Show SPLENDID CHANCE IN SOUTH AMERICA FOR DEALERS Accessory Salesmen Are Met With Open Arms Below the Canal NEED U. U S. S PRODUCTS Argentine Brazil and Other Countries Want Output j I of ot Yankee Factories South American accessory dealers and end supply house people want our ac accessories ac- ac They want our acc accessories because in many Instances they cannot cannot cannot can can- not get any from France England Germany Belgium Italy and the other European countries they have been Inthe in inthe inthe the habit of buying from They want our accessories because today because today there are many United States cars throughout these South American countries and it is imperative that owners of these cars get necessary accessories says David Beecroft editor of the Automobile Automobile Automobile Automo Automo- I bile who recently made a trip through the the principal countries of South America The majority of Ford cars sold in Argentina Uruguay Chile and Brazil are sold without speedometers A car owner on the Argentine pampas is just justas justas justs as s anxious to know how hoY far he goes ina ina in ina a day as a motorist in New Jersey or Connecticut You have more need for foran foran foran an odometer in Argentina and Brazil than you have in New York state or I Pennsylvania In Argentina through I the country or camp you travel unI un uncharted un- un I charted roads and have a ve every n need ed forit for forthe it 11 the speedometer and odometer The same is true in other countries such such as Chile Uruguay and Brazil Try to buy United States speedometers speedometers speedometers speed speed- and you cannot buy them therm in inmany inmany inmany many plat pla places in fact it is the exception exception tion if you you can buy them These supply supply sup Imp ply houses generally buy from the I three or four large houses in Buenos BuenosAires BuenosAires I Aires but complain that they are not notable notable 1 able to get supplies in quantities They may be able to get three or four or perhaps a dozen speedometers but I that does not in any sense meet the requirements Two of the supply houses in Buenos Aires showed quite a dont don't care attitude toward our cars and accessories One house has strong i German sympathies and the other leans strongly to the French Frenc The third I and perhaps the largest is very favorable favorable favorable favor favor- able to U U. S S. S A A. goods and is eager for tor information on the accessory field in U.S.A. U U. S SA A Delays on Shipments This speedometer example can be applied to other lines of our accessories zories While in m Rosario a a. city of and six hours by train from Buenos Aires the following information was given before I had an opportunity of getting properly seated in the office On January 16 I placed an order for United States accessories through a a New York shipping house Under date of March 22 I got an n acknowledgment ment stating the goods were being shipped by same ste steamer mer and would arrive by the end of April Today it is June 5 and I have not heard of the i goods r I am out of stock and cannot get any in Buenos Aires I am sending a second order to this same firm I do donot donot not know known when my first order will arrive arrive ar ar- ar- ar rive but I must have goods and am placing a second order and I may have to place a third order before I got the first order of goods The United States cars are selling around here and I I need these accessories This is a story you will get in s seven ven venor or eight different cities in Argentina It is a story I got in Uruguay and it is similar to stories I got at two cities in Brazil Before trying to answer why it is hard for for fOt the supply house men and accessory men in Argentina and Braie Brazil Bra Bra- zil ie to dp business with us let ustina us s see if the possible field In tn Argentina tina is worth while We take Argentina first because it is the greatest field for I I United States cars trucks tractors and accessories in South America There are many accessories which we manufacture that will prove popular popular lar there and are proving good sellers today In perhaps twenty supply houses in ten or twelve different cities in three different countries we went over a good percentage of the accessory accessory sory stock on hand to see what United States goods were being carried and also to ascertain what lines were proving ing log good sellers We found a fair representation representation rep rep- of United States goods and saw many articles that are big sellers Ye We ve found many lines of French and German goods and also many English Italian and Belgian lines Thirty Thousand Cars in Argentina From a careful canvass of or all sources there are approximately automobiles in Argentina These 30 00 cars of Ot which are United States car care car require many lines of accessories accessories ac ac- ac that call for frequent renewaL rea re- re newaL a They call for certain certai not failing in the line lineS of supplies accessories that can only ny be e supplied by the United States call for lor today These cars certain g garage rage supplies that can really yf be obtained only from fram this country at P present ent The The- accessory market f for these cars ars exists thanks to no 0 special eff efforts s we have hav taken en bu but due due to the misfortunes of others These cars are are re literally asking for our accessories and yet we are f not even making It for tor supply house easy the people there to do business busi busl- ness w with us us This is their outspoken verdict I Some of the best United States sellI sellera sell sell- I era ers are hand horns soaps body polishes poll pol pol- pol- pol l' l spa spa-k plugs speedometers bate batI bat bat- I e teries and dry cells Hand horns are very good sellers but we rarely SAW more than one or two different dif dir ferent makes mikes Each ot of t the th cars J. J L Continued on paK page 6 6 I SPLENDID CHANCE Continued from pa page e 4 In Argentina is ia a prospective market for a a- hand horn Requests for Polishes Metal and body polishes are good sellers In South America where many of the chauffeurs are required to wash and polish their own cars It Is very common to do this particularly where the cars are kept in individual stalls under lock and key The driver is entirely en en en- responsible and If a single scratch appears he is looked to This means mans a very wide market for pol Pol- One or two supply house men wanted such in litre cans to retail at 75 76 cents United States gold There is a brisk market for soaps and hand cleaners Where each chauffeur chauffeur becomes a body polisher it Is es essential essential essential es- es that he have plenty of soap More soap is needed per car pe pel month than our system of washing where four or five men In one garage wash a hundred cars We ti e a need soap for tor four tour men whereas South America needs it for a hundred Spark plugs are fine tine sellers In nearly every supply house you see so three or four makes of United States plugs three e or four French makes one or two German a a. couple of English and perhaps one Italian You