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ifABCH 2, 1922 



The Florists^ Review 



35 



CHICAGO'S CAMPAIGN 



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A. F. A. HOLDS ANNUAL MEETING, 



Growers May Direct Publicity. 



The annual meeting of the Allied Flo- 

 rists ' Association of Illinois was held 

 at the Hotel Eandolph, Chicago, Monday 

 evening, February 27. When reports of 

 the officers had been heard, other order 

 of business gave way to a consideration 

 of the growers' plan to take over the 

 advertising campaign. It seemed to be 

 the almost unanimous opinion of those 

 present that the growers, if they were 

 willing to assume responsibility, should 

 be allowed to direct the cooperative 

 campaign of advertising carried on dur- 

 ing the last two years by the Allied 

 Florists' Association as representing re- 

 tailers, wholesalers and growers: 



When the president had opened the 

 meeting, the secretary read the auditor's 

 report of the association's finances dur- 

 ing the two years of its existence. Un- 

 fortunately, the auditor had mistaken 

 the fiscal year of the organization and 

 included in the first annual period thir- 

 teen months, from February 24, 1920, 

 to March 31, 1921, and in the second 

 period only ten months, from April 1, 

 1921, to January 31, 1922. For this rea- 

 son the figures in the two columns below 

 can only be compared by making allow- 

 ance for the difference of three months 

 between the first and the second. 



Auditor's Figures. 



The figures given by the auditor are 

 tabulated below: 



RKCEIITS 



1,'i iiKis. to 10 ni08. to 

 Mar. 31, 1921 Jau. 31, 1022 



<'oll.'< tions .$31,834.23 $20,702,72 



PISHUUSKMENTS 



13 iiios. to 10 mos. to 

 Mar. 31, 1921 Jan. 31, 1922 



Drawinjis and engravings. $ 912.89 $ 458.09 



Header piiblicilv 1,192.00 2.041.29 



Newsimper advertising .. 21,814.37 13,2(H.39 



Dealers' lieliis 1,144.40 830.00 



National fund 1,712.84 3,0.39.58 



Flowers 1,911.94 228.34 



Total f(jr advertising.. .|;28,688. 44 $20,462.59 

 AssiK'iation e.\|)enses 4,280.43 2,932.80 



Total $32,908.87 !i!23,.395.48 



Halanee $ 2,307.24 



ASS(>ri.\TI()N EXl'EXSES 



13 mos. to 10 nios. to 

 Mar. 31, 1921 Jan. 31, 1922 



Interest $ 227.00 $ 118.15 



Itoolikeeping l.jO.OO lOO.tK) 



Field man (!2H.;!8 997. 92 



Secretary's otTee 1,4(«4.11 1.197.:!3 



Hotel for meetings 208.75 145.25 



Circulars 911.19 84.15 



Legal fees • 119.00 84.,3(! 



Sliow (arda 57.00 50.00 



li'.ntern slides 30.00 52.85 



Frizes 225.00 



Miseellaneons 200.00 71.88 



Suret.v Ixmds 25.00 



Total $4,280.43 $2,932.8!> 



Secretary 11. V. Swenson then read his 

 report. In it he said: 



"During the period March 1, 1921, to 

 January 31, 1922, the Allied Florists' 

 Association invested $20,462.59 of its 

 funds in advertising. This docs not in- 

 clude St. Valentine's day advertising, 

 which amounts to approximately $2,000 

 additional. This figure eqtials approxi- 

 mately $6,000 less than the year pre- 

 vious, for the reason that last year's re- 

 port covered a longer period. 



"Twenty-two different subjects were 



advertised during the current year. As 

 these advertisements appeared in from 

 two to six papers, it means that eighty- 

 four distinct advertisements were run 

 by the association in the Chicago 

 dailies. 



Membership. 



"Up to July 1, 1921, the membership 

 of the association remained about the 

 same as the year previous, but it was 

 found that quite a number of the retail- 

 ers were not paying. The growers, on 

 the other hand, had been paying re- 

 ligiously from the start. As quite a num- 

 ber of the retailers were not paying the 

 assessment, this naturally reduced the 

 association's receipts materially. 



"May 1 compulsory payment by the . 

 retailers was put in operation hf the 

 wholesale market. This proved success- 

 ful, financially at least, for two months 

 and showed a decided increase in rev- 

 enue — for these two months. The com- 

 pulsory plan, however, failed to func- 

 tion properly after July 1 and it was 

 gradually dropped. From then on, col- 

 lections from the retailers, as I am in- 

 formed by the wholesalers on the mar- 

 ket, gradually fell off. I also found a 

 lack of interest in trying to force the 

 retailers to pay. This was justifiable in 

 view of the fact that there was no 

 united action in the matter, and a whole- 

 saler could not very well stand alone 

 and force the collection which would 

 be to his disadvantage. 



