Perth Amboy evening news., 1922-03-21
ELLEN YOUNG
DOCTOR OF SALES
BY Ruth Leigh
Author Of The Humsn side Of Re.
tail Selling" ''Ths A = G Of Retail
Ing" etc.

II sent for you, Miss Young" be-
gan Ernie .Alsop, proprietor Of Al
sop's Pharmacy, because / must
either sell my drug store or close 1t
up. I'm absoluteiy losing money.
and it's foolish for me to remain IN
business. Somebody suggested that
maybe you can save the sinking
ship"
whats the matter, expenses too
high for your"
'N-no. 1 just don't get any bua.
ness, that's all. Here I have q line OF
cigars, perfumes. and other goods
but, well-people don't come In"
During the next two days, Ellen
Young made some Investigations OF
the Alsop Pharmacy-and of several
Of the other thriving drug stores In
Unity. Later. she came to Ernie AL
sop, with some Interesting figures.
"You may remember that you told
me your prescription business was
about 40 per cent of your total busi-
ness. The rest, you say, is done on
other lines. Now, I have sent to New
York for some statistics and find that
for a drug store of your size you are
losing money because you are not
cultivating the more obvious busi-
ness that should be yours"
"Obvious business" Ernie Alsop
scratched his head.
Certainly: on rubber goods, toilet
articles, candies, soda. tobacco. l
have here the average proportions
of different lines that constitute the
business of most successful drug
stores today" Ellen Young handed
the druggist a small card on which
was written:
Prescriptions .......... 10 per cent
Proprietary medicines :. "a per cent
Toilet articles ......... 10 per cent
Candy 0 9 cent
Cigars and tobacco ..... 8 per cent
Soda II pei cen!
Other goods ......... 20 per cent
your store should be composed
of different lines which you should
push. Mr.. Alsop. That's the present
trouble with your store-in fac,
with a great many stores today. You
buy goods, put them in stock-and
then merely forget about them. It's
these shelf-warmers that eat ur
your profits"
well, what do you suggest, Miss
Young?" asked Alsop.
"That you go to your store, weed
out the goods that have been on hand
for some time, and get rid of them.
Reduce the price. If necessary, bul
for goodness sake, sell them. II
only more dealers would try to keeI
their goods moving, they wouldn't
be worrying today about business
being bad. 1t isn't that sales are
slow, there is no lack Of customers.
I find, today. It is lack of progress
siveness on the part Of merchants In
not getting rid Of stock that Is not
moving of its W popularity"
Mr.. Alsop was gazing thoughtful
ly about his store. Him, I could get
rid Of these perfumes and powders.
Cigarettes, too."
Certainly" Ellen Young agreed
enthusiastically. Reduce prices
clean oit your shelves. give your
store an airing. Fix up some new
signs, new displays. Change the loca-
ton Of things. Stir up business. In
short give your store an atmosphere
of progresstveness. Do you know
that it's often the dead look, the
slowness, the staleness, the lack OF
hustle that make many stores loss
sales? They have the goods, but the
people don't want to buy In deao
stores. Customers like to buy a.
stores that look progressive"
That's right. Then they think
the goods are new and fresh"
you're learning. Mr.. Alsop." said
Ellen Young, with a laugh. ITS
not just q general spring or fall, win
ter or summer cleaning, but a fire.
quent one, that makes a store look
alive. Drug stores, particularly, are
likely to seem stodgy unless they
are kept constantly fresh and new
It's the sameness, the constant sim
ilarity in appearance and stock that
discourage people. If your store sug-
gests freshness and progressiveness
you won't be wanting for business
let me tell you"
Ernie Alsop remained in business
after a good spring cleaning-and
about a year later, Ellen Young saw
him driving in an automobile which
he claimed was his own. 1T pays
| he told her. Ito have an occasional
business spring cleaning. Puts new
life in slow seasons"
Leaving the store Ellen Youne
| met Joe Williams. the young paint
salesman, whom she had once as
sisted when he was travelling IN the
South.
"Oh. business is bum," he declared
| with a shrug in answe to her ques-
ton, "Just lost . darn good order
I'll be blamed II I know why"
You'll find some good suggestions
~ fouorrou's paner dealing with