, 1923-01-14
FORD PREDICTS
BIGGEST YEAR
'Race Too Sure, Not Too
Swift" Says Edsel, of Au-
tomobile Fame.

Edsel B. Ford. president Of the Ford
Motor company. believes that the de-
mard for automobiles during 1923
Will be greater than any other year in
the history Of the motor a industry,
The race is going to the sure n
not the swift" he said. TT will be a
case OF the survival of HI Httest. and
the manufacturer who PUSHES in with
a desire to get n lot of sales without
consideration of what he gives in re
turn for the owners confidence placed
IN his product is not likely to find the
year a success.
The demand lie coming from n
more concentrated sales effort on the
part of manufacturers and dealers.
Even with oil the car now running,
there are hundreds OF thousands Of
potential owners in all parts of the
country.
Dealers and manufacturers hav
been content to skim the cream off
the top OF the market, and now arc
engaged In the business Of trading
rather thar IN the development Of
new car
An our efforts have been devoted
10 building better. TO increasing the
actual value offered in the products
We build. Only upon such a basic and
serious consideration a owner or
buyers conference be permanently
maintained. When the natural reac-
ton on the part of the buying pub
Ice expresses itself IN steadily in
~creas,ng demand for q product the
matter of price automatically takes
care of itself.
sDnna-4 -rfra ~A4rYR4taNa nm Ford
products in the face OF the heaviest
demand we have ever known, came
rs the natural result of savings
through constantly increasing pro
ductIon.
Whom I a that the demand for
ears during the year will be greater
thar ever before, I speak from facts
compiled IN an exhaustive study OF
car purchasing conditions throughout
she country. The past two months.
ordinarily termed months of low pur-
chasing, have seer steadily ncreas
ing rather than eliminating orders,
not from any one section but from ali
parts of the country.
Seasonal buying is on the decline.
There have been too many times
when the car buyer could not get de.
livery DtthuSt lt "dAltu. an piFtlA2lb
his order, to warrant any further con
tInuance OF this disappointment snvit-
ing condition.
Sc ordering cars IS evening up.
The automobile in his country is
looked upon as e staple product, much
like clothes or food. It is a necessity
in modern methods of living. For this
reason there Is n large field of sales
which is opening up TO The dealer who
"a alive to the facts governing h
Caer.
1--WE sense our sales field through
a dealer organization OF nearly mint
thousand units. The majority of
these units feel that attitude oward
cars of high pr'ce as well as cars of
low price. In he quality car field,
there Is n large and undeveloped field
Of sales.
'Tn the sale Of smaller ears many
dealers have lost sight OF the supple
mentnry a sales where small cars.
convenient to operate are being used
as auxiliary equipment by owners OF
large cHrH. There are many sales OPP
portunft'es for every dealer in this
particular class Of business. This year
will see many remarkable develop
msnts along these lines.
Commercial car sales are certain to
feel n stimulus ne the buyers repre-
scented by our Industrial and Ccsnme-
clal enterprises gain confidence in
certain types OF commercial car
equipment.
Prophets of the law Of at. n'shin=
returns who arr constantly talking
Baturation point seem TO lack the true
perspective. which is that this country
IL one OF lei constantly charging op-
portunttles that there will always be
more business than can be taken cara
Of. Public belief and confidence are
h necessary factors in favor of in
creasing business. with these there
can be nc law OF diminishing returns.
"Never before in the history OF the
Ford Motor company havo we made
such exhaustive preparation for busi.
ness as wo have been making in h
past few months.
W nre urging our dealers to pro-
tect themselves and future owners
against q real car shortage sven IN
faee Of a daily production OF 5000
oarB, which IS our plan for 1923. And
we know that we are Justified in this
warning, for the demand ia going TO,
exceed these hugo production figures.