The evening world. Newspaper, September 20, 1911, Page 5

This Is a Human Interest Story About a Youn Who, through PERSISTENT APPLICATION to work, through STRICT ADHERENCE to a SQUARE-DEAL BUSINESS POLICY, has developed the ENO: CO., 21 WEST THIRTY-FOURTH STREET, NEW YORK. ___. The business HAS GROWN SO AMAZINGLY that 2 BIG FACTORY {s operated at 188-187 East 107th Street, New York, WHICH SUPPLIES THE STOCKS OF SIX OTHER ESTABLISHMENTS, directly controlled by the parent Company, as follows: 21 Great St. Helens, E. C., London, England; 37 South State Street, Chicago, Ill.; 277 Grand Street, New York, 866 Sixth Avenue, New York; 653 Broad Street, Newark, N. J.; Buenos Ayres, South America. The following AMERICAN AGENTS ALSO SELL THE PRODUCTS of The London Feather Co, EXCLUSIVELY: The Elder & Johnston Co., Di Louisville, Ky.; The J. L. Hudson Co., Detroit, Mich.; Hutsler Brothers Co, Rich & Bros. Co., Atlanta, Ga.; M. B. Arnstein & Co., Knoxville, Tenn. Adam, Meldrum & Anderson Co., Buffalo, N. Y.; Herm Henry Siegel Co., Boston, Mass.; The Thompson Hudson Co., Toledo, Ohio; A little over seven years ago an American mer- chant, while in London, heard that a young man living in that city had invented a machine which assisted operators in making feather boas better and more rapidly and more economically than they had ever been made before by operators alone. The American merchant sought out this young man and WANTED TO BUY THE MACHINE. The young inventor had constructed a machine that was not at all complex in the details of its. mechan- ism; in fact, it was a v simple device repre- senting only an idea WHICH THE INVENTOR HAD NOT PATENTED. He knew that if he showed it to the American WITHOUT AN AGREEMENT FIRST BEING ENTERED INTO BETWEEN THEM, nothing could prevent the American from making a ma- chine of his own. He stated to the American his views on the sub- ject, WHEREUPON THE AMERICAN BE- CAME INDIGNANT, saying that he was a man of his word and that, besides, he could back it up with money. The young Londoner DID NOT DOUBT EITHER THE WORD OR THE MONEY POWER OF THE AMERICAN, but he clung to his idea that he would not do business except upon an agreement that would prevent the construction of a machine exactly like his, WITHOUT GIVING HIM SOME MONEY RETURN OR SOME PLEDGE that it would not be copied if the Ameri+ can, after seeing it, did not wish to buy. The American THEN BECAME MORE IN- DIGNANT and walked out of the shop. Then the young man commenced to soliloquize about as follows: “The demand for feather boas in London is dim- ini rete are not selling here as they once did—THEY DON’T SEEM TO BE THE FASH- ION just now. THERE MUST BE A DEMAND FOR THEM IN AMERICA, however, otberwise this American merchant would not be so anxious to buy my machine. I GUESS MAYBE I HAD BETTER MOVE TO AMERICA.” The next day the American again called on the oung man and expressed A DESIRE TO ENTER NTO SUCH AN AGREEMENT AS HAD BEEN OUTLINED TO HIM THE DAY BE- FORE, but this time he was informed THAT HE COULD NOT BUY THE MACHINE AT ANY PRICE. That ended the negotiations. Witbin a short time after this incident the young man closed up his business in London and came to America, THE LAND OF OPPORTUNITY. He only had two thousand dollars. HE WAS THEN 26 YEARS OLD AND MARRIED. He brought along with bim the machine for the making of feather boas. He rented a very modest place WHICH HE USED BOTH FOR A FAC- TORY AND A HOME. He made up some samples of feather boas. Then he started out to call on the buyers in the big department stores, He went around the ‘y day for many months. HE COULD ET AN INTER- VIEW WITH A SI BUYER IN A SINGLE STORE. He did not know American ways of salesmanship—HE WAS NOT KNOWN, so ie was sidetracked. Besides, the buyers said among themselves, when this young manufacturer sent in his card to them and announced his bu: —‘Who is this man who OFFERS ‘TO FEATHER BOAS AT SUCH LOW PRIC We are getting as high as 860 for some of our feather boas. If we put in his stock, we wil! not be able to sell