BUSINESS INCREASES

Waipa Post, Volume 44, Issue 3178, 17 May 1932, Page 6

BUSINESS INCREASES

DURING THE SLUMP. " Our chain of eye-glass establishments located in and around New York is taking advantage of the present business situation to set out on a policy oi expansion—a policy which we are firmly convinced will lay the foundation for serving a still greater number of patrons in years to come," remarks Mr M. H. Harris, president of M. H. Harris,, Inc. "One phase of this expansion has been an increase in our advertising appropriation. As a result of our increased advertising our number of sales units—in other words, the total number of complete pairs of glasses sold in 1931 was in excess of the previous year's volume by about 30 per cent. While the average public purchase price for our glasses has been lowered, we feel that this increase in the number of patrons will benefit as in the future, for it is the repeat business rather than the onetime sale that means most to us. " Although volume has been maintained at this pleasing level, our net profits, of course, compared with the preceding years, are less. But we do not believe that 1931 should be measured in terms of net profits alone. It should be measured in terms of storing up goodwill and developing repeat business for the future. We expect definite future additional profits frt>m our expanded activities. " We believe firmly in the power of repetition and continuity in advertising. Once we use a newspaper, we continue in that paper, because the public does not buy optical goods on impulse or from an occasional reading of advertising. We keep our name and our message before it steadily, three or four times a week, in each poper on our list. To decrease our advertising at the present time we think would break the momentum that our continuous advertising is rolling up. Furthermore, this increased advertising has enabled us to offset the general drop in volume, and consequently we look upon this advertising really as a form of insurance."