Page 57 - One Thousand Ways to Make $1000

white cottage. A woman answered his ring. Graves said: “You told me, Mrs.
Markham, that if these towels were the size and quality I said they’d be,
you’d order other goods. And I have some real bargains.” Mrs. Markham
invited Graves into the house. There she opened the package of towels and
inspected them carefully. “They really are wonderful. And so cheap,” she
remarked.

“Certainly,” Graves returned quickly, “and you’ll find everything you buy
from me is of the same high quality. Remember, Mrs. Markham, you don’t
pay for anything until I deliver it and you inspect it here in your own home.
You see, I operate on a small profit from my car. I don’t have the tremendous
overhead a merchant has. And you know the merchant figures up his rent,
light, wrapping paper, cost of fixtures, interest on money invested in the store
and stock, taxes, and all that sort of thing, and adds that to the price of
everything he sells. If he didn’t he wouldn’t make a dime. He’s entitled to it.
But I eliminate this cost, and pass the benefit on to you in the form of bigger
values. Now here’s something you’ll appreciate: Picot topped, 320 needle
silk chiffon hose. Silk from top to toe. A dozen to a box at only $5.20 a box.
Can you beat that?” “That does sound reasonable,” replied Mrs. Markham.
The prospect feels the sheer silken material, mentally makes an effort to
determine the price for each pair, and concludes it’s about forty cents or a
little over. And Charlie Graves is off on a new sale!

He’s been selling merchandise in this way for three years. He makes a point
of offering good quality at fair prices, and does a big business. During his
first six months, he made a very good living and put almost a thousand
dollars in the bank.

“I believe that you must merchandise to make money,” Charlie declared. “I
mean by that you must be able to show value and build a sales talk to make
the most out of it. It is true that I sell most items under the regular store prices
and that my costs are less. My profit runs a little higher on each sale,
however, than the store operator’s. That’s because I’ve been buying from
wholesalers who deal in bankrupt stocks. They buy up an entire stock of
bankrupt goods at a price. They sell it at small profit to themselves, and turn
over their money quickly. Seldom can they supply a variety of items that