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Show 1,(100,000 lOK OXK ORDER SHOES Twenty years ago, J. C. Penny op-,T. op-,T. C. Penny company, of which Mr. Penny is the founder and chairman of the board ot ilii-oc'ors, issued a single check for $1,671,693.51 In payment for shoes it had bought, ann this check covered only a part of the company's purchases fioin a s'ngle manufacturing concern. Shoes were bought from several other manufacturers manufac-turers as well. Mention is made of the check referred re-ferred to-, the largest yet drawn by the company, because it typifies the growth of the business in the twenty veaid that have passed si'ice the fi.it store was opened. Other indications of its rapid growth are that the company com-pany now owns and operates 313 stores, located in twenty-seven different diff-erent States, and that steps are being taken to open fifty-eight additional establishments during 1922. The store that has so far been opened nearest to' New York City, is locateC at Amsterdam, N. Y.. Last year the total business done by th company was approximately $46,642,000 and, according to an estimate made yesterday yes-terday by Mr. Penny, sales for 1922 with the fifty-eight new stores in operation op-eration will reach about $55, 000,00a Sixty per cent of the buying of the Penny Company is done for the Fall season, and it is estimated that the total business it will place this season sea-son wilt approximate $20,000,000. In addition, several million dollars' worth of goods have already been bought for next Spring. Excepting for shoes, of which the company makes mak-es quite a specialty, the great bulk of the merchandise it sells is purchased pur-chased in New York City, where buying and general ojffices are maintained main-tained at 370 Seventh Avenue. The shoe buying is centered in St. LouiB, and the volume of the purchases is indicated by the fact that the total shoe volume of the purchases is in dicated by the fact that the total shoe business which the company ex pects to do this year will reach about ab-out $11,000,000. The retail prices at which the men's shoes are solfi range from $2.98 to $8.90, the general gen-eral lines handled including evedy-thing evedy-thing down to infant's goods. Up to a few years ago it was the custom of the company to bring its store managers to New Yorak City in a group. Here they would be divided di-vided into several parties and would comb the market thoroughly for the kinds of merchandise wanted. At night they would meet and compare notes, and a good deal of friendly competition developed as to who would discover the best buys. The rapid growth of the business however, how-ever, soon made it necessary to concentrate con-centrate the buying in the hands or a selected staff of specialists. This I satff now consists of thirty-three buy ers, of whom twenty-five are located In New York City, two at St. Paul, Minn., and six at St. Louis. They work under the general supervision of J. M. McDonald, Second Bice President Pres-ident and merchandise manager. Mr. McDonald, who at one time was store manager himself, not only controls the purchases made for all stores, but also the amount of stock each carries. Instead of the store managers com-' com-' ing to New York City, as formerly, semi-annual conventions for them are now held at St. Louis, St. Paul, Salt Lake City, and Portland, Ore. At these meetings of the various buying buy-ing departments, and the selling points of the merchandise ana oiner important details are discussed. Ten buyers and three Directors visit the conventions, and the former are already al-ready making preparations to show Spring merchandise on the trip they will make early in September. While all the stores opened to- date have been in cities and towns of 30,-000 30,-000 population or less, the amount or merchandise sold in the course or a year is very large". In 1921, for example, exam-ple, a good deal more than 4,000,000 yards of muslin and sheetings w-sohl, w-sohl, while sales of ginghams reached reach-ed almost 3,750,000 yards. Patrons of the stores in the group also bout nearly 6.000 miles of percales, or ; enough to reach from New York City to San Francisco and back again to Pittsburg. More than 9,000,000 pair of hosiery sold last year, as well as about 2.100.000 handkerchiefs and .over 3,100,000 knitted undergarments. undergar-ments. Sales of women's and chll-' chll-' droit's ready-to-wear garments reach ed 747,499 pieces. Four hundred thousand handbags fao women were bought by the stores' customers, as well as 1,600,000 hair nets and 4,-000,000 4,-000,000 spools of cotton thread. Tn the men't merchandise last year the stores in the group showed these sales: 160.000 belts. 2.731.73S pairs of shoes, well over 1.000.000 hats and caps, more than 57,000 suits. 146,972 pairs of trousers, about 11,-000 11,-000 overcoats. 1.945.9S0 men's1 and boys' shirts. 1.47G.900 pairs of men's and boys' overhalls. 72.734 boys, suits andi 95.450 pairs of boys' pants. Large quantities of various other goods for general use were also disposed dis-posed of. In addition to the merchandise de partment, the local offices of the company also house the sales department, depart-ment, the accounting department, the real estate and store equipme' department, the educational department depart-ment and the advertising department The employment department is in St. Louis. The sales department is in charjge of G. G. Hoag, an officer and director and under his direction come matters pertaining to selling in all the stores in the group, as well as the welfare of the sales employes. Counting those in the various offices, the company now employs more than 4,000 persons. The accounting department, de-partment, the duties of which are obvious, ob-vious, is in charge of George H. B hnell, the company's first vice president presi-dent and collecter. The real estate and store equipment department finds locations for the leases and equips the new stores. It is directed by Glen C. White. R. L. Whitman heads the advertising department, where all the advertising matter for the stores is prepared. The educational department is directed di-rected by Dr. F. B. Short, who is assisted as-sisted by Professor D. Walter Morton and Dr. Thomas Tapper. The endeavor en-deavor of this department is to have a personal contact with every employe em-ploye of the company, in order to assist as-sist in their personal developmen' and to inspire them in their work. It publishes an attractive monthly house organ, and has produced! a course in business training that has passed the scrutiny of some of the best writers on business matters, well as the practical tests of experienced experi-enced business men. This course, which is only for employes of the company, is furnished to every salesman sales-man and saleswoman without cost. It is given for the double purpose ot helping them serve the public more intelligently and aiding them in advancing ad-vancing to higher positions with the company. -., The company does business on a strictly cash basis, both in selling and buying, regardless of the size of the order placed. Payments are made three times a month. No deliveries are made of goods purchased by customers, cus-tomers, which is a factor in keeping down the already low overhead of the stores. One ofthe most distinctive features of the company's selling policy, however, is that no store in the group is permitted to hold special spec-ial sales of any kind. The first price at which the goods are offered is the last price, and executives of the company say that, due to the low cost of doing business, the first prices are so low that no reductions would be required to move the goods, even i: they were permitted. Under the novel cooperative system sys-tem by which the company does its business, the manager of almost every ev-ery store owns a third interest in the store he manages. Very often the money with which to pay this interest inter-est is advanced by the company, and the manager is allowed also to own a third interest in as many other stores as he has the ability to develop. de-velop. Large amounts of money are distributed! annually among the sales women. The business of the company, com-pany, according to Mr. Penney, was founded on the Golden Rule, and for some time the stores were known as Golden Rule stores. While this name is no longer used, he asserted the principles on which the business was founded will never be changed. |
