The Ocala banner. (Ocala, Marion County, Fla.) 1883-194?, 1919-11-14


stirred. the store opened. They
came, they saw, they bought, and
they continued to come even after
the novelty wore OFF.
For the first time in his grocery
business Todd saw real profit at
the end OF the month. The prices
he could quote were lower than those
at the other stores and people flock
ed to- the new one. though no credit
was given to its patrons. Todd had
collected what he could on his out
standing bills and had charged the
rest up to experience before he opea.
ed up the new store. The women
liked having a chance To examine the
stock without a. check at their elbow,
Every article lTad a plain price tag
on it. There wassno urging to buy, but
people seemed To buy more than be
fore perhaps because to see was 10
create a want for the article. The
self-serve stores are strong for dis
playing all their wares.
by December Todd found that he
was doing five times the business he
did before In the six months since
his store had been changed into a
self-serve he had + turned over his
stock four times. His cost of oper-
ating had been cut to less than half OF
what it had been previously. Mean
while two of the pther grocers had
gone out of business, and apparently
it is only matter of time before one
of the others will go into some other
line OF work. MacGregOr, though not
doing the volume of business he did
before the opening, of the self-servc,
still has a thriving trade. The ma
iority of his customers want and are
willing to pay for the service he gives
at his. store. Lower prices don't at
tract them.
zone of the other stores is Oper-
ated by a Swede, and the Swedish
farmers, of whom there are many in
that locality, feel more at home in
his store than in one where their
broken English makes them cOnspic-
uous In place of the seven located
there a year ago it looks now as il
Larsen the Swede. MacGregor and
Todd in no very far future will iii
vide the grocery trade of Oletha
among them. Three grocery stores
IN that size town will be sufficient. |
One OF the things America has in too
great abundance to-day is grocery
stores. Experts on distribution de-
,lare there are at least twice too many |
md that one reason for high-priced !
groceries is this very condition. The !
'eason ninety out of one hundred fail
over ten-year period is due both to /.
he over supply and too poor manage !
ment.
Mister Corner Grocer whether his !
books show he can afford it or not has !
continued to give all kinds of expen
sive service because he thought |
in this country demanded
It and that he couldn't do business
unless he gave it. He heard on every
hand that American women wanted
things made as easy as possible for
them in this life even ii it cost them
and he believed it. He knew
his cost of operating was higher than
it should be but he didn't dare cut
out the service no matter how eX-
pensive it was. because he was afraid
if he did he would lose custom. The big
stick which has kept him in a track
he couldn't afford has been the fear
of offending his finicky women Gus
toners if he refused service favors.
'High-browed lecturers have re-
hearsed the extravaganza and indol-
ence of the American women until
even the women themselves have
commenced to think all men would
die rich if some humane way of dis.
posing OF the feminine sex could be