The talking machine world (Jan-Dec 1917)

112 THE TALKING MACHINE WORLD TALKING MACHINE MEN, INC., HOLD ANNUAL DINNER Over Two Hundred Guests Attend Affair Held at Hotel McAlpin on Evening of April 17 — Henry C. Brown, L. C. Wiswell, Marion Dorian and Other Prominent Members of Trade Among Speakers — Opportunities of the Business Emphasized — Patriotism Finds A Place The Talking Machine Men, Inc., the local organization of talking machine retailers and jobbers, again proved that it was a live and growing organization by attracting a crowd of over 200 diners to the annual dinner of the association held in the ballroom of the Hotel McAlpin on Tuesday evening, April 17. Not only was the New York trade well represented, but there were also numerous guests from Connecticut, New Jersey and other nearby States, who participated in the festivities. The fair sex was also present in considerable numbers to add to the social character of the dinner, and to provide the necessary partners for the dancing that followed. The dinner proper proceeded with but little delay, and was followed by what has been aptly termed "The Feast of Reason and the Flow of in the past, and will be more glorious in the future," he said. In bringing his address to a close Mr. Brown told the Talking Machine Men that they could not go too far in giving service, and illustrated his point by declaring that during November of last year the Victor Talking Machine Co. appropriated approximately $500,000 in special advertising to bring additional trade to the dealer's store, despite the fact that the factory itself was then far behind on orders. "We spent that money," said Mr. Brown, "with a full knowledge that so far as the factory is concerned we could not take in an additional nickel, as a result of the demand that we created. That is our idea of service." He also stated that the Victor advertising appropriation was constantly being increased, and that a half million dollars a distinctly poetic mind by reciting several passages that referred to the subject of "Service." Mr. Wiswell made the excellent point that in the talking machine business, as in every other line of industry, profit and service were linked together. "The reason that more talking machine dealers do not make a big success of their business," declared Mr. Wiswell, "is that they are too anxious to make profits without being willing to study and give the service necessary to insure such profits. There is no action without a reaction. You cannot get something for nothing, and it follows that profits cannot be realized unless there is something given by the dealer beyond plain goods." To erect a substantial building that will last, declared Mr. Wiswell, the foundation must be on bed rock. The same rule applies in business where the bed rock is represented by service that will bring trade to the house and keep it there. The cause and effect of science applies with equal force to the talking machine business, he said, and the biblical quotation, "As Annual Dinner Soul," in which several prominent lights in the trade participated and gave those present some fresh ideas regarding the importance of the industry and of the opportunities that have been theirs, and will be theirs in the future. The entertainment program was under the direction of John E. Hunt, president of the Talking Machine Men, Inc., who presided as toastmaster. Henry C. Brown's Live Address The first speaker was Henry C. Brown, assistant to the general manager of the Victor Talking Machine Co., who in his address drew a glowing picture of the development of the talking machine business and emphasized the fact that it was a business built upon a most solid foundation. He pointed out the fact that the demand for both machines and records constantly kept ahead of the facilities of the factories to produce, despite the fact that additions to the plant were being built at short intervals, and that in one department alone, the cabinet factory, 6,000 employes are constantly at work making cases for machines. Mr. Brown also remarked that, in the case of many business men, prosperity brought with it an overwhelming desire for' more prosperity, and that this condition was largely responsible for dishonest advertising that cropped up in the trade at various times, and that in doing business in a business-like way was to be found the only system for permanent success. "The history of the talking machine has been glorious of Talking Machine Men, Inc., at Hotel McAlpin, had been added to the appropriation in 1917. Mr. Brown extended a cordial invitation to dealers in the New York territory to visit and inspect the factory at Camden, to better understand the product they are handling. L. C. Wiswell Talks on "Service" The next speaker was Leslie C. Wiswell, manager of the talking machine department of John E. Hunt, President and Toastmaster Lyon & Healy, Chicago, and one of the leading figures in the talking machine circles in the West, who, in his preliminary remarks, showed April 17, 1917 ye sow so shall ye reap," was to be accepted as a genuine law of modern business. Marion Dorian Tells of War's Effect Marion Dorian, chief auditor of the Columbia Graphophone Co., who next addressed the diners, brightened the occasion with witty and humorous remarks and also brought to the gathering the greetings of Francis S. Whitten, the new president, of the Columbia Co., under whose efficient regime much further development is to be expected. Mr. Dorian emphasized the fact that although Columbia business was growing rapidly, Columbia service is being developed at a pace that enabled it to keep in sight of demands and that goods were being delivered with greater regularity than ever before, with plans being made to take care of future requirements. The most interesting part of Mr. Dorian's address was that referring to the experience of the Columbia Co. under war conditions in England and in Canada, where the company are maintaining factories. In both countries, declared Mr. Dorian, the business had shown marked increase during the period of the war and despite the scarcity of men and materials the company had been enabled to hold more than its own in a trade sense as compared with records of years before the outbreak of hostilities. "The talking machine to-day is generally recognized as an indispensable, highly prized and loved adjunct to national life, for the important part it