i6o THE MODEL STOCK PLAN 
competition. Most business men give lip service to the 
generality that competition is the life of trade. But if 
almost any one of these men were given the opportunity to 
wipe out all of his direct competition—the firms doing exactly 
his kind of business with the same general buying public— 
he would do so unless prevented by his scruples for the losses 
it would cause to his friends in the trade. 
As a matter of fact, I know of no instance where honest 
competition is not directly profitable to all able firms in 
the field. This is certainly true in retailing. We should 
welcome the strongest, best competition. The reason is 
simple: practically all the best records, whether in business 
or sport, are made against strong runners-up. If someone 
is directly in competition with us, making us extend ourselves 
to the utmost to excel him, we shall achieve more than if we 
have the field to ourselves. 
Our store is helped, not hurt, by the success of our com- 
petitors. If we are inclined to doubt this, to regard it as 
impractical preachment, we can clear our minds by studying 
just how much of the possible volume goes to a different part 
of the town. Competing neighbors help draw trade to our 
vicinity. We should try to find out how much trade goes to 
stores in other towns which may be larger trading centers. 
Good local stores get our neighbors into the habit of trading 
at home. We know that even in the very large cities, a 
substantial slice of trade goes to the mail-order houses. If we 
and our competitors have good enough stores, people will not 
have doubts about getting good values in our stores. In 
brief, if we once appreciate how much business might be 
drawn into the one group of stores that is composed of our 
own and our competitors’, we shall come to understand how 
it is that good hard competition is a distinct benefit to us 
and to our total profits. 
A corollary to this is that if we make our own store the 
outstanding store of our community, we shall benefit even 
more than proportionately by this general increase of retail 
business done locally. Here is where the Model Stock 
Plan comes into the picture, for it will surely make our store