ours. Fur- thermore, the public seems: te be losing interest in feather boas. We had better get rid of the stock we have.” SO THE DAILY TRAMP, TRAMP OF THIS YOUNG MAN through the eets of the city, in an effort to sell his merchandise, gradually dim- inishing his small amount of cash, every day mak- ing more feather boas, until he had finally accu- mulated a stock of one thousand of them, went on until he WAS WELL-NIGH DISCOURAGED. Walking on Sixth avenue one day he saw a sign in a window in a loft—Old F ers Cleaned and Dyed.” He said to himself, since he was an ex- (that was the trade he had learned well), ss {TTER ABANDON THE MAKING OF FEATHER BOAS and rent a place and start up the business of cleaning and dyeing old feathers, WHICH I CAN DO AS WELL AS ANYBODY ON EARTH’ The upshot of it was that he rented a loft at $66 Sixth avenue, near 28d Street, just around from the James Me( y & Co. store. THIS LOFT WAS) DIVIDED OFF INTO ONE WORKROOM AND SOME LIVING ROOMS. He immediately moved into this place with his family, paying a rental of 850 per month. or vaying the first month's rent, ALL HE HADI \ IN THE WORLD WAS _ $200. i HE COULD NOT AFFORD TO DO MUCH ADVERTISING, but he started to use in ONE THE. PROGRAM a space which CC HIM %5.00 PER WEEK. Within a few days women commenced to drop into the shop with their old feathers to have them cleaned and dyed. HE DID Iils WORK WELL. The feathers were cleaned and dyed so thoroughly THAT THEY LOOKED LIKE NEW FEATHERS, so much so that many of the women who brought them in COULD NOT BELIEVE THAT THE FEATHERS WERE THEIRS. These women, who were very well satisfied with the work that had been done for them, PA D AROUND DE INFORMATION AMONG THEIR FRIENDS, telling them that if they had any old feathers they wanted fixed up, they had better take them to this young man at the Sixth avenue loft. His BUSI GREW, so much so that HE HAD TO ARI T FIVE O'CLOCK IN THE MORNING and get in a helper and do his clean- ind dyeing before eleven a. m.,so that he could be in his little shop and wait on the people who an Straus & Sons Co. M. Written by WILLIAM ©. FREEMAN. called there from eleven o'clock on to the end of the day. He added six more theatre programe to ny srgue list, paying all told for advertising 95 per week. His FAME AS A SPECIAL AND SKILLED WORKMAN IN HIS LINE SPREAD SO that his customers were often asked when visited department storee—“WHERE DID YOU GET slog i the mlinery dapartment would got the salesgirl in the answer—‘Why that’s Rather I bought here a long time ago—I've just had by a young man OSE NAME IS FELIX A. LACKS, and his place is at 866 Sixth avenue.” This information gradually spread to the owners of department stores and sought out young Lacks to clean and dye the old feathers that accumulated in their wna Soeerone UN- TIL FINALLY THE BIG STORES OF NEW YORK GAVE HIM A LARGE AMOUNT OF THEIR BUSINESS; some of them paying him as much as $250 a month. A little after Christmas time, following his ad- vent into the rey and dyeing business, THE OSTRICH WILLOW FEATHER CAME INTO PROMINENCE IN ‘THE’ FASHIONABLE WORLD, and this QUICK-THINKING and QUICK-ACTING young man thought he saw, on the horizon, A 'W BUSINESS FOR HIM, so he bought a few pounds of RAW OSTRICH FEATHERS and commenced to make them up for hat adornments, SELLING THEM AT A FAIR PROFIT only over and above the cost of the ma- terial and the labor put on them. He put these feathers on exhibition in his little showroom at 366 Sixth avenue and THE PRICES AT WHICH HE OFFERED THEM FOR SALE WERE SO LOW THAT, FOR A TIME, HIS WOMEN CUSTOMERS THOUGHT THERE MUST BE SOMETHING WRONG WITH THEM or he couldn’t sell them at the prices marked. Finally, however, THEY WERE CONVINCED that they were getting the genuine article, very well made _up_and AT VERY MUCH LOWER PRICES THAN THEY THOUGHT SUCH A QUALITY COULD BE BOUGHT FOR. THIS PART OF HIS BUSINESS ALSO GREW PRETTY RAPIDLY, requiring more space‘for a sales and show room, so he tore out the partitions and Oe his plant by abandoning fis living rooms, and rented a small