THE RETAIL GROWER'S ESTABLISHMENT 75 



The time devoted to keeping up your own appearance and that 

 of the store and the show house, counts for far more than that em- 

 ployed in pulling weeds. There are times when one may buy one or 

 two lots and by paying a small sum, obtain an option on another lot 

 next to his own for a year or so. Never let a chance like that go by. 

 Buy only a small piece, and take an option on more. In the mean- 

 time, make the best use of what is your own, and by the time you 

 near the end of the option you will know whether you want to take 

 advantage of it or not. 



Many have failed because they started out on too big a scale; 

 they couldn't carry the load long enough. There is nothing in the 

 statement that "almost any piece of property is good enough if the 

 right man is on it." It takes the right man on the right piece of 

 property in order to succeed, and of the two the poor man on a 

 good piece stands a better chance than the good man on a poor piece. 

 To sum up, get near to where others are doing business ; face north, 

 if you have your choice; and don't buy too much. 



Two ESTABLISHMENTS FOR SMALL RETAIL GROWERS 



The accompanying illustrations (Figs. 19 and 20), show the 

 ground plan, front elevation and cross section of three houses and 

 store designed by the Lord & Burnham Co., and give a splendid 

 idea of what can be done on a 100 ft. x 150 ft. lot. This would 

 make an attractive and useful layout which any retail grower 

 could be proud to possess and do business in. It comprises a good- 

 sized store with office, workroom, cool room and neat, pleasing 

 front; a boiler room in the basement; connecting with the store, 

 three modern, uptodate houses, fit for almost anything you might 

 want to grow under glass; and, next to the store, an open space for 

 a show house to be added some day, but at present well suited for 

 a little formal display garden. 



To erect such an establishment one ought to have a capital of 

 about $10,000 or know where to get it. But what you really 

 need far more than the land to build on, is a thorough knowledge 

 of what you are about to undertake, and of the business itself. 

 The three absolute essentials are : A conviction that there is a demand 

 for a florist (or another one) in the town ; a will that you are going to 

 succeed and ignorance of the word failure; and about $3000 in cash. 

 I realize that the builder won't agree with me on that point, but I 

 would put my money even on a man with only half that amount if 

 he had all the other qualifications. Everything depends on the man 

 himself. I could name one hundred men who are well known florists 

 today, who have made names for themselves as good growers and 

 been successful in business who didn't have $500 when they started 

 nor a layout like this to start with. Perhaps you know of some 

 with better layouts and lots of money who have failed. 



