October 12, 1907 



HORTICULTURE 



479 



TRAENDLY &. SCHENCK 



44 WEST 28TH STREET, NEW YORK 



NOW is the time to start your season RIGHT m 



Our stock of Mums for fall comprises the finest grade of all the best of 

 EARLY and LATE varieties. 



^ 



Here you will also find the home of Killarney, Richmond and best 



qualities of high class Roses. 



All the leading varieties of fancy carnations — received DAlLYm 



VIOLETS— VALLEY 



Our supply of Orchids is second to none. 



TRAENDLY & SCHENCK 



44 WEST 28TH STREET, NEW YORK 



3 Phonos ~ You can always connect. 



simply say, "Nothing doing" and hang 

 up the receiver We can muke allow- 

 ance in some instances, where the 

 store-keeper may be busy with a cus- 

 tomer, or again, where he may have a 

 good supply of stock on hand and no 

 prospects of business, but salesmen 

 are human beings, and a little cour- 

 tesy extended to them (which costs 

 nothing), would work wonders for the 

 store-keepers at some future time, 

 when certain material may be scarce, 

 and the proprietor badly in need of 

 it. Mr. Store-keeper, try my prescrip- 

 tion, and instruct your employes ac- 

 cordingly, and it it fails to cure, we 

 will refund you money with pleasure 



Cost of Delivery Service. 



Just a word now in regard to de- 

 livery service. Our city today is doing 

 for the retail trade what no other city 

 does (as far as I know), giving them 

 prompt delivery service at any hour of 

 the day from 7 A. M. to S P. M., and 

 during the holiday season (I may add) 

 any time during the day or night. 

 This is all free to the store-keeper, 

 brt not to the wholesaler. To give 

 the proper service, the larger houses 

 are compelled to employ for their de- 

 livery at least from five to ten boys 

 at a cost of anywhere from four to 

 five dollars per week. Total this up, 

 add the amount it costs weekly for 

 car tickets, etc., and you will find it 

 runs into money. The prompt de- 

 livery service which we are giving to- 

 day "has been brought about by com- 

 petition. Oftentimes our larger stores 

 will divide a very large order between 

 two or more wholesale houses, ask for 

 immediate delivery, and then watch 



carefully to see which house has their 

 order delivered first. This is an im- 

 portant item to the buyer, who makes 

 a note of the best service given him, 

 and in return places the next impor- 

 tant order which he may happen to 

 have with the man who gives him 

 the attention, and on whom he can de- 

 pend. I have endeavored to show you 

 what this service means to our most 

 up-to-date store-keepers, and to make 

 it plain to you that they fully appre- 

 ciate our efforts, but in some ways 

 the competition has been overdone (in 

 the way of delivery). We have been 

 so ambitious to please the trade that 

 at times we have delivered very small 

 bills of goods, possibly a dollar's 

 worth or less, the commission on 

 which will amount to a paltry fifteen 

 cents. The goods are placed in a box 

 probably worth five cents, and the car- 

 fare to the customer may run any- 

 where from eight to fifteen cents; 

 figure this up yourselves, gentlemen. 

 This is what some of our less thought- 

 ful store-keepers expect and insist on 

 our doing, but I tell you that the 

 wholesaler is beginning to realize that 

 this is making money backwards, and 

 one of our houses has boldly come out 

 recently and told customers in a polite 

 way that while they want their busi- 

 ness, they cannot afford and will not 

 deliver a bill of goods under $2.00 to 

 any point where it is necessary to pay 

 carfare, unless they charge the same 

 in with the bill of goods. This, in my 

 judgment, is a step in the right direc- 

 tion. Every sound-minded store keep- 

 er is well aware that the existing com- 

 petition in our business is bringing 

 not only this service but dollars and 



cents to his door every day, and it 

 would be suicide for him to discourage 

 us in our efforts. 



The Wholesalers' Sun Is Rising. 



To make a long story short, allow 

 me to say that the wholesalers have to 

 be and are a hustling class of men, 

 who are willing to work night and 

 day for results, and who have been 

 doing it for a number of years. To- 

 day they are commencing to see liglit 

 ahead, the grower and store-keeper 

 alike, are slowly -grasping the fact that 

 he is a better man than they had given 

 him credit for. They have had a look 

 at his blighter and better side, and 

 are prtifiting in more ways than one 

 by his efforts. The sun is rising for 

 him; I will not say in the east, but just 

 so sure as the sun must rise "some- 

 where" so sure will the middleman 

 continue to advance. 



Our business is in its infancy, and 

 while it is so why not bring it up in the 

 way it should go? We can never form 

 a Philadelphia Florist Protective As- 

 sociation after our experience of one 

 year ago, but we can show our fellow 

 business men, both wholesale and re- 

 tail, that we are ready and willing to 

 meet them half way on any proposi- 

 tion that will be for the njutual good 

 and advancement of our profession, or 

 that will in any way make this rough 

 road the florist must travel more 

 smooth. 



The Detroit ijark commission has 

 received a large collection of cat- 

 tleyas. oncidiums. dendrobiums, cyp- 

 ripediums. latanias. chamaerops, and 

 other large plants from the estate ot 

 the late Daniel Scotten. 



