16 



inc rions^ i^evxcw 



OCTOBBB 11, 1817. 



brought me into touch with some of the 

 best members of the trade. I believe, 

 without exaggeration, that I met more 

 live-wire florists than ever before at 

 a single gathering. There were pres- 

 ent men from Maine to California, all 

 imbued with a keen desire to glean 

 something from the knowledge and ex- 

 perience of their fellow tradesmen that 

 might assist them in the solution of 

 their own individual problems. This, 

 to my mind, means that a new day has 



dawned for the florist, in that his busi- 

 ness is soon to be conducted upon a 

 strictly business basis, like that ad- 

 hered to in other lines of endeavor." 



Mrs. Ella Grant Wilson. 



"Talk about pep! When President 

 Gude brought down his gavel the lid 

 was removed from the box, and every 

 person present at the F. T. D. meeting 

 becfime suddenly inoculated with pep! 



"Call it 'go,' if you like; every up- 



to-date florist in the land had gone 

 to it! 



"Designate it 'push,' if you care; it 

 was there in the person of the ener- 

 getic secretary. 



"It was an excellent meeting, pro- 

 ductive of much good. There should 

 be more of them. 



"We were royally entertained by 

 the Detroit florists and we shall not 

 soon forget the genuine good-fellow- 

 ship that we met with everywhere." 



RETAIL STORE MANAGEMENT 



WHAT THE LEADERS IN THE TRADE ARE DOING 



PENN AND PUBLICITY. 



At the F. T. D. meeting at Detroit 

 the advertising of Penn, of Boston, was 

 referred to by many speakers as an 

 evidence of what a florist can accom- 

 plish through the skillful use of pub- 

 licity. It also was commented on that 

 many of the Penn advertisements are 

 not direct offers of things for sale and 

 Mr. Penn said he thinks the advertise- 

 ments dealing with the topics of the 

 day are among the most effective he 

 uses in arousing in the public interest 

 in his store. 



Eeproduced with this note is an ad- 

 vertisement he has just used which 

 cleverly couples the florists' business 

 with the Liberty bond advertising cam- 

 paign, which just now occupies more 

 ajttention than anything else before 

 the public. "It would be good adver- 

 tising," writes Mr. Penn, "for the 

 florists throughout the country to tie 

 up to the Liberty bond publicity, not 

 only because it is the patriotic thing 

 to do, but because it is good advertising 

 for any florist. Our method of treating 

 it is not copyrighted. ' ' 



FLOWERS IN HOTELS. 



A great deal may be said regarding 

 a recent editorial in a hotel bulletin 

 on the subject of "Artistic Floral Dec- 

 orations." Years ago people expected 

 to put up with the inconveniences of 

 hotels; no one thought of permanently 

 living at hotels. In this advanced period 

 more and more people live in the coun- 

 try half of each year, and a hotel is 

 their "home" the other lialf. They 

 expect every convenience and luxury 

 that money can command, and it is the 

 efiicient carrying out of small details 

 in all departments that keeps the big 

 wheel running smoothly. 



The first fully equipped department 

 of decorations was introduced at the 

 Hotel Statler, Cleveland. It is under 

 the direction of Mrs. Anna W. Slaght, 

 and the success from the first was so 

 marked that it proved conclusively the 

 urgent need of such a department in 

 all good hotels; also that it is a woman's 

 job. In a home, where most of the en- 

 tertaining has always been done, has 

 it been the man who planned and put 

 the thought into the finishing touches 

 of a table? We will admit that he pays 

 the bills, and that a gentleman is at all 

 times as particular regarding the ap- 



pointments of a table as a woman, but 

 it takes the artistic touches of a woman 

 to complete a table. In the first place, 

 a man may have enough artistic ability 

 to arrange flowers artistically, but to 

 keep up at all tim#s with the latest 

 ideas and innovations in cards, favors, 

 wedding accessories, etc., is too effemi- 

 nate for a man to handle in this im- 

 portant thing of a large commercial 

 hotel. At the same time, a wonderfully 

 cooked and served dinner can be a fail- 



The Most Wonderful Blossomin|r 

 Plant in the World 



If a larje and thorou;;hl/ reli:iM? b<"^\- 

 ness concern oflered to llie public a r'^'^' 