"Outside of a reduced revenue, 

 brought about by the refusal of some 

 retailers to pay the assessment, the as 

 sociation has functioned satisfactorily 

 through the year. This office has expe- 

 rienced little or no trouble in collecting 

 the funds from the wholesale houses 

 each month." 



Growers' Proposal. 



Both the reports of the auditor and 

 of the secretary were accepted and 

 spread on the records. The president 

 then called upon Peter Pcirson, as pres- 

 ident of the Commercial Flower Growers 

 of Chicago, for information regarding 

 the ])roposal of the growers to assume 

 responsibility for the advertising cam- 

 paign, a discussion concerning which 

 had been named the special order of 

 business for the meeting. Since it was 

 necessary that the constitution and the 

 by-laws of the Allied Florists' Asso- 

 ciation be amended to permit the change 

 to be made, Mr. Pearson moved that a 

 committee be appointed by the chair to 

 draft such ainciiduients for presentation 

 to a meeting which would he called at 

 such time as would permit the necessary 

 thirty days' notice to be given members. 



Before calling for n vote on the mo- 

 tion, the chairman called upon various 

 wholesalers and growers present for an 

 expression of opinion. The consensus 

 appeared to be in favor of the change, 

 provided the unanimous support of the 

 growers could be obtained. It appeared 

 that a, majority of the growers have al- 

 ready expressed themselves in f.'ivor of 

 the move and it was said that the others 

 would give their support when they had 

 been fully informed regarding the pro 

 posed action. 



Betailers Spend Individually. 



The growers who spoke in favor of 

 the change believed that the retailers, 

 primarily interested in their individual 

 advertising, should be permitted to de- 

 vote their entire energy and funds in 

 that direction. Large sums ;iro being 

 so expended at present by some retailers 

 who are contributing to the Allied Flo- 

 rists' Association. George Asmus stated 

 that Schiller the Florist was paying 

 $1,600 per month for billboard advertis- 

 ing, winch was but one item in the 

 firm's publicity budget. Without nieii- 

 tioning the total expenditure for adver- 

 tising by his own firm, he remarked that 

 his fellow directorj A. Lange, spent an- 

 nually as much as the entire receipts of 

 the A. F. A. Several other loop retail- 

 ers and a few in residential districts 

 spend similarly large sums. The aggre 

 gate of such advertising by retailers to-, 

 tals in the course of the year many times 

 that expended by the A. F. A. It was 

 the growers' intention, therefore, to 

 permit the retailers to confine them- 

 selves to such individual pubH«ify, for 

 which course they seemed aireatjy to 

 have indicated their preference by with- 

 drawing, in a number of instances, from 

 the association. Mr. Asmus stated that 

 his own firm's contribution to the Al- 

 lied Florists' Association was so small 

 a portion of its entire advertising bud- 

 get as to be almost insignificant, but 

 if the growers wished to direct the cam- 

 paign of cooperative advertising, he 

 would favor the idea, A. Lange sug 

 gested that the growers try it a year at 

 any rate. 



Upon the motion of Mr. Pearson being 

 seconded by Joseph Kohout, a vote was 

 taken, which was unanimous, with the 

 exception of one person, who wished 

 his vote to be recorded in opposition. 

 Mr. Asmus thereupon named on the com- 

 mittee to amend the constitution and 

 by-laws Eric Johnson, Paul Klingspofn, 

 Peter Pearson, Otto Amling and Joseph 

 Kohout. 



Mr. Kohout moved that the present 

 officers continue in the discharge of their 

 duties until their successors be elected. 

 Upon being seconded by Rudolph Ells- 

 worth, this motion was carried. With it 

 prevailed a vote of confidouce in the 

 hoard of directors of the A. F. A., so 

 that they might proceed with further ad- 

 vertising during tlio period which must 

 elapse before the direction of the cam- 

 paign can be formally turned over to the 

 growers. 



HARTFORD, CONN. 



Hallgren Bros, h.nve just finished rc- 

 jtotting more than 20,000 geraniums for 

 the spring trade, which is increasing 

 year by year. 



Btilhous stock coming from the Cedar 

 Hill Greenhouses is fine. Von Sion, 

 Golden Spur and other varieties of nar- 

 cissi are of s)ilcndid quality. A. C. Lin- 

 dor reports that more than 7.5,000 bulbs 

 have been planted this season. The de- 

 mand is heavy. 



All the Hartford stores observed 

 Washington's birthday by closing at 

 noon. C. B. M. 



