■ '■VtiT'.M.' ■■•" »''5. 



March 30, 1011. 



The Weekly Florists' Review. 



^:*^ 



4S 



Smyth, W. J., Chicago, 111. 

 Snyder, J. H., Rhlnebeck, N. Y. 

 Snyder, W. ,P., Philadelphia, I'a. 

 South, S., London, England. 

 Spencer, G. C. Utlca, N. Y. 

 Spencer, S. B., Rosllndale, Mass. 

 Sperling, W. A., New York, N. Y. 

 Stobo, R., Great Neck, N. Y. 

 Strange, G. W.. Summit, N. J. 

 Strohleln. G. A., Rlverton, N. J. 

 Stroud, E. A., Strafford, Pa. 

 Struck, George F., New York, N. Y. 

 Stuppy, Frank, St. Joseph, Mo. 

 Swan, Alfred, Philadelphia, Pa. 

 Swayne, William, Kennett Square, Pa. 



T 

 Tallby, William, Wellesley, Mass. 

 Tansey, J. E., Tuxedo Park, N. Y. 

 Temple, J. T., Davenport, la. 

 Thatcher, A. E., Jamaica Plain. Mass. 

 Toat, William, New York, N. Y. 

 Tonner, Miss A. L^, Chicago, 111. 

 Totty, C. H., Madison, N. J. 

 Totty. Mrs. C. H., Madison, N. J. 

 Towlll, Ed., Roslyn, Pa. 

 Tracy, B. H., Wenham, Mass. 

 Tracey, E. P., Albany, N. Y. 

 Traendly, P. H., New York, N. Y. 

 Traendly. Mrs. P. H., New York. N. Y. 

 Traudt, Joseph, Canajoharle, N. Y. 

 Trevellyn, Theodore, Tarrytown, N. Y. 

 Turner, Harry, Port Washington, N. Y. 

 Tuthlll, L. W. C, New York, N. Y. 



U 



Upton, Clarence, Philadelphia, Pa. 



V 

 Valentine, J. A., Denver, Colo. 

 Vander Berg, Albert J., South Orange, N. J. 

 Vandermery, G., Llsse, Holland. 

 Van Lecuwen, John, Sassenheim, Holland. 

 Vaughan, J. C, Chicago, 111. 

 Vesey, W. J., Fort Wayne, Ind. 

 Vesey, W. J., Jr., Fort Wayne, Ind. 

 Vincent, R., Jr., and wife. White M.irsli, Md. 

 Vineca, E. W., Milllngton, Mass. 

 Vlasveld, Simon, HiUegom, Holland. 



W 

 Wagner, C. M., Cleveland, O. 

 Walt, Wesley, Newburg, N. Y. 

 Waldecker, H., Braintree, Mass. 

 Walker, John, Youngstown, O. 

 Walker, William and brother, Loiii.-^ville, Ky. 

 Walsh, M. H., Woods Hole, Mass. 

 Ward, R. M., New York, N. Y. 

 Ward. W. C. Qulncy, Mass. 

 Washburn, C. L., Chicago, 111. 

 Watson, G. C, Philadelphia, Pa. 

 Weathered, C. B., New York. N. Y. 

 Weber, Charles, Lynbrook, N. Y. 

 Weber, Fred C, St. Louis, Mo. 

 Weber, J. A., Hartford, Conn. 

 Werthelmer, S. B., New York, N. Y. 

 Westcott, John, Philadelphia, Pa. 

 Wheeler, James, Natick, Mass. 

 White, Charles, Gasport, N. Y. 

 Wlenhoeber, Ernst, Chicago, 111. 

 Wlenhoeber, William, H., Chicago, 111. 

 Wilcox, Blaine, Council Bluffs, la. 

 Wilcox, J. F., and wife. Council Bluffs, In. 

 Will, H. S., Minneapolis, Minn. 

 Williams, J. J., Utlca, N. Y. 

 Williams, B., Greenwich, Conn. 

 Wlllinger, George, Ossinlng, N. Y. 

 Wilson, Andrew, New York, N. Y. 

 Wingett, A. H., Lenox, Mass. 

 Witterstaetter, R., Cincinnati, 0. 

 Wltthuhn, Fred C, Cleveland, O. 

 WIttllnger, George, Ossinlng, N. Y. 

 Wood, L. E., Fishklll, N. Y. 