meet with Champion A c Bethlehem MosIer Mosier Mos- Mos Ier ler Grossman and some others One criticism applies to nearly near near- ly all aU of our plugs sent to Argentina and Brazil that namely prices are marked on the cases The same pasteboard paste past board boxes seen sen in Chicago or Kansas Kan ICan- ansas an- an sas City supply houses are seen In Buenos Aires and Rio San Paulo This riot not sell sen for tor 1 in Buenos Aires The sign is the same In Buenos Buenos' Aires that it is in New York but the In Buenos Aires stands nor only 44 cents of at United States gold In Buenos Aires that plug plug- may sell for tor 4 You readily see the difficulty of a dealer trying to convince the buyer to pay 4 when th the e I sign in plain figures on the pasteboard box Is 1 I Leave Off Price Marks I Our spark plug people who do business business business busi busi- ness direct with Argentina shourd leave all price marks off oft their goods You should get special boxes with all reading reading readIng read- read Ing in Spanish and leave the price off oft Germany learned to do this some years ago and very often otten when you see German German German Ger Ger- man plugs they are in III neat pasteboard boxes with the reading In Spanish The Argentines like such It makes sales easier For Brazilian trade have the prices left of off and print the reading in Portuguese Weed chains are strong sellers in every part of ot South America where I i United States cars are sold Many Ford dealers sell the chains as a part of the car equipment The same is true with several of ot the other makes Our cars aro are generally going Into the camp or country where roads are not good inmany In Inmany inmany many places but where the cars must go nevertheless Chains are an essen essen- Oversize tires are arc generally sold Every Ford dealer is stocked with weed chains but in many places their stocks were running low In June Ford slip covers Coers are popular and good sellers All AU South American countries countries countries coun coun- I tries are favorably fl disposed toward sUn slip slipcovers covers and the demand for tor them In the country gives good promise Gear Blanks Needed I Forge companies can do a fairly good trade in gear blanks of ot all sizes Many of ot the large dealers In Argentina and Brazil are well weIl equipped with gear I I cutting machines You will see some i of ot the tin finest est German Swiss and I French rench machines but too few tew of at ours The These gear cutters will handle any size of spur or bevel used In an a automobile I I The dealers found it good business to tofit tofit tofit fit up with wilh such machinery There is a good g market for tor steel stock in all bar sizes The large acres acres- aCcessory accessory sory sort supply houses handle handle ItIn itla it Iii la every supply house you rou will see spring clips of all an sizes and similar forgings for cars It Is Impossible to mention what accessories are not needed in South America AmerIc The same accessories that wd use they will have to use There did seem to be a dearth of shock absorbers particularly the cheaper types that are In such general use on Ford cars in the United States With bad roads the rule rue in Brazil and Argentina it is certain that the shock absorber business will have a good field Paint Faint and varnish concerns have a a. relatively strong field There is a great deal of car In the cities but not so much in the tho camp Brake Drake Lining Wanted There is a good market for various makes of United States cop asbestos per brake facing and facings of other compositions You meet with one or two makes maltes but frequently find that a supply house is short of ot many sizes Keeping an adequate stock is a I. I lem The supply house man orders I only fair tair sized lots because he I docu-I pays cash or sometimes cash against document document docu docu- ment in New York In order not to keep his money tied up too long his purchases are not so large as they should be Selling on ninety days time will solve that difficulty and re result result result re- re sult in larger sales The United States maker can charge perhaps 8 per cent extra for the time and in addition will find hl his sales Increasing We found very general requests fo for r priming cups and grease cups Solely because you OU have to cross the equator r to get to Argentina is no reason to Imagine that it is always hot there Argentina has its seasons just as w we e have It has ha its winters and they are ar e cold We Ve were there In May and June during their autumn for their seasons are directly opposite to ours and although al although although al- al though we wore our New r York winter overcoat we were colder than in New York in February It becomes very cold coldin I in Argentina and you feel it more so sn because the buildings are not heated Garages are not heated and naturally natural lly y a a. acar car cal gets very cold malting making priming primin g cups an essential There was a shortage shortage short short- shortage age of them In one or two places Grease cups of all an sizes are needed For lor cars the metric thread is s best but for United States of America Americ a cars our standard threads will do I It t would be beneficial to us If It we used the metric threads on all an of ot such parts as asit Jit would simplify our export trade Big Bearing Field 1 Our bearing concerns concerns are not so well yeU represented as they should be One of the surprises that meet you when looking lookIng looking look look- ing through large accessory supply houses and in many garages Is the large stock of bearings carried I J have haye seen two shelves twelve feet long each piled plIed nearly one foot high from end to end and for nearly a foot toot In width with various sizes of ot French English German Swiss Italian and Belgian ball bearings You soon see the reason Argentina is three weeks from Europe and it is necessary to keep very large stocks We found New Departures In one or two places r r.- r. i found und Hyatts I stocked in a a. few places but looked for tor several other makes maks that should have been represented because of United States cars being sold but could not find them Ulem Our ball and roller bearing makers should get Into the South American field They will have to supply bearings for the United States cars but there is no reason why our makers should not be supplying for forr a percentage of ot the European European Eu European Eu- Eu cars The Tho field is there We must get after it Nearl Nearly all Ford Fprd dealers carry a I large largo stock of ot accessories Including two or three tire lines The Ford dealer in Cordoba Argentina has the whole side of his shop occupied with one large showcase with glass front It is filled with Ford spare parts and andall andall all of ot the accessories he can get lie He was short of ot Ford accessories in June He could sell Fords a year if It he could get them and as all cars arrive with speedometers he was particularly anxious to get such lines He does not want speedometers that read In miles an hour but they must read in kilometers kilometers kilometers kilo kilo- meters an hour |