living apart- ment nearby, so he could get at his business at five eh in the morning and remain there until late at night. MIND YOU, THIS WAS ONLY FIVE AND ONE-HALF ‘YEARS AGO! The sale of Ostrich plumes increased and the cleaning and dyeing busi- ness also grew, NECESSITATING AGAIN MORE SPACE, so a second loft on Sixth avenue, in a building at the corner of 22nd Street on the East Side of the avenue was rented for a stock room, and all of the space at 366 Sixth avenue was used for a show and sales room. A couple of weeks before Easter, after having discontinued doing work for the department stores in his cleaning and dyeing department, HE BE- ‘THOUGHT HIMSELF OF THE THOUSAND FEATHER BOAS HE HAD IN STOCK, so he got them out and hung them up on wires all around the show room at $66 Sixth avenue, marking them to sell at $6.75 and at varying prices up to $10.00 each, the latter being the highest price. They were apportioned off in lots, each lot to be sold at the price marked, that is, the 86.75 lot was in one lot, the $7.75 was another, and so on. WITHIN A_ FORTNIGHT, just by people coming in the shop, he disposed of over 400 of these feather boas, and within a week after Easter, EVERY ONE OF THEM HAD BEEN SOLD. HE DID NOT SELL THEM AT BARGAIN PRICES—he sold them at the prices HE ORIGIN- ALLY INTENDED TO SELL THEM to the buy- ers in stores. THIS GAVE HIM ANOTHER IDEA. He had tried to interest buyers, not only in the feather boas, but also in the ostrich feathers, but they would have none of them because of their low price, MEASURED BY THE QUALITY OF THE OSTRICH FEATHERS AND THE BOAS. He reasoned with himself that if he could not sell his product to the ret: MAYBE HE COULD INTEREST THE CC TER DIRECT, using as a means to do th ADVERTISING. A young advertising man, Mr. Vanderbilt R, Olmstead, then on the staff of the Evening Journal, now on the staff of the Evening Mail, called on Mr. Lacks, having seen his advertisements in the theatre programs, and suggested that he advertise in a small space on the second or third page of the Evening Journal, the rate for which was 75c per line. THE FIRST ADVERTISEMENT USED OCCUPIED A SPACE OF 35 LINES AND COST $27.25. By contrast with the half pages he, was getting in the theatre programs, paying 5.00 per week for each, this sum of me to this uninitiated newspaper advertiser SEEMED A LARGE AMOUNT, but he said to Mr. Olmstead+ “T will try it.” Thus he started his newspaper advertising. At first he used 35 lines, two times a week, then he increased the space from time to time, using only one newspaper, mind you, for several months, un- til he was spending two or three hundred dollars a week, THE RETURNS WERE GOOD. He was selling at that time willow plumes at $5.95 each, and sold hundreds of them. The women folks who bought them WERE ASTONISHED AT THE LOW PRICE. ‘They had never seen any- thing like them for the money. The comments of customers on this point in- fluenced the wife of this young man (she was in charge of ¢he sales department) to the belief that # bigher price could be charged as well as not for this $5.95 plume, AND SHE TRIED TO PER- 8UADE HER HUSBAND to permit her to add a dollar to the price. They had A VERY SERIOUS DISAGREE- MENT on this sub; and the wife, WOMAN- LIKE, to test gut her ideas, ADDED A DOLLAR TO THE PRICE ON several occasions and got {t without a protest from any customer, in fact, the CUSTOMER STILL FELT THAT SHE WAS GETTING THE BEST VALUE FOR THE MONEY SHE EVER SAW. The wife related this experience to her husband and HE PROTESTED VIOLENTLY AND STATED SO POSITIVELY THAT THERE SHOULD NOT BE ANY INCREASE IN THE PRICE that, from that date until now, THIS SAME WILLOW PLUME HAS BEEN SOLD at Leds esarentieieremitia there are ose six) opera’ y Mr. Lacks, and by every agency in th United States handling his The reputation of the excellent feathers sold by thie young man sprvad as rapidly as berth fe pub- licity, together with the good words pi long the line by the customers of the shop, CO! SPREAD IT. ‘Then Mr. Lacks decided upon