AT THE HEART OF THE ROAD TRANSPORT INDUSTRY.

Call our Sales Team on 0208 912 2120

Out and Home.—By "The Extractor."

8th January 1914, Page 11
8th January 1914
Page 11
Page 11, 8th January 1914 — Out and Home.—By "The Extractor."
Close
Noticed an error?
If you've noticed an error in this article please click here to report it so we can fix it.

Which of the following most accurately describes the problem?

"Lancashire law:

" No stakes; no draw."

Those who know their Lancashire well, are familiar with the old saying quoted above. It signifies that in the ease of a wager, if the stakes be not duly deposited, there is " nothing doing." We can read it in a busipess sense to mean that Lancastrians are prepared to it their money down when they are in earnest.

'tether it be on business or in sport the North Countryman is, above all things, an ardent individual.

he history of the Manchester Shows indicates his tenacity. It was soon clear that the omnipotence of t he 8.M.M.T. was as naught when it came up against the will of the Lancashire man. " You have no conception what these men are like," said one of the London Council to me almost pathetically, after he had been helping to receive a deputation from the North a while ago. Then when he saw my expression, it flashed upon him that I probably know my own folk fairly well. There is an old North Country saying, "Do something, either dance, play the fiddle, or heid' the candle,'' and that is what they are prepared to do in their turn. They don't hold the candle any longer than they can help.

ery weal. We are getting close now to this important. Show, when makers and .salesmen from all parts of the country will strenuously vie with each other for a share of the trade. Salesmen from the south will do well to try and adapt themselves to notthern characteristics. Because a man speaks with a pronounced accent, because his coat is not of the latest cut, and because mayhap he wears not. the latest Homburg type of head-coverng but a tweed cap, the mistake must not be made that he is not worth spending time over.

The Northern man may come to a decision rather more slowly, but when you have gained his confidence be would just as soon deal with you as with his own countrymen, whether you hail from London, Scotland, the Midlands, or from Abergavenny. But do not put on superior airs because you happen to think that your pronunciation is a trifle purer than his.

These Lancashire and Yorkshire towns hold hosts of mill-owners and the like who are changing over from horses to motors. They have probably brought their own pleasure car, which costs a bit of " brass," as they call it, to keep up, and it is up to the salesman to give them a few concise facts and figures to win them over into selling their trade horses. It will happen that the salesman has to interview a deputation from some large concern, or a sub-committee from some co-operative society, and then he will be assailed by a lot of questions. It then takes all your patience, but the man who knows his vehicle, its capabilities and has gleaned something about roa4 conditions up North is bound to make the right impression. Let them see that you know your subject, but don't—please don't—try to be superior.

A very good friend of mine, and a capable one, some while ago timed his visit to Manchester along with my own, because it was thought I might be able to help him. I took some trouble to find out the men who mattered in,his branch of business. In fact they hact.a meeting on,in'the, town.. that. day, and after. the meeting was an excellent time to engineer their acquaintance. He had made his calls during the day, but had been unable to get at the real principals. But evening had arrived, and he wanted to go to the theatre. I protested that he must not miss this opportunity of making friends. He declared that he could not think of spending his evening with "these people," and off he went to his theatre, alone. He went back to London with me, pocket-book empty and a great contemPt for Lancashire. The moral of this little story is that one must try to be adaptable.

Tags

Organisations: London Council
Locations: Manchester, London

comments powered by Disqus