WHAT IS A MODEL STOCK? 43
in the dull seasons, we could order from small manufacturers
in quantities to take an important part of their output and
relieve them of traveling and other selling expenses. Thus
we were able to get even $11 and $12 a dozen qualities at
such a price that they could be sold profitably for ¢8 cents
apiece. We began to extend the same idea to the highest-
priced full line, where we found an opportunity of the same
sort among garments with laces and embroideries.
The final outcome was mass selling at the three full-line
prices. The total volume of sales became so much larger
that the overhead of this department was reduced propor-
tionately. It helped to lay the foundation for our store’s
growth.
Of course, the BB’s, which were the greatest attractions of
these full lines, would not suit all of our customers. Many
wanted more staple goods, some wanted oddities, and others
the many different varieties that go to make up a complete
stock. We found that we increased the sale of these other
kinds of goods very greatly, also, as part of the full lines in
which we had BB’s and by this increased the sales of the
department.
It requires a sympathetic study of customers’ wants, a
thorough knowledge of competitors’ offerings, and a fair
comprehension of manufacturing conditions to develop with
a manufacturer a BB that will withstand competition for a
worthwhile time. True, a competitor may meet the price
of an article like this; it takes only a blue pencil to meet prices
on identical merchandise. A well-developed BB; therefore,
must embody some element of additional value that has been
built into the article by unusual cooperation with the manu-
facturer so that competitors meeting the price will not
immediately destroy its value.
If a competitor meets a BB simply by reducing the price,
he must take a loss which he must then make good by
increasing the price of other goods. Thereby he causes
himself trouble in the long run and weakens his competitive
position. When, however, he meets a BB by providing an
equal or better item at an equal or better price, using our
