Smart Selling

When the plaint of tobacco jobbers and retailers reached President George J. Whelan of the Union Tobacco Co.--that they were not making a living margin of profit on tobacco sales--President Whelan set up a smart system of selling them goodwill as well as tobacco. The system, as developed last week, is to give Union Tobacco stock shares to jobbers and retailers in proportion to their purchases. For every $1,000 of Union Tobacco goods a jobber buys he is to get one certificate of Union Tobacco stock worth nominally $30. That is a 3% bonus. For every $300 that a retailer buys he gets one share, or 10% bonus. This is in addition to trade discounts, such as all tobacco companies give. Thus President Whelan ingratiates himself with tobacco distributors who have been vexed with the price reductions so widely made by chain store organizations. And with the chain store managers and clerks also. The more tobacco United Cigar, Schulte and other chained employes sell, the more Union Tobacco shares they can earn. Union Tobacco is setting aside 300,000 shares for this smart sales project.

While makers of Camels, Lucky Strikes, Chesterfields, Old Golds, by means of well-organized advertising campaigns induce customers to demand their brands, Union Tobacco with very little advertising induces cigar store clerks to push its chief cigaret brand, Three Kings (first called Three Castles).