another move, A LITTLE UNUSUAL TO SAY THE LEAST, and that was to open a showroom and workrooms at 277 Grand strect, New York. He knew thero were people on the East Side who could afford to buy the feathers he made at the prices he sold them— PEOPLE WHO MIGHT INK THAT THEY WOULD HAVE TO PAY HIGHER PRICES if sh bought outside of the limits of their neighbor- . LO 5 THIS TURNED OUT TO BE A VERY SHREWD MOVE. The Grand Street store was a success from the start, and IS A SUCCESS TO- DAY, and the people on the East Side, the North Side, and the West Side, ALL BUY THESE FEATHERS AT A UNIFORM PRICE. By this ie nearly two ay had elapsed, and the enterprising young man HAD ACCUMULAT- ED SOMETHING LIKE $18,000, which was on deposit in banks and lying idle. He said to himself: “THIS BUSINESS OF MINE SEEMS TO BE WORKING OUT RIGHT—I'M_ GOING TO LOOK FOR A SHOP ON 84TH STREET.” When he stated his intention to some of his friends THEY TRIED TO PERSUADE HIM NOT TO MAKE THE MOVE—that 34th Street was in an embryo business state and would not develop as a at business centre for many years to come. THEREFORE HE WOULD LOSE THE MONEY HE HAD WORKED SO HARD TO ACCU- MULATE. But Mr. Lacks HAD COURAGE, AS WELL AS CONVICTION THAT HE WAS RIGHT, so he rented a loft at 21 West 34th Street, at first a very small space, which has since grown to the en- tire building. He used one-half the space for a showroom and the other half for a workroom, He hadn't been open but two or three days when he commenced to do business, and within thirty days was selling from two to three hundred dollars’ worth of feathers every day,and after one month the sales ran up to $1200-$1400 per day. ONE OF HIS FIRST CUSTOMERS WAS AN OUT-OF-TOWN WOMAN, stopping at the Wal- dorf, who had passed his showcase and was evidently a good judge of the value of fine feathers SHE STEPPED JNTO THE STORE AND BOUGHT 60 WORTH! The business at 84th stre the other V while, ANO' 653 BROAD little later on STATE STRE like the business in iy ARK, N. J.; then a y arted at 87 SOUTH SHICAGO, and very recently a store w shed in BUENOS AYRES, 3 ‘H AMERICA, lemand for feathers sold by the LONDON FEATHER CO., of which Mr. Felix A. Lacks is the President, became so great THAT HE DE- Cc TO START A MAIL ORDER BUSI- NESS, giving people in far away points an oppor- tunity to order direct from the manufacturer, through a catalogue, if they so desired. IN R M IAIL ORDER J u » TO A SUM TWO HUNDRED THO TOTAL BUSI- $1,000,000, 4 Kk s ONE PRICE, SELL ALITY, whether the customer is in r or New Orleans, Portland, Me., or k City—IMPRESSED THE PEOPLE, § THE LONDON ATHUER CO, H A LARGE PERSONAL foll ig all over the L d States ne of the London Feath- rk throughout the year, and, at different times, Mr. Lacks has been called on by merchants and TOLD BY THEM THAT THEY WOULD BUY ALL THERS Hk COULD MANUFAC. ND PAY HIM THE PRICE THAT HV ISEsS TO sELL THEM AT TO THE ER, —trying to pe him TO ABANDON OPERATING BETWEEN THE FACTORY AND THE CONSUMER, through the medium of his own retail stores, and eliminating all of the details that go hand in hand with the de velopment of a retail business, TO ALL OF THESE SPECIOUS PLE/ INGS MR. LACKS HAS TURNED A D a EAR. He started out WITH THE IDEA OF GIVING THE PEOPLE WHAT THEY WANT- ED AT A PRI HAT ALL OF THE PEO- PLE COULD AFFORD TO PAY, and at the prices he marks upon his goods he is able to make a modest business profit, WITIL THAT HE IS CONTENT, 1 had almost forgotten, in the recital of this story of Mr. Lacks and the London Feather Co., before Man of Courage and Int egrit 3 business of THE egrity FEATHER Ohfo; 6, Sons & LT We D.C.; ater fee, 8 pow i Ala.; [ i di Ft fc i bg E a replica of the plumes appearing on the hat she and then take the plumes to her own milliner, wishes, or, if she wants to select a model sho the display room, she can do so and have it trimmed in the parlors of the London Feather Co., or she can take the model to her home and do her own 8: ‘ THIS HAS PROVED TO BE A VERY SUO- CESSFUL FEATURE OF THE LONDON FEATHER CO.’S BUSINESS. As the