MARKETING OF DAIRY PRODUCTS 235 



the object of the retailer to increase the sale of such goods to 

 the fullest extent, as he considers that he is advertising his own 

 goods when advertising a line on which he holds exclusive 

 agency. 



The disadvantage of this system is that one merchant in a 

 town will not sell as much as would be sold if several were 

 handling a line. If the sentiment among several dealers is 

 favorable to handling a particular line of goods then the ex- 

 clusive agency plan will not be the most desirable. It is seldom 

 advisable to give exclusive agency to only one merchant in a 

 large city, because it is usually possible to select dealers in 

 different parts of the city so located that one does not interfere 

 with the business of the other. 



III. Marketing Through the Commissioii and Wholesale 

 House. — 



1 . The Commission Merchant. — The commission merchant 

 does not buy goods from the manufacturer, but receives them on 

 consignment and acts as an agent for the manufacturer and 

 charges a fixed per cent for his commission. The usual rate of 

 commission charged for selling butter is 5 per cent of the selling 

 price. The commission merchant sells to the retailer direct, 

 but also to the wholesaler. The commission merchant serves 

 mostly the smaller manufacturers, and this system of marketing 

 butter and cheese has been rather generally adopted. The sys- 

 tem has not proven entirely satisfactory, however, as it has often 

 led to misunderstanding between the manufacturer and the 

 dealer. Therefore many dealers are now buying the products 

 outright from the manufacturers and they thus become wholesale 

 buyers. 



2. The Broker. — The broker is a dealer who, like the com- 

 mission merchant, does not purchase the goods which he 

 handles. He usually represents the purchaser, although he 

 often represents the seller. He has no warehouse and as a rule 

 maintains only an office. He sells mostly in car lots and usually 

 direct to the jobbers or wholesalers. 



3. The Wholesale Dealer or Jobber. — The wholesaler buys 

 the goods outright from the manufacturer, commission mer- 



