THE COTTAGE PIANO

Dominion, Volume 27, Issue 71, 16 December 1933, Page 14

THE COTTAGE PIANO

Back Into Favour Again GROWING INDUSTRY Time was when every castle, every mansion, aud almost every cottage possessed its piauo, but of recent years mechanised music has pushed the piano into the background.

Signs are not wanting throughout the world, however, that the piano is coming back into favour, and that the average man prefers natural to artificial music.

A youthful English piauo manufacturer recently asked his wife whetbec she would prefer a grand piano or a player-piano. “Are you serious?” she asked. "Why, of course, I would rather have the grand piauo.” This reply determined a great policy in the Engllsa manufacturer’s mind. He realised tliat wejnen liked pianos, and he set about producing small grand pianos on a large scale. The smallest grand piano ever made in any quantity before had been the five-foot size, and the lowest price in his factory had been £l5O. He set about designing a new 4ft. 6in. grand piano, aix 1 before he had drawn a line of it he had orders for CO at lOS guineas. He laid down 100 grand pianos at once, more than had ever before been laid down at once in any British factory. He sold all tlie 100 in less than six months, and by the end of that time had orders for 250 more. In the first vear of his "grand” idea he sold 352 grand pianos, and by 1927 he was making over 1000 pianos a year. Now he has 500 agents distributed throughout the world. > In 1927 this manufacturer had another grand idea. He cut another three inches off his pianos, and produced a 4ft. 3in. grand piano for 75 guineas In one year this doubled his piano output, rind he sold 1000 of them, Selfridge’s alone sold 70 in one month, That vear the firm paid a 15 per cent, dividend, the next year 20 per cent., and in 1930 50 per cent. His success ivas anything but luck. In 1931 lie rejieated it all, and an old English firm asked him to be their manufacturing director. He set out immediately just as an ordinary traveller would, to go on tlie road for them, and visited 200 agents in the first year. In 1931, from a rapidly-dwindling business, lie made more pianos for .the firm than had ever been made in tlieiri history. Nobody thought that anybody but the Germans could make really superfine pianos, but this young British manufacturer showed the world that this was a fallacy. An order wits given for 30 "grands,” and impartial musicians listened to 13 different pianos, British and foreign, behind screens. The final was narrowed- down, and the English manufacturer won. the day, and’secured the order for .30 grand pianos at once. This was the largest order for concert grand pianos ever given in history. .

To-day this English manufacturer 13 the liightst paid man In tlie pihiw business. As the world’s largest piano maker, he still goes out and obtains the business.

In September and October they made 650 pianos, and they will make 3000 pianos this year. His pianos go to tlie Continent. Australia,. New-Zealand, India, tlie West Indies, Canary Islands, and South America. This year he is going on a world tour to push his trade personally in tlie Empire, and Ills itinerary will include South Africa, New Zealand, and Australia.