22 



The Florists^ Review 



March 11, 1920 



money should be diverted. One of the 

 most vital necessities of our business, 

 the growers' business, is to establish 

 ways and means of disposing of the so- 

 called surplus stock. There is only one 

 way, publicity, or advertising. 



Market Product. 

 The growers' product is the only 

 manufactured article (our greenhouses 

 are manufacturing institutions) in 

 America today for which a market has 

 not been created by the manufacturer. 

 Create a demand and you will receive a 

 fair price for your product. 



The retailer will benefit, but see 

 what St. Valentine's day and Mothers' 

 day have done for the grower. We may 

 not be able to create other days like 

 these, but we can create a greater and 

 more universal demand for our goods 

 by careful and systematic advertising. 

 Our national publicity campaign is won- 

 derfully successful, but it is only 

 scratching the surface and it is practi- 

 cally a retail project. 



There is no idea in the mind of Mr. 

 Ammann, or of those who are assisting 

 him in forming this organization, of dis- 

 placing any of the institutions already 

 in existence, but we leave to your own 

 judgment the great necessity for such 

 an institution. The unqualified support 

 and endorsement the project has re- 

 ceived at the hands of our greatest and 

 smallest growers who have already been 



approached prove that the opportune 

 time has arrived to launch this society. 

 Growers, we need your moral and physi- 

 cal support now. 



The miner, with no investments, liv- 

 ing in the home of the company for 

 which he toils, is organized to such an 

 extent that he says whether the grower 

 will have coal to keep his greenhouses 

 warm or not, but the grower, with hun- 

 dreds, or hundreds of thousands, or per- 

 haps millions of dollars invested in his 

 business, sits back calmly and takes 

 what is handed him. If agreeable, he 

 smiles. If not, he squeals. Smile or 

 squeal, he is scarcely noticed. Let the 

 growers consolidate their squeals so that 

 complaints may be heard and let them 

 consolidate their smiles so that the sun- 

 shine of their flowers may enter more 

 homes, for where there are flowers, 

 there is happiness. 



Send Suggestions. 



During the week of March 15, the 

 committee on organization will meet in 

 New York to perfect plans and present 

 a constitution. Will you not help us 

 by your suggestions or criticisms? 



The temporary oflicers chosen at the 

 convention of the American Carnation 

 Society in Chicago are: Presid,ent, F. 

 C. W. Brown; secretary, J. F. Ammann; 

 directors, C. E. Gullett, Lincoln, 111., R. 

 C. Kerr, Houston, Tex., and Wallace R. 

 Pierson, Cromwell, Conn. 



CHICAGO CAMPAIGN LEADERS. 



Officers Elected. 



After the Allied Florists' Associatioi. 

 at its meeting March 2 had amended thr 

 by-laws so as to put the choice of officers 

 in the directors' hands, the nine men 

 who form the executive board met 

 March 4 to elect officers. The foUowin^^ 

 were chosen: 



President — George Asnius. 



Vice-president — August Poehlmaun. 



Treasurer — William J. Smyth. 



The directors consist of these threo 

 and the following: August Lange, John 

 Michelsen, Paul Klingsporn, Eric John- 

 son, Otto Amling and Peter Pearson. 



Advertising Actively. 



Without waiting for the collection of 

 funds, the directors have placed liberal 

 advertising in the leading Chicago morn- 

 ing paper, believing that the present 

 abundance of stock offers a big oppor- 

 tunity to push sales. The idea of the two 

 advertisements reproduced in last week's 

 issue of The Review was presented even 

 more forcefully in the advertisement 

 which appeared in the Tribune March 8, 

 which occupied the largest space yet 

 used, one-third of a page. This adver- 

 tisement is reproduced on page 23. 



To carry out this publicity, the direc- 

 tors themselves contributed the funds 

 without waiting for returns from the 

 assessments levied sipce March 1. It is 

 expected ere long to have the affairs of 

 the organization on a smoothly running 

 business basis, when even more will bft 

 accomplished. 



Making Capital of Lent. 



Usually Lent is accepted by the 

 florist as a time when his business will 

 be dull. Social activities decline and 

 the decorations, corsages and other 

 orders which they cause diminish with 

 them. So the retailer waits for the 

 forty days of dullness to end, looking 

 forward to a bountiful Easter at their 

 close. 



Now, instead of performing this pa- 

 tient act of resignation, Chicago florists 

 are making capital out of the observ- 

 ance which causes the dullness, namely, 

 the Lenten spirit of sacrifice. Last 

 week the Allied Florists' Association 

 of Illinois published in the Tribune, 

 March 5, the advertisement reproduced 

 on page 24. They urged therein the 

 observation of Lent by giving pleasure 

 to some one else in the days when one 

 denies one's own. 



This is a novel argument to be em- 

 ])loyed in florists' advertising and a 

 good one, for it aids the sale of flowers 

 at a needed time — when orders are few- 

 er and stock more abundant. Chicago 

 florists have started out to show the 

 trade a few things of a cooperative 

 nature and are showing tlie trade some 

 excellent newspaper advertising. 



L. & B. WILL SHARE PROFITS. 



George A<imus. 



(Elected President of the Allied Florists' AiBoclatlon of IlllnolB.) 



Plan Adopted for 1920. 



For several years Mr. Burnham, the 

 president of the Lord & Burnham Co. 

 and the Burnham Boiler Corporation, 

 has had under consideration the adop- 

 tion of a profit-sharing plan. During 

 this time he has carefully considered 

 various plans that have \ come to his 

 notice. \\ 



Before leaving Irvingtom for the Pa- 



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