business has continued to , A NAT- URAL RESULT OF THE MAINTENANCE OF A FIXED AND HONEST POLICY, guaranteeing to give the sguaro dea! to the customer, it has been the wish of the management to expandstill further. A few months ago A BRIGHT YOUNG MAN WITH /AN IDEA—MR. HARRY E. BOEHM— aug to Mr. Lacks that he should be able to do a wholesale business in cities throughout the United States where the London Feather Co. DID NOT OPERATE STORES OF THEIR OWN. He said that the educational compas conducted through the advertising had so familiarized con- sumers all over the United States with the product of the London Feather Co. THAT HE THOUGHT IT WOULD ADD CONSIDERABLE PRESTIGE TO THE FIRM if it secured AN EXCLUSIVE et in many of the larger cities of the United tates. Mr. Lacks THOUGHT THIS A GOOD IDEA and are this bright young man, Mr. Boehm, AS HI LES MANAGER. But before starting the plan this question arose in the minds of bot) Mr. Lacks and Mr. Boehm: “HOW CAN WE BE CERTAIN THAT THE EXCLUSIVE DEALER IN EVERY TOWN WILL SELL OUR FEATHERS AT THE SAME. PRICE WE SELL THEM?” They both agreed that this was a most IMPORT- ANT FACTOR in the development of the business nationally—THAT IT WOULD NOT DO to have the me: t in Boston sell at a different price from Meet bln in the Com *s retail stores, or at a different price from that of the merchant who operated in Baltimore. A solution was quickly arrived at, however, by the invention of a trade mark which guarantees, first, the QUALITY of each feather that is sold, and sec- ond, attached to each plume there is a lead seal, with the price stamped thereon, and this lead seal cannot be removed without destroying the plume. THAT DIFFICULTY HAVING BEEN OVER- COME, Mr. Boehm then started out throughout the country (only recently, however,) to establish an ex- clusive agent in each one of the large cities; this agent to be the proprietor or proprietors of one of the lssgont department stores in each city. sit So far, eleven big department stores in eleven cities H/ CONTRACTED TO ACT AS THE SOLE A’ TS IN THEIR RESPECTIVE COM- MUNITIES for the London Feather Co. and HAVE FURTHER CONTRACTED TO EXCLUDE FROM SALE IN THEIR STORES THE PROD- UCT OF ANY OTHER MANUFACTURER OF FEATHER NOVELTI There cannot be substitution—ONE OF THE MENACES OF THE AGE; there cannot be any question as to the quality, because the label or trade- mark is sewed into the plume, and if removed the plume will fall apart, and then there’s the lead seal rice, WHICH GUARANTEES A UNIFORM PRICE EVERYWHERE. And every exclusive dealer is assured that each and every plume runs alike as to size and quality— that all the customer needs to do is to select the grade she wants and she can rely absolutely upon what she buys, because back of the sale is the guar- antee of th GUARAN’ DOES W T THERE Is TO IT, The London Feather Co. givides its profit with the exclusive agent ing to him the greater pro- portion of it, of course, and, in addition, the London Feather Co. advertises in a local newspaper where the exclusive dealer does business, HELPING TO EDUCATE THE TOWNSPEOPLE that when they want to buy feathers or plumes for their hats they should buy the London Feather product, be cause of their uniform price, their uniform quality and their excellent: style. That's about all to say in this advertisement, ex- cept to add that here are some prices that will inter- est the women folk: French Plumes, $2.75 to $20.75, occasionally ata higher price, depending upon exceptional quality Willow Plumes, $5.95 to 875.00. If made to special order, as is sometimes done, the price goes up to $250.00. Ostrich Crowns, $1.45 to 835.00, Ostrich Novelties, 83.75 to $50.00, Birds of Paradise, in all styles of branching, $10.75 to $75.00. Ostrich Boas, Stoles and Muffs, 812.75 to $100 Ostrich and Marabou Stoles and Mufls, $4.45 to $85.00. And, yes, one more word: DOES NOT THE PUBLIC ADMIRE A BUSI- NESS MAN WHO STICKS TO A PRINCIPLE AND ALWAYS GIVES A SQUARE DEAL? yndon Feather Co., and AS THAT JEANS WHAT IT SAYS, AND y CLAIMS — THAT’S ALL