Dawson Black: Retail Merchant Part 5

"Betty!" said I . . . But what happened then is n.o.body's business but mine--and Betty's.

CHAPTER VII

GETTING DOWN TO WORK

Our total sales for the second week were $401.75, over a hundred dollars better than the previous week. Nothing like the $560.00 a week that Jim Simpson had led me to believe the store was doing, but not so bad as it might be.

There was one thing I wished, however, and that was that we had a larger cash trade. Out of the $400.00 business we did the second week, $160.00 was charged.

I found out that Jim Simpson had had a whole lot of book debts owing him; but, instead of turning them over to me at a discount, as the accountant told me he should have done, he had collected what bills he could, and then gave the others receipts in full for whatever they could pay.

I didn't know how much he got this way, but old Peter Bender, the carpenter, had come in for some goods, $18.75 worth, charged, and had told La.r.s.en that Jim had gone to him just before he left town and had given him a "clear bill of health," as he called it, for $10.00, in settlement of his account of sixty odd dollars.

I told La.r.s.en, whom I called the manager, that we must cut down the charge business and build up the cash trade. La.r.s.en shrugged his shoulders and said, "It's up to you, Boss." La.r.s.en hadn't seemed to warm up to me at all after that sc.r.a.p over the two weeks' pay that Jim did him out of, even after I had told him that I would consider him manager under me. . . .

At the beginning of the third week I put in three days of the hardest work I ever did in my life. I suppose my help thought I had a cinch because I had been working out a division of expenses with the aid of the accountant! I know when I was at Barlow's we clerks used to grumble because we did all the work while old Barley Water, as we called him, used to spend so much time in his little office. I wished I could make my help understand that I was working for them as well as myself, but I guessed it was hopeless, so I didn't try--then.

Well, this is how we divided expenses. The accountant said:

"Let us feegure our plans for the coming year on the a.s.sumption that ye'll do $30,000.00 worth o' beesiness. That is an increase of more than $7,000.00, but this store ought to do much more than that.

"Your total expenses should be aboot twenty per cent. of sales, or a total of $6,000.00."

"What are they at present?" I asked, rather shamefacedly, for I felt I ought to know such an important thing as that.

The accountant perceived my look and he squeezed my arm sympathetically, as he said:

"Dinna worry aboot that, laddie. Ye're noo worse off than a lot o'

others I ken in that respect. Not half the dealers in the country have an a.n.a.lysis o' their expenses."

That accountant was a brick.

Well, the accountant told me that my present expenses were, in round figures, $7,000.00.

"Gee! that's fierce!" I said. "Have I got to cut down expenses $1,000.00?"

"That's just aboot what ye hae to do," was the grave reply.

"But how?" I said, perplexed. "I can't possibly do it."

"Can't?" he said, and raised his eyebrows. "Did you no ever hear aboot the rabbit and the bull pup?"

"No. Shoot!"

"It's verra short," he laughed. "A rabbit was one day chased by a vicious dog. He ran as har-rd as he could, but the dog had nearly caught up to him, so, to escape, he ran up a tree."

"But a rabbit can't climb a tree!" I exclaimed.

"Not generally," was the response, "but this rabbit had to!"

How some silly little thing like that makes you think! It was some time before the silence was broken. Then I said:

"Well, how do we do it?"

"This diveesion of expenses will help ye," he said with a smile, and pa.s.sed over this paper.

DIVISION OF EXPENSES BASED ON ESTIMATE OF 20 PER CENT. ON GROSS SALES OF $30,000

_Per Cent._ _Present Cost_ Salaries 11.0 $3,300.00 $4,100.00 Rent 3.0 900.00 1,000.00 Taxes and insurance 1.5 450.00 460.00 Advertising 1.0 300.00 120.00 General Expenses 1.5 450.00 750.00 Delivery .5 150.00 50.00 Depreciation .5[1] 150.00 350.00 Heat and light .5 150.00 110.00 Bad debts .5[1] 150.00 500.00 ---- --------- --------- 20.0 $6,000.00 $7,440.00

[Footnote 1: These two items are estimated only, for the records of the old business are too incomplete to insure accurate figures.]

I looked the schedule over.

"Then my expenses," I said, "are $1,440.00 more than they should be?"

He nodded. "And dinna forget," he added, "that these figures are based on $30,000.00 worth o' business. This means that ye maun increase your sales aboot $7,000.00 during the year. Unless ye do, the percentage cost o' doing business is going to be conseederably higher than twenty per cent. Unless ye can increase your business ye'll hae to decrease your expenses even more than $1,440.00."

"Well," I remarked grimly, "bring out the axe. How are we going to cut it down?"

"That's the brave spirit!" Jock replied. Did I tell you, that Jock McTavish was a Scotchman? Well, he was--very much so. Perhaps that's what made him such a good accountant.

"Noo I know ye mean business," he said, "and noo we hae the facts to wor-rk on. There are numerous businesses ruined every year because o'

the lack o' moral courage on the part of their owners to face facts and cut their cloth accordin' tae their means. Let's start wi' salaries.

What are they noo?"

"Let me see," I mused. "I think they are--"

"Never mind," he said brusquely, "I _ken_. Get into the habit o'

kennin', laddie. Ye'll never _guess_ your way to success. Here are the figures:

_Present_ _Suggested_ Black, proprietor $30.00 $25.00 La.r.s.en, manager 20.00 20.00 Jones, clerk 12.00 } } 12.00 Myricks, clerk 10.00 } Wilkes, boy 6.00 6.00 -------- -------- Weekly payroll $78.00 $63.00

"I really think ye are no' justified in giving yourself $30.00 a week,"

he continued. "Twenty dollars would be nearer correct. However, compromise and for the time being mak' it $25.00.

"You really should'na need five people in the store the noo, for, of course, you intend to work har-rd, don't ye?"

I nodded.

"Well, deesmiss either Jones or Myricks. But, give the laddie say three weeks or a month to find another posseetion. It's best to let help go in such a way that they will feel that ye hae no done them an injustice.

Tell him frankly why ye do it, and he'll comprehend all right."

"Won't the other fellows kick at having to do more work?" I asked.