RANDOM REMINDER

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31597, 7 February 1968, Page 18

RANDOM REMINDER

SALES TALK

Have you ever thought what an awful business it would be if you suddenly had to leave the country and, before departing, rid yourself of all the knickknacks. bits of furniture and works of art, drapes and carpets that you have accumulated over the years? There was a man in Wellington who recently discovered that selling up is anything but simple. With the cost of moving himself and his family to the United Kingdom, he Was somewhat money-con-scious, and therefore decided that he had to convert what he had in his house into as much cash as he possibly could. He telephoned a gentleman whose business it is to assess the value of furniture, etc. and ultimately sell it He came to the house, walked abput with

a distinctly lugubrious air, shaking his head slightly from time to time, and informing the vendor that this piece might fetch two dollars, that would not go beyond 80 cents, it was all very depressing. The householder was so shocked that he decided to act for himself. He placed a four-inch advertisement in a local (morning) paper and was almost immediately besieged by telephone calls and visitors. The first man who came paid $2OO for a teak table and eight chairs for which the vendor had been offered $4O and the cost of the advertisement was returned about 50-fold within the hour. He was a busy man—the door-bell competing with the telephone—but never more so than when a caller was showing an interest in a

double bed which was among the items for sale. It was a delicate business, for the man of the house had to conduct a small-scale auction. Each time the telephone rang—and the man looking at the bed was beside it—there was a new and higher offer for the bed. The vendor would raise an eyebrow: the man in the room would nod. It was highly delightful for the amateur salesman. Business was so brisk that before long there was little left to offer the army of eager buyers who invaded the place. The man told his wife that he was seriously considering delaying their departure for a little while, so he could buy some more second-hand furniture and put another advertisement in the paper.