The Logan Republican. [volume] (Logan, Utah) 1902-1924, 1921-07-21
STUPID YANKEES
LOSE IN BALTIC
unbelievable ignorance Is Costing
Them the Trade Of the New
States Over There.
FAIL TO GET BIG ORDERS
British, German and Dutch Firms Are
Getting Millions Of Dollars secsuss
They are Better Informed Than
the American Business Men.

Riga Latvia.-Mllions Of dollars In
ready cash are going TO Engllsh,s Ger
man and Dutch firms from the Baltic
states because Of the almost unbe-
{ievable unfamIlnrlty OF even the
largest American firms with foreign
8radng conditions, and even geOg-
fraphy, say Americans here.
Dozens Of big orders for which cash
WIS actually ia the banks In New
York have been lost 10 America be-
cause of what American representa-
Nves IN Baltic states term absolute
stupidity.
lit Is said" said one of these Amer
Scans In Riga, who has had to place
snany orders In Germany and in Eng
Sand. when America could have had
Them. shat the heads OF American
nI1ns realize what the subordlnates In
charge Of their foreign trading de-
4artments are doing TO them.
Most OF them, brought up on so
called American efficiency systems
fhat may work well at home but are
absolutely hopeless abroad, try to do
business in Europe according to form
90 or form "a or whatever form they
would apply to similar deals In Am
erica.
Cables for References
10 Illustrate, not long ago had
an urgent cash order for 10000 suits
of underclOthing for a Baltic state. ]
telegraphed to big American firm.
what your price 10000 suits heavy
underwear cash against documents
New York;
1.-TWO or three days later, when some
bright young credit man had tried to
digest this telegram, received a cable
saying: Wire your credit rating and
references
'NOw, | suppose his form 90 re-
quired him to do that, but ! wired
back. My credit references are cash
In New York bank. What are your
pricesF
Some days later | received t.
gram saying: Price dollar twenty or
something like that
More valuable time was lost In an
exchange of cablegrams asking what
they meant, per garment or per suit.
The result was that | wired an English
tirm. My answer from II was complete
Just what wanted. The telegram gave
the price per suit, weight OF shipment
probable date Of delivery nnd every
swing that wanted 10 know. Tho
English firm got the order and took
Ile cash In the New York bank.
when ! write American firms for
cntalogs. get catelogs without prices.
suppose they think II IL undIgnIfled
70 print them. Then write for price
slsts and get price lists without cata-
logs
Print Complete catalogs.
German or British firms print COM
plete catalogs, giving just what one
wants TO know. They save valuable
weeks OF mail correspondence and get
the orders"
Another American In trade In Riga
showed the correspondent a cablegram
from one OF the biggest oil companies
In America, In reply to his telegram
which said: "Quote me price refined
coal oil delivered Riga" The answer
read: "Crude oil has gone up 20 cents
a barrel"
''Now," said this American dealer,
II didn't want to know about crude oil
and haven't time to figure out what
effect rise In its price would have on
coal oil that was badly wanted by my
buyer.
''In many Of such ridiculous cases l
have telegraphed directly to the heads
vt firms In America explaining the
situation. But | haven't the time TO
write all Of them SO the Germans
and English get the orders"
Incidentally, perhaps half Of the let
Ters sent by American firms to the
Baltic states bear only 2-cent postage
stamps. causing indignant prospective
buyers to dig down In their pockets to
pay postage due In rubles or marks or
wha'pver the unit happens to be.
Some of them hear fantastic ad-
Vtresses, such as Riga Russia. via the
Pacific" One letter In reply to request
20 ship for cash big consignment OF
goods from New York to Riga said the
6rm was sorry, "but had no shipping
facilities on the Pacific"