 Hint could be boiiglit in any size, at a price 

 suited to every man's pocketbonk, thai re- 

 quired absolutely no care, would srow OMt 

 of doors or in the house, summer and winter 

 alike, arid was guaranteed to bear twice a 

 year, on staled days for a period of twenty- 

 five years, lilossoms so liishW prized that any- 

 lx)dy would accept them in payment for mer- 

 chandise and service, and if at the end of the 

 period the concern suaranleed to repay the 

 owner his total ori'Jnal cost — such a plant 

 would truly be the inosi wonderlul plant in 

 the world. 



TliJ abr ve coiidilions .ipply ciaclly to 

 ll'.i- terms .Hid ntv.iiilaecs of llii" sernnJ 

 is<ue of flic l.iherty loan i'.oiijs. We 

 a.lvi^c llieir |Hl^cha^o I'y every Iioii'^e- 

 tioU iti the country. 



I 124 Trtmonl Si. Botlon't Flowtri>hon€ Beach €900 



The Most Wonderful Plant is Publicity. 



lire by reason of a poorly appointed 

 table. The small details arc fully as 

 essential and need as much scientific 

 consideration as the cooking does. 



A handsome centerpiece is ordered 

 from a florist, but only too often it is 

 too large or too small for a certain table. 

 A captain, waiter or bus-boy has no 

 knowledge of how to obtain the required 

 results. The host, not pleased with a 

 table, does not take into consideration 

 that, while he ordered the flowers from 

 a florist, he did not pay the florist to 

 decorate the table. It is a courtesy and 

 convenience to the guest to have such 



a department. The guests are relieved 

 of every detail; if a wedding, then from 

 the altar to the rice thrown for good 

 luck. At college dinners or banquets 

 one must be able to create and carry 

 out different college ideas. For e^onven- 

 tion work one must design rooms and 

 tables in keeping with the trade-marks 

 or emblems. For banquets of different 

 nationalities one must be familiaj with 

 the different flags, colors, etc. It is a 

 most interesting work for any woman 

 who is creative and has talent along 

 these. lines; It has no end of possibili- 

 ties — from a guest's standpoint, con- 

 venience, luxury and necessity; from a 

 hotel's standpoint, economy, profit and 

 courtesy. 



STBONG FOR PUBLICITY. 



I am enclosing a few of the advertise- 

 ments I have been running in the local 

 daily newspapers from time to time. 

 I think florists throughout the country 

 will be interested in what the S. A. F. 

 is going to do to call the public's atten- 

 tion to flowers. It is a good idea. I 

 have had good results from the adver- 

 tising, but find it must be kept up in 

 order to have my name and business im- 

 pressed upon the public. Of course, I 

 use window displays and other adver- 

 tising matter. I feel assured that flo- 

 rists must wake up and use plenty of 

 space in the papers, the same as the 

 department stores do. 



Edward Green. 



The advertisements Mr. Green en- 

 closed occupy two, three and four 

 inches of space in single column. They 

 call attention to his display windows; 

 tell of special sales, and impress upon 

 the public the sentiment of special days, 

 such as Mothers' day. It is advertising 

 such as this that the S. A. F. publicity 

 plan contemplates local florists will do 

 to get the benefit of the national adver- 

 tising in magazines. — Editor. 



St. Joseph, Mo. — The Chesmore, East- 

 lake Co. is most sanguine regarding the 

 coming season's business, but a shortage 

 of Holland bulbs will be felt. 



Laurel, Del. — George E. Smith, of 

 the L. M. Smith Quality Flower Co., 

 spent the summer with his son, who 

 is assistant secretary and treasurer of 

 the Canadian Explosives Co., Montreal, 

 Que. 



