104 THE MODEL STOCK PLAN 
above our best-selling full lines, taking the early mark-downs 
which were likely to be the smallest. It proved highly 
profitable. 
If we had not had a carefully worked out merchandising 
plan with consistent price lines in all departments, we should 
not have escaped so easily as we did. We should have had 
to find out first, in each of the many departments, just where 
the danger zone began. Even then we should not have been 
sure there were no grave mistakes. 
Under the Model Stock Plan it pays fo fake mark-downs 
early. Mark-downs from one full-line price to the next 
lower act to prevent or af least lo reduce the necessity of having 
to take mark-downs at this next lower full-line price. 
An additional advantage from the Model Stock Plan 
method of marking down without a net loss is that clearing 
out goods promptly at a mark-down, when market conditions 
change, results in leaving the businessopen to buy at the most 
favorable time for replacing these goods. This is equally 
true of selling out all our goods early enough in the selling 
season to leave us open to buy at the time when we still have 
a great deal of retail demand and when manufacturers are 
for the first time actually sure which of their style models 
are successful.! This is also the time when manufacturers 
are in need of orders and, therefore, gladly make quick 
deliveries at attractive prices to keep their organizations 
together and to reduce their per unit overhead expenses. 
As a consequence of all these advantages we shall find our- 
selves feeling at liberty to use mark-downs more freely under 
the Model Stock Plan than under our former method of 
merchandising. But, paradoxically, by feeling free to use 
them more freely and taking the substantial reduction 
required to reach the next lower full-line price, we shall find 
that our total mark-downs aggregate less than before. The 
reason for this decreased loss is, of course, that taking mark- 
downs early and taking them to full-line prices does away 
1 This whole subject of the more-profit time to buy is discussed fully in 
Chap. X. D. 127.