22 



The Florists^ Review 



DKCKMBEIt 2, 1920 



flower market, bocaii.so tlic raw ma- 

 terials are not (loHcendiiiji; in cost. 

 Tlicy know why s\i;;;ar and silk sliirts 

 went down hcr'aiisc? tlio newspapers 

 {,'a\-e (■(duiiins to tlie ("uhaii siij^ar cro]) 

 and lik(>\vise to the financial ]ianic in 

 .Fapan. Tlie siiLjar inijiorters and the 

 silk importers gave rejjorters much nia- 



ta<^e (if the nursery trade. What was 

 done to jironiote the interests of the 

 nursery trade can be done equally well 

 for tiorists. 



Nor is it necessary to wait for the 

 or>;ani/.ation of the National Flower 

 (Jrowers' Association and the comj)ila- 

 tion of statistics reijarding greenhouse 



W. H. Englehart. 



terial for puhlie.-ition on thos(> tojjics. 

 No si)ace has been gi\(ii to flower costs 

 — why? 



At first thought, maybe wo lay the 

 blame on the newsjiapers. Perhaps to a 

 certain extent we're right. 15iit to a 

 larger extent, we're not. No one has 

 our business at heart so much as we 

 have ourselves, and no one will act for 

 us if we do not act. Benj.'nnin Frank- 

 lin's statement, "If you would have a 

 thing well done, do it yourself," might 

 be revised by the omission of the 

 "well" and be often applicable, as it is 

 iu this instance. 



Opportunity. 



Here is au opiportunity for great serv- 

 ice by our j)ublici1y campaigns, both 

 national and local, that does not require 

 large expenditure for expensive ailver- 

 tising space. It calls for the gathering 

 of some statistics and jiutting them into 

 readable form for ]iublication in news- 

 j)apers and magazines. Reference to 

 the work of the nurserymen last year 

 in jiublicity shows what a Vast 

 amount of newspaper space can be 

 obtained for the sole expense of sending 

 out prepared stories, giving them ex- 

 clusively to one paper in each com- 

 munity. Such material was sent to 

 over 7r>0 papers throughout the coun- 

 try and the total space aggregated 

 thousands of columns, all to the advau- 



costs throughout the country. For ex- 

 amples to show the public the ascent 

 iu the cost of growing flowers in com- 

 parison with the rise in the prices 

 charged for them, figures obtained 

 from a few greenhouses will serve. 



If the sole florist in a small town 

 wishes to impri'ss the fact on his pub- 

 lic, he needs only figures showing the 

 course of rising costs in his own houses. 

 A chat with the editor of the local 

 l)aper will serve to get him perhaps 

 lialf a column, if he takes along a bunch 

 of flowers. 



In larger communities the secretary 

 of the coiijierative advertising organiza- 

 tion can secure data from a few of its 

 grower members to serve as illustra- 

 tions for such an article. Such a secre- 

 tary, if he has a knowledge of news- 

 paper ways, as he should, can work up 

 such a story so that it will be given a 

 conspicuous place from a news point of 

 view, without resorting to demands as 

 a purchaser of advertising space. In- 

 deed, with the present day newspajiir, 

 such demands are not so submissively 

 heard as they were years ago. The 

 editorial and advertising departments 

 are widely divorced and the editor's 

 inclination is more to avoid the aj)pear- 

 ance of favoring an advertiser in the 

 reading columns than to cater to his 

 wislies. The ajipeal should be to his 

 desire for news, for something of in- 



terest and value to readers, that gives 

 no firm or organization free advertis- 

 ing, at any rate directly. 



Christmas. 



Now is a most advantageous mo- 

 ment to do just this thing. Christmas 

 is near at hand, when newspaper com- 

 ment regarding high prices is always 

 common. If the public were informed 

 regarding the high cost of growing 

 flowers, if it were made to realize just 

 why a dozen roses cost what they do, 

 niany would pay the price more will- 

 ingly and some persons would buy 

 flowers instead of talking about rob- 

 bery. Exceedingly small is the per- 

 centage, even of those who buy flowers, 

 who comprehend how constant and 

 minute is the care required in a green- 

 house. Few realize that large growers 

 sjiend several hundred dollars daily 

 merely to fumigate their houses. Few 

 have any inkling of the labor cost or 

 the coal cost that enters into each 

 bloom. Nor do they realize the length 

 of time required to grow roses on 3-foot 

 and -1 foot stems. It is even more im- 

 portant that the iniblic realize that the 

 cold weather and dark days of winter 

 curtail jtroduction when expenses are 

 highest, when the demand is strongest, 

 and when tlie sujipdy is lowest. 



All these facts may be put in inter- 

 esting form, with .s|)ecific examples in 

 dollars and cents to illustrate tlie points 

 which are to be most impressed upon 

 the public. Thus may be driven home 

 an ajipreciation of the reasons for high 

 prices that will forestall the usual com- 

 plaints and, indeed, slimiilate buying 

 instead of its being curtailed. Here is 

 an opportunity for the trade. Let's 

 take it! 



TENNESSEE PRESIDENT. 



The new ]iresidei.t of the Tennessee 

 State Florists' Asso<-iation, elected at 

 its seventh annual meeting, at Mem- 

 jdiis, November 17, is alreadv well 

 known throughout the tr.-nle "as the 

 Jiresident and iiiati;iger of the Idlewild 

 Greenhouses, at Memidiis, and as one of 

 the most energetic members of his pro- 

 fession. 



Mr. Knglehart's career is closelv 

 linked with that of the Idlewild Green- 

 houses. He started with this establish- 

 ment at its beginning, twenty-four 

 years ago, acting as salesman, de'livery 

 nian, designer and general utility man. 

 Now as its head, he directs the activ- 

 ities at the main store, at 8!) South Main 

 street, Memjihis, and at the branch 

 store and greenhouses, at f:ast and East- 

 moreland streets. 



lie is a member of the Flks, K. C. 

 Moose, Maccabees. Kiwanis Club, Mem"- 

 jdiis Chamber of Commerce .and S. A. F. 

 He is m/irried and has two children. Ilis 

 son, W. II. Eiiglehart, .Ir., is 15 vears of 

 age. 



As president of the Tennessee State 

 Florists' Association, states Mr. Engle- 

 hart, his great ambition is to double the 

 memhershij) of the organization. As a 

 result of the drive iit Memidiis he will 

 sit as the association's rejireseiitative on 

 thf board of directors of the S. A. F. 



BUSINESS EMBARRASSMENTS. 



Woburn, Mass.— Richard Graham, 

 Fletclier road, has filed a petition in 

 bankruptcy. His schedule shows unse- 

 cured liabilities of $1,468.52 and no as- 

 sets. 



