Evening star., 1938-12-31
buy 1t with the longest possibl
terms, of payment for 1t.

terms Of payment for it.
The United States salesman In
South America attempts to do bust
ness upon exactly the opposite argu-
ments. With him quality is the first
point, price is the second and terms
are cash. That We have succeeded
50 well upon the western coast OF
South America, where durable goods
are 80 important, has been due to
superior quality. That we have
Jagged behind in customers goods
all over the South American CONT
nent is attributable largely to the
fact that many concerns do not take
their South American opportunities
seriously. They regard anything they
get from South America as velvet.
They send youngsters there who are
attracted by the spirit of adventure
and who know no language except
English, which they often speak i'm
perfectly. Sometimes they send old
men to whom the South American
adventure Is sort Of a retirement
For example, II the Peruvian wants
his shirttail two inches longer than
the Chicagoan, the manufacturing
industry at home will favor him If
he happens to have time for the
manufacture Of special sizes. II he
Is rushed at home he neglects the
Peruvian and makes him wear the
same sort of shirt that he has
taught the Chicagoan to like.
Many Not Qualified.
He does not seriously cultivate the
South American market, and he
does not send there salesmen quail
fied to meet on terms of real COM
petition the better educated Ger
man or even Italian. Often the
American succeeds remarkably well
because he Is introducing something
interesting and new. I met a whole
some youngster from st. Louis who
didn't have more than Is Spanish
words In his vocabulary. He was
selling for brewery new contrap-
ton for pulling corks, operating
siphons, equipping soda fountains
and doing other things which added
speed and efficiency to the satisfy
ing of thirst. When I asked him
how he was getting along his face
beamed and he said: II have only
one problem-they overbuy." What
he meant by this was that his firm
at home had limited the credit
which he might extend to his Latin
American customers and sometimes
he had to shorten the buying in
order to meet the stringent credit
terms Of the United States house.
Nevertheless the interest in Amer
lean goods of every kind provides q
pressure quality to salesmanship
and has filled many stores of Latin
America with Americas best adver-
tised brands.
Many of these brands are pirated
by limitations as they are in Japan
and elsewhere in the world. The
American manufacturer who has
spent untold millions upon the ad-
vertising of his brands does not fol-
low up with system of inspection
which protects him against piracy.
The Japanese vie with the Ger
man in trinkets. On my way home
I had to stop overnight In Ecuador
where 1t was the night before Christ
mas. The stores of the principal city
Of that somewhat washed-out re-
public were filled with toys from
Germany and Japan. I hunted fol
something Ecuadorian. There wa.
nothing worthy except the well.
known Ecuadorian brand of Panama
hats. Guayaquil, the city In ques.
ton, has between 10000 and 200, ,0Ot
people. "A systematic effort to sell
our customers goods, backed by ar
intelligent South American knowl.
edge, would give us q lead in many
lines Of customers goods all alone
the western coast of South America
There is no doubt of the fact thai
the Latin-American states offer to.
day a more tempting field to Amer.
lean exploitation than they hav.
ever presented before. There is no
only friendlier attitude but {
higher appreciation of American
brands. The gravest need is TO,
more liberal terms, some concession
to the Latin tempo, and q few sales.
men who would know the habits ant
the language Of the people to whom
they sell.
(copyTisht. 1e3s)