Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1904-11-30
CHRISTMAS ADVERTISING.

A w ''tfFf' h'e'Es
The nature OF that trade has chang
ed very greatly Of late years A doa-
en- years ago It was largely confined
TO toys, books and fancy wares and
the clothier. the dry goods merchant
and the other dealers In articles OF
use and necessity secured only a tiny
share.
But now there are very. very few
lines Of business which do not count
the last two or three weeks before
Christmas the busiest time oftheyear,
thanks TO the system OF Christmas
giving having grown tremendously In
extent and 10 the fact that the trend
Us much more toward the practically
useful than toward the purely fanciful
Not only do dry goods and clothing
houses nowadays find II profitable 10
zealously cater 20 Christmas trade.
but many lines Of business which
would seem at first blush wholly out.
side the Christmas gift domain, a
age by alert advertising. 10 ret their
share Of the Christmas money.
We know, for example, Of many
hardware stores that have done q
thriving Christmas trade in razors,
carving sets, pocket knives, and other
cutlery. by means of advertising
cleverly calling the attention 10 the
suitability Of these articles as gifts
for men
Drug stores with their perfumes.
their toilet soaps, and other dainty
things for feminine use, all attractive.
~ put up, often do q big Christmas.
business. Shoe stores sell hosts OF
fancy slippers to Santa Claus, and
not a few shoes into the barge
Music stores OF the live aggressive
sort make Christmas pay them tribute
In increased sales OF monographs,
music boxes, musical toys and novel
ties. and Y O sheet music.
In short 1t IL extremely difficult
to find a store anywhere, no matter
what It's line, that Ia wholly disquali-
fled from entering into the Christ
mas trade.
Under these circumstances the
subject Of Christmas advertising Is
necessarily Of general interest. There
IL certainly no other month In the
whole year in which good. bold, at
tractiyoly displayed and enticingly
worded advertising will bring as good
results as in December.
There Is no question that all retail
advertising OF the proper sort Is more
carefully read during the last three
or -four weeks before Christmas than
at any other season, The reasons for
this are very simple. Practically
every person who reads newspapers
IL confronted with the problem OF
picking out a suitable Christmas git,
for from one to a score or more OF
relatives and friends.
Deciding on these gifts II in but
few eases sn easy matter,
The advertising columns OF the
newspapers are naturally turned 10
In search of first, definite sueges-
lions, second. TO see what Christmas
stocks seem to be the best worth
visiting and third, to get u line on
Christmas prices on various things
that had suggested themselves as pos
sihle gifts.
We DO not believe there Is one
aduls of intelligence out of twenty,
either man or woman, who does not
scan Christmas ads pretty carefully,
with these ends In view.
1t Is true that many women largely
depend on shopping round the
stores" for gift suggestions. and start
out on an afternoons Christmas shrop-
ping with no definite idea OF what
they are going 10 buy. But II will be
found that ninetcnths of these women
have carefully read the ads in the
paper before starting out, and viii
spend most Of their time IN the stores
whose Christmas ads were tho most
impressive and suggestive.
And II will he found that hosts CT
other women start mi on a method
ical basis. with lists OF possible gifts
to look up. compare and think over
and that these lists have been princi.
paliy compiled from items attractively
advertised as Christmas suitabilities.
Az 20 men, this In the one time of
the year when men take pains 10
read dry dooes and department store
announcements that treat of women's
wares. iewelry ads, and the like. he
cause practically every man has a
wife, sister. daughter or sweetheart
for WHOSE Christmas he wishes TO
provide something pre.eminently
aaitahla and allsra,tory