 Wood, Mrs. E. A., Chicago, 111. 

 Wright, R. H., Aylmer, Que. 

 Wynne, Albert, Stamford, Conn. 



Y 

 Youell, H., Syracuse, N. Y. 

 Young, John, New York, N. Y. 



Zangen, O. V., Hoboken, N. J. 

 Zirkman, Arthur, Philadelphia, Pa. 

 Zweifel. Nic, North Milwaukee, Wis. 



CREDITS AND COLLECTIONS. 



[A pap«r by President J. A. Valentine, read 

 tetore the Florists' Telegraph Delivery Associa- 

 tion, in convention at Boston, Mass., March 25 to 

 April 1, 1911.] 



In presenting to you this hastily pre- 

 pared paper I wish to state that, while 

 the words are mine, the paper is pre- 

 pared from notes furnished me t'or that 

 purpose by the secretary of our com 

 pany, Miss Page, who has for years 

 acted as our "credit man" in charge 

 of accounts and collections, ii the 

 inner history of retail florists could be 

 known, I firmly believe that it would 

 show an astonishing number of failures 

 due to the careless extending of credits 

 and slovenly methods of collecting. 

 Doubtless others have had problems to 

 contend with that have not confronted 

 us, and I hope that in the discussion on 

 this paper many helpful points will be 

 brought out. 



In my opinion, many florists make 

 the mistake of being timid about ask- 



J. A. Valentine. 



(President Itslntl Florists' Delivery Assoclallon.) 



ing a man for references when he 

 wishes to open a charge account. This 

 is all wrong and it is hard to see why 

 any such attitude should have become 

 at all common. The man who goes to 

 the bank to borrow money expects to 

 thoroughly ■ satisfy the bank on all 

 points concerning his capital, his cred- 

 its and his antecedents. The florist's 

 transactions are smaller, but it is just 

 as essential for him as for the bank 

 to see that credits are not extended 

 to people who will not pay. Jf the 

 customer has good credit he is gener- 

 ally gltKl to prove it to you; and if he 

 gets indignant over your courteous in- 

 quiries it is pretty safe to assume that 

 he is one of the numerous gentry whose 

 capital consists of gall and a good 

 front. 



Bating of New Customers. 



In our establishment we get all the 

 information we can, but when none is 

 obtainable we are inclined to be fairly 

 liberal in extending credit for small 

 amounts, afterward following up the 

 collections closely. During office hours 

 all such matters are referred to the 

 credit clerk, but salesmen are allowed 

 some discretion in the early morning 

 and in the evening. If the credit clerk 

 has no record of a customer, the Retail 

 Credit Men's Association, a local or- 

 /ganization of which we are a member, 

 and which includes about 200 retail 

 merchants, is called on the 'phone and 

 asked in regard to the customer 's 

 rating. If they have no record of him, 

 we then obtain what information we 

 can as to the customer's residence. 



business connection, etc., from the city 

 and telephone directories, and if the in- 

 formation obtained from these sources 

 looks fairly favorable and the amount 

 involved does not exceed $3 or $4, the 

 charge is allowed to go through; other- 

 wise, unless we can get the customer 

 on the 'phone and get a satisfactory 

 reference from him, the goods are sent 

 C O. D. If the flowers ordered are for 

 a gift, and the amount is not large, 

 we take the chance and fill the order. 



We have found that there can be np-, 

 cast-iron rule in regard to these n»tit- 

 ters, but each case is determined/by 

 the circumstances and the information 

 obtained. Often, on busy days, charges 

 to entire strangers and people concern- 

 ing whom we can get no information 

 will slip through; but the results of 

 sixteen years of this polic^ have led us 

 to think it is better to risk an occa- 

 sional loss than to offend or turn away 

 people who might otherwise become 

 good customers. 



A Card File of Customers. 



Our oflice record is kept as follows: 

 When charges to new customers come 

 into the office, their names, together 

 with such information as we can get 

 concerning them, is entered on a card. 

 This is a 4x6 card printed so as to 

 allow the following information: Name, 

 address, occupation, report on credit 

 from Dun 's, Bradstreet 's and the local 

 Credit Association, and the date of 

 such report; also whether it is a retail, 

 wholesale or discount customer, and the 

 date the card is filled out. These cards 

 are filed alphabetically in a vertical 





