The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1921-09-11

respondence course which Is being
taken by 2,3S5 managers and employ
es of the Penney stores. 1t is not
entirely TO teach them the principles
Of the Penney organization. salesman
ship, and kindred subjects, for it has
been found that the employees hund-
reds of miles away draw much com
fort and inspiration from the fact that
the central office is Interested in
them.
Does sentiment, does regard for the
other fellow in business, pay?
Lest there be some closefisted bust
ness men who think being closefisted
is the only way to make business
success, lat, it be said that i'm the
present depression the j. c. Penney
Company is operating without a cent
of borrowed capital, Notwithstanding
the fact that last year one hundred
new stores were opened.
Bought Out Partners
As j. &. Penney sits back in his
chair and unfolds the great secret of
his business; how he econceivod it
and how a fifty-mllion-dollar business
was built ON the doctrine of helping
the other follow, it is almost like an
unbelievable romance. He was raised
in humble surroundings, the son OF
an impccunious Baptist minister IN
Missouri. IN 1889 ne was working
for $50 month in an Evanston. WyO"
store, where ne got the nucleus of his
idea. The men he was working for
believed in helping the other fellow
and from time to time gave their
men a boost in establishing stores
with a part interest In 1902, he was
manager OF store in kemmcr,
Wyo lis salary had been advanced
from $50 to 800, and he had also
managed TO save $500, thereby getting
an interest in the store he was run
ming. The next five years were pre-.
paratory years; he was just getting
foothold lie succeeded in buying
out his partners in the business and,
in 1907, he was ready to start the
operation Of the chain store idea
which in the next fourteen years was
to pay its own way and develop into
3l3 stores:
The first man j. G. Penney started
out was +. S. Sans, now president Of
the j. c. Penney Company. MIR. Sans
was given the managership Of store
at Cumberland, Wyo. Sans made
good and was given the store at
Eureka, Utah, to manage-wth
one-third intcrcst-Mr. Penney hold
outright the stores at Cumberland
and Kemmerer. The next step came
when a store was established at Price
Utah, with Mr.. Thompson as man
ager. Thompson had no interest tc
start with. Sans owned one-third OF
the Price store. and Penney two
thirds. since that was the way they
had owned the Eureka store, from
whose profits the Price store was
established
Thompson got along pretty well
with the Price store, and soon Mr..
Penney and Mr.. Sans decided TO give
him start on his own account; so
he was given the management Of a
store at Alamosa. Colorado. with a
one-thrd interest, while Sans held
one.third and Penney one-third. Ther
Thompson began training a young Mr.
Clinton in his store. and soon Clin-
ton was given the management Of a
store at Aguilar Colorado He had to
work on salary there, just as Samr
and Thompson had done in manag
ing their first stores. Thompson.
Sans and Penney each owned a third
interest in this store. But soon Clin-
ton made good and he was started
out in a store at Roswell, New Mexico
this time with one.third interest