24 
BULLETIN 1442, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
DELIVERY EXPENSE 
The average delivery expense for stores of the limited- delivery 
class was 1.03 per cent. (See Table 4.) In stores of unlimited- 
delivery class the average percentage was 3.21. The wide difference 
between these percentages for the two classes was readily explained 
by the variation in the extent to which delivery service was offered 
and utilized. The limited-delivery class depended upon means other 
than its own delivery facilities for delivery of the small number of 
sales made on a delivered basis. Contract delivery and central de- 
livery were the means most often used by stores of this class. De- 
livery expense in such stores did not lend itself to analysis, since 
there was an element of profit included in the amounts which were 
paid to outsiders for contract delivery and the necessary data for 
Advertising Expense in Individual Retail Meat Markets, 1923 
ADVERTISING EXPENSE IN PERCENTAGE Or NET SALES 
.2 .3 .4- .5 .6 .7 .8 
y//\ Sales Under $100, 000 
Soles Over $100,000 
Fig. 1. — Advertising expense in percentage of net sales was greatest in carry and limited- 
delivery stores in which the annual volumes of sales were over $100,000. No significant 
differences were found in the extent to which advertising was employed by the unlim- 
ited-delivery stores in which annual sales volumes were below $100,000 and by stores 
of the same type where the annual sales volumes were over $100,000 
analysis were not available. However, the difference in the extent 
of delivery service used by stores of these two classes was made 
apparent through the variation in delivery expense. 
When the stores were divided according to profit and loss group- 
ings, a delivery cost of 0.74 per cent was noted for the profit limited- 
delivery stores and 1.88 per cent for the loss stores of the same class. 
In the unlimited- delivery store class, the profit stores incurred a 
percentage delivery expense of 3.02, whereas the loss stores' per- 
centage was 0.90 higher, or a total of 3.92. As volume of sales in- 
creased, there were indicated for the profit and loss groups of stores 
in both the limited and unlimited delivery classes very rapid de- 
creases in delivery expense as a percentage of total net sales. 
In analyzing delivery expense, it was desirable to consider the 
total expense incurred for this service and to study its relation to 
the value of goods actually delivered. Retail meat dealers gener- 
