Marketing and Storage 323 



are four fairly well defined factors: (1) The commission- 

 man; (2) the broker; (3) the carlot operator; (4) the 

 carlot distributor. 



Com missio-n-man. 



The commission-man is usually allowed 5 to 10 per 

 cent of the gross sales for his services. His incentive for 

 making satisfactory returns is his desire for retaining the 

 business of his patron. As emphasized elsewhere, the suc- 

 cess of this system of marketing depends entirely on the 

 personal element. It is obvious that the commission mer- 

 chant must know in advance of the quantity of goods he 

 will be called on to handle. Therefore, if this method is 

 employed, arrangements should be made as far in advance 

 as possible. , 



The broker. 



The legitimate apple broker is one of the important 

 factors in the distribution of the commercial crop. His 

 function is to negotiate sales between dealers or between 

 growers and dealers. The commission-man handles the 

 consignment, keeps all accounts and deducts his commis- 

 sion. The broker does not handle the funds, but receives 

 a stipulated commission, say $10 to $15 a car for his 

 services. 



Theoretically, the broker represents both the seller and 

 buyer. He is supposed to advise the seller as to general 

 marketing conditions, or in other words take the place of 

 a personal representative in the market. He is supposed 

 also to help in making equitable settlement in case of dis- 

 putes between contracting parties. The personal equation 

 enters very largely into this situation. The grower would 



