Rags to riches with dynanl

pended ceilings. He doesn't know how to put up paneling or a drop ceiling so we explain it to him. We go over and over it, if necessary. We explain and re-explain."

"Old fashioned yards can't understand how we make a profit with so much adver' tising. I believe when good, clean advertising at excellent prices brings them in, they may see something else cheap. We boost our sales of accessories. When a customer buys plywood paneling he needs accessories."'

"Unlike other retailers, we're sales oriented. Most Los Angeles lumber yards are dead on *1gi1 _, relying on their 'good' reputations from 50 years ago. The sons of these retailers are the only competition for each other."

Cohen's last promotion was a plywood jamboree, when he offered a free vacation in Hawaii, Florida or Las Vegas for four days plus $I00 oash. He sold hot dogs with a Pepsi Cola for 151; had a Dixieland band and the former Miss Santa Monica, Calif., as Miss Plywood; gave away play money with the company name on it good for $I on any $5 purchase. Despite the expenses, he managed to break even.

Another time, they held a three-day Moonlight Madness sale, opening up for awhile in the morningg then closing and reopening at 6 p.m. The first night they made $1,000. By Saturday (the third night) B0 to 90 people were waiting outside by 6 p.*. They made $3,000. People went in during the morning, found out they could get what they wanted cheaper at night, and went back that evening!

Cohen, who makes up his own ads and brochures, asserts, "Most yards could up their revenue 50 percent with advertising, less the cost of tho ad."

"Plywood wholesalers sell direct. This makes it hard for the retailer to work up volume in the contractor trade. This is something they do on the Pacific Coast: walk into a wholesaler back east and they'd throw you out. Los Angeles is the dumping ground for plywood."

Sfory dl d Glonce

Advertising, salesmanship, service and plenty of moxie bring retailer a booming trade .75% of customers come back . . . 95o/o ot "lookers" become "buyers" customers drawn from 100 miles away.

o'I get no advertising support from lumber wholesalers. I get paint support, panel support, ceiling support. Lumber wholesalers are only for themselves," he avers.

Cohen claims a $30 average retail sale per customer! "Ninety five percent of the people who walk through the door leave with merchandise. We attribute this to service, communications between customers and sales people, patience with the customer and explaining how-to. The sawdust on the floor, sweaty body and dirty hands look is out. About 75 percent of our customers are repeats."

He offers customers ttcheaper deals" by cutting out overhead, i.e., a secretary, switchboard operator and cashiers. Seven employees move the merchandise out of the 60 x 100'showroom and 40'x I00' yard.

Lywood Retailer

The comlianl' operates on ar I00 lxrrcent cash and calrr- basis with rt'tail" contractor and industrial accounts. Contrat'tor and industrial act'ounts are on tht' intrease. presently at'r'ounting Ior 25 ptrt't'rrt of thc company's business with retail trade making up the remaining 75 percent. Minimum chargc for all delivery is $2.50 regardless of the size of the order. Delivery chargt' varies. depending on the distance involved.

In addition to promotion brochures, Th.r Plywood Co. carries an ad in the telephone hook Yellow Pages at $75 per month and advertises lull run in the huge. Los Angeles Iimcs. Ads draw people {rom as far a'way as 100 milt's. Cohen dot's these ads him-"elf, too.

He ran a series of ads he calk:d "joke ads" rvhich urrt'xliectcdly drew thc ire of some guilihle (:ustomcrs and had to lre discontinued. Ads jokingly of{cring a "pl}wood (:ar" and a "plywood bicyclt"' and drt'w the u,rath r-rI those who hone,*tly rvanted to purcha,.e the ploducts.

Preferring to lrt: known as thc "managt'r." not the owner, to hi-* customers. ht' givt.s the imprt'ssion thtrt the operation is only a branch stort'.

Ht' commented the onll items hc's had -.ome diffir:ultv selling ara 1A." paneling and c'ertain t,vpes oI ceiling tiles. ['ht'n he's out of stock on an itt'm and isn't t'x- pecting a delivery that day, he refers customers to competitors. He long since stopped referring customers to yards that don't respond in kind.

Cohen was baptised in the plywood busint'ss when he helped his younger brother cstablish a successful chain o{ Plywood Companies in the ea-st. Hc would also likr. to build his operation into a chain and sa):s h(. is delaying only because he ha-"n't discovered the necessary managerial talcnt.

Hc got permission to usc his first location, the empty Pepsi Cola Co. warehoust,, by making a cold call on the vice president of tht' V'estern Lrranch office and asking for it. As Coht-.n puts it, "Hc must have rvantcd to help a guy trying to start his own busincss." At the end of trvo ycars The Plywood Co. moved to its present location. Cohen claims his was one of the first companies in Los Angeles to promott' Arm-.tron€! Ceilings and, as a top promoter of the product, ht' has received visits from the <:ompany bras,..

"I would also like to join {orces u'ith rt'tailers to form an adve'rtising-promotion group to inr:rease industrl. busincss." he dt't'lart'd. "I lovt' to sell,"