerber-Brenner Music Co., has spent considerable time on the road recently and reports excellent conditions in the country districts. Conditions there have improved more rapidly in the city, because of the reawakened demand for grains, which was checked for a time, and the extraordinary sales of horses. Money is getting plentiful and country dealers are ordering with much more freedom than for early fall stocks. Those who anticipated that early fall orders would suffice for the holidays are repeating orders and only because of ample preparations and the refusal of Koerber-Brenner to become pessimistic as to the future of the talking machine business are they able to meet the demands made upon them. When this company became exclusive jobbers of the Victor line in this territory Messrs. Koerber and Rauth gave out assurance that they would at all times be prepared to meet the demands made upon them, and they had this pledge in mind when they made preparations for this season beyond what the advance orders appeared to justify. More people might try to pose as angels if everybody didn't start right in and begin to look at them with suspicion. Greatness is never thrust upon a man who leads an aimless life.