The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1898-06-29

paies own the copyright for the stamp OF
coupon which they use, and they nave
| spread their business out all over tne
country In some cases rights are sofa
| to smaller companies, who pay royalty
| for the privilege of issuing the stamps 10
dealers.
The trading stamp company goes into
city or town, canvasses and selects fer lts
| subscribers one representative or every
retail business, that is, one grocer, one
provision dealer, one apothecary. anu SO
on.
The trading stamp companies issue the
| stamps to the tail dealers, charging
them 5 per cent, and making weekly
collections. He pays IS hundred Tor Une
privilege of sissuing stamps. 10 every
customer the retail dealer gives stamps
representing the amount OF the purchase.
If the customer buys 81 worth OF goods
he is given stamps certifying to that
amount. The customer is expected to
paste the stamps in book and when he
shows purchase of 800 worth from the
local dealer he turns the stamps into the
trading stamp company and receives a
premium to be selected from the cata-
logue. The premiums naturally are
listed according to the number of stamps
turned in by customers.
The trading stamp companies preceded
the coupon concerns in this business, and
|
scribed to the stamp system had an ad-
vantage over their competitors for
while. Dealers who were thus shut out
complained, and in several parts OF Mas
sachusetts criminal prosecutions were
| made.
Gases were tried in the superior courts
OF several counties The decisions Ill
| trading stamps was illegal, while other
| judges took the opposite view and dis
charged the defendants. Those who were
! fined paid the money and continued issu-
| ing stamps, while the merchants acquit-
ted naturally kept on. No one ever went
before the Supreme court to make test
case.
| The coupon companies, SO sty led, soon
appeared with their contracts. Accord
| ing to their terms the local dealers paid
two per cent, and the customers pre-
sented the coupons SO issued to the supply
| company and received their premiums.
i Another contract with the deaier provided
| that he should receive coupons from the
supply company free, but was assessed
three and half per cent on the amount
of coupons which customers returned to
the supply company with requests for
premiums.
| The trading stamp companies, by
charging dealers for all stamls issued to
| them, had the most profitable. contract, sc
! experience has shown that hardly 90 per
cent of tine stamps issued to customers
were returned by premium seekers
Retail dealers found that the percent
age paid to the stamp companies was out
ting down their net profits. A gentleman
who canvassed In the interest of stamp
companies says that the net profits of re-
tail merchants were cut from 10 to 80 1-2
per cent in this way.
When the session of the legislature
opened, representatives and senators were
approached by the retail merchants OF
their districts who complained Of the ira
| ding stamp business and besougbt them
to pa. j a law which would protect mer-
chants against this new sort of COMPETE
tion introduced in business. Hearings
were given and the result was the enact
ment of the present law,