A FERTILE FIELD FOR AGENTS..
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Shopkeepers and Small Wholesalers Present a Wonderful Opportunity for Selling the Lighter Types of Commercial Chassis.
By "'Vim."
SHOPKEEPERS, as a class, are at' preSent dabbling with motor transport. -A few of them have taken it up seriously, but, as a whole, they have yet to grasp the fact that they must use motorvans in order to cope with the requirements of trading to-day. Many of those who have hitherto displayed no interest have been doing a deal of thinking for a long while past, and are almost ready to buy ; while still1 more have a subconscious impression that, at some remote future date, it may be nece-ssary for them to become motor users.
The truth is that the trend of events in the world of organized Labour, the growing habit of people who can afford it to live at a distance from shopping areas, the modern method of shopping by telephone and post instead of by personal visit, are all compelling tradesmen to find newer and better means of delivering to customers than by hand truck and horsed van. They cannot help themselves. With or without their desire and approval, they have got to. scrap the errand-bay with his "Sexton Blake" novel, fire their horses, which eat nearly as much in weight as they haul, and institute speedier appliances. That few, shopkeepers apprehend this at all clearly does not affect the issue. In the matter of evolution, whether of the animal kingdom or of transport, the law of the " survival of the fittest" is inexorable. So soon as it is admitted that the motor vehicle is best adapted to the needs of to-dayenot only because of its speed, but because of its greater all-round convenience, it is also granted that agents have, in the shopkeepers and wholesalers of .their districts, a veritable gold mine.
The one sorry feature of the situation, as it stands at this moment, is that British manufacturers, with one or two exceptions, are producing nothing that is suitable for this tremendous demand. Under the heading of ".Where is the British Motorvan7 " The Commercial Motor on September 21st drew the attention of our makers to the unrivalled position of the Ford, and pointed out that there are, according to available statistics, 174,000 retail firms engaged in delivering goods, not counting 217,000 farmers. Again, on June ath last, I wrote an article in this paper entitled "Where are the Massproduced Vans? ' with the object of showing that Great Britain has nothing to offer in competition with the Ford van and one-tonner. Is anything being done by our manufacturers to give agents something to sell to those who. want, or will soon* want, fast, reliable vehicles at moderate prices?
However, we are not now discussing this subject from the manufacturers' standpoint, hut from that of the agents'. There are some home-made vans of 12 cwt. and upwards capacity, and parcelears of 3 cwt. or so, besides two or three other types that come in between. Albions have now produced a very fine 25 ewt. vehicle, and, in addition, there are several excellent American chassis to .earry 20 cwt. and 25 cwt. From these it should be possible to select models suitable for almost every kind of retail business, but the trouble' so far as agents• are concerned, is that they are the products of so many different firms that, to secureagency rights for a complete range over identical territories, is almost an impossibility, though this difficulty would c24 disappear if manufacturers and concessionnaires would distribute on the "open agency" principle. The utility of the Carrier motorcycle must not be
overlooked. In my opinion, . a combination of a 15 owt. to 25 cwt. vehicle and one or more carrier motorcycles is ideal for tradesmen who have to fetch their goods from rail or market, and to deliver them to a large clientele in their immediate neighbourhood. In their case, the_ weightthat has to be transported at any one time is practically negligible, although it is .generally rather more than a lad can take on a cycle. The marvellous endurance of a good motorcycle with sidecar attachment has been conclusively demonstrated in passenger service, and there will be big developments in the direction of goods -carrying by these machines before long. In subsequent articles I will do my best to put forward serviceable suggestions for awakening the slumbering demand for the lighter types of coinmercial vehicles ; but I am anxious first to convince agents that it is only slumbering and is not non-existent. A shop-front may have a frowsy appearance, but the man inside cannot afford to igpore the call of the times. The bacon-cutting machine is not a cheap affair, but, when it came it had to be bought. The cash sales registers and the autornatio price-calculating weighing machines run into a lot of money, but One, finds them now being universally a,dopted. The motorvan is not inexpensive, but it, too, has got to be taken into acconnt by retailers as a businessenaking proposition. To point the moral, let me recount an experience that befell me , only to-day (as I write). While passing the premises of our family grocer—a man whom one would hardly call ,enterprising, but who appears to have a fairly large connection, although he has never soared beyond •the cycle for executing orders promptly—he came out and stopped me to ask my view S as to the best sort of motor for him to buy. He explained that he was" only thinking about it," but I have nd doubt that little pereuasionwould be necessary to -turn him into a buyer within the next few weeks.
is present state of mind is typical of that of thousands of retail tradesmen in every town from one end of the country to the other. They feel that motor vehicles would save, them much worry. Theit dependence on others for the fetching and carrying of their goods rankles with them. At the same time, they know next to nothing about cars, and are fearful of being " done," or of choosing the wrong thing for their purpose. In short, they don't know how to set about buying what they feel they need, and so they continue to ask questions as opportunities offer, becoming More and more muddled RA they go on. It is for agents to. take them in hand and removetheir doubts—to put before them concrete propositions and demonstrate how they apply. Shopkeepers are worth powder and shot, providedthe agent Who uses them knows how to handle a gun! Besides retailers, there are a host of small wholesale firms who supply to the little shops, and who offer fine scope for the progressive motor a-gent. These people are rarely buyers "for heavy chassis, since a considerable proportion of their customers live more or less from hand to mouth in the matter. of their supplies. From 25 cwt. to 2 tons are usual loads, and, between those ratings agents have, decent number of makes from which to select.