Men, Markets and Merchandising

Being an address National Luntber Nationcr,l

Thank you for inviting me here today.

It's always a pleasure to be in the company of lellow lumbermen and members o{ the hardwood fraternity are noted for being especiallv hospitable and partit:ularly kind.

I shall tr1' to repay that kindness by heeding the advict: that Will Rogers used to give to public speakers:

"lf a man makes a speech he takes a chance of saying a damnfool thing" and the longer the speech tlrt' greater the thing."

Seriousll'. gentlemen, whenever an official of our association is invited to address an audience, there is one important standard we insist he meet-that he have something of value to give his audience. that he leavt' a substantir.e mossage with his listeners.

I hope that mr- remarks todal' rvill meet this requiremcnt and that h-v talking out our problems. discussing our opportunities. reviewing the challenges before us, we can come up with a clearer picture of where we've been, where we hope to go and horv we can best get thcre.

It is most fitting that we hale with us today one of our t'ountrv's leading lcgislative statesmen St'rrator John l\'IcClellan. l)emocrat of Arkansas.

SENATOR McCLELLAN SPEAKS

Senator McClellan was the principal speaker at the dedication of our Forest Industries Building in V'ashington last November-a building int:identally, which the New York Times has singled out lor special praise as the brightest example of contemporary architecture to join the W'ashington skyline in many months.

And it was Senator N{cClellan who, in 1960, sponsored the Senate Joint Resolu' tion calling on the President to issue a proc' Iamation each year designating the week beginning on the third Sunday of October as National Forest Products Week.

giaen by Arthur Ternple,Jr.o president, Manwtactu,rers Association, belore the

Ilardu:ood Lumber Association

Actualll'. there has never lret'n a t.ime in the history of our industry when we needed unity more than we need it now.

Every day, the lumberman is faced with new problems resulting {rom government regulations and t'ontrols. from atr interplarof the {orces of competitile private elrter' prise, and from a score of olher sources that demand the utmost in resortrt'e{ttlness and ingenuitl from lhe moil cstu]e lrtrsinessman.

How can the individual member of ottr industry cope with each new challenge'/ |[g snn'1-a1 ]east not alone" not i[ he intends to deal w'ith each neu- issue with marimum efiectilencss.

Whether he manufat:tures softwoods or hardwoods or a comhination of the two. whether he is a producer. wholesaler. commission salesman or retail dealer. whether he is chairman of the boarrl of a multi-hillion-dollar corporation or the sole proprietor of one of our industrr''s manv small concerns, the lumberman has a strong" silent partner in his trade assot,iation.

Trade Associations

Silent, in the sense that this partner is always unolrtrusivel,v at his side' alwars ready to help in the solution of troublesome problems, always preparctl to offer guidance that u'ill point to the best way o{ handling difficult management det'isions.

And, yet, in a much larger sense. the trade association is anything but a silent partner {or trade organizations reJ)rt'sent the most effective way that members of at'l industry can present their views forcefully, persuasir-ely to key government officials. members of Congress, specific audience groups or the general public, This is because a trade associatiorr rel)r('sents not one hut many voiles.

In do soing. it serves as an amplifier' enabline the diverse elements oI an industry to lie heard above the din and tumult of the crowd.

Since he has lteen an ardent artd con' Moreover. trade associatiols are a clearsistent supporter of the forest products in- ing house for the exchange of ideas and dustry. I know the Senator will rejoice thinking on l,usiness ethir:s. product prowith us today in marking a milestone in motion, sales techniques and related su|the progress of our industry. jects. This gives the small firm and the

The milestone to which you and I and giant corporation access to the same busiSenator McClellan are witness is the ness acumen, the same economic intelli' achievement of a greater degree of unity gence, so that in a sense the trade associathan has ever befoie existed in the lumber tion becomes the most democratic of all industry. democratic institutions.

But the greatest value of a trade association is pointed up when the members of an industry direct their as'.ociation to carry out a specific pro€lram or activity to put across an idea, a product or a service.

An outstanding example of this is to be found in the National Wood Promotion Program which our association inaugurated five years ago.

Flere was a program that no one Producer, no one association, only a lederation of associations could hope to conduct, be' cause it sought to answer so many needs, fill so many voids, accommodate so many interr:sts.

How well has thi,. profJram succeeded? Better yet" what has it done for you, the hardwood industrr?

Wood Promotion

First, is should be emphasized that a program such as the \\{/PP can be effective only i{ it promotes wood-all utood, rvithout regard to partit'ular species over competitive materials.

You gentlemen are only too well aware, I'm sure. of the antiwood campaigns of our <'ompetitors. I mean thcir efiorts to vili{y r.vood as a material that will lrurn. rot, tvarp, split and otherwise deteriorate in the face of clements that somehorv. miraculously never seem to faze the products. o{ our competitors.

Adlertising and publicity of this nature isn't directed against an individual species but aeainst wood as a common rnaterial. The opposition doesn't care lhether a market is currentlv held for oak or fir, pine or maple; thev're after the market per se and their approach is dictated ..olely by this objectile.

What we must keep foremost in our mind at all times is that a drive b1' our competitors to t'apture the market held by one ot two species-take flooring, for example, where oak and maple are predominant, or house {raming. where pine and fir are the two big species-regardless o{ the seeming limits of the drive against one or two species, it is actually an attack on all spe.ci,es.

And we must ans\^'er that attack accordingly, by promoting wood-all woodagainst competing products.

That is the key principle of our National V-ood Promotion Proqram and it is a strategy tlat has given the hardwood industry benefits which far exceed its contributions to the program.

BACKGROUND tr.OR LMNG Sultan's palace or on the beach' Lam-Loc Pecky Cedar takes to the terrain like it was always there. It does wonders for setting off a harem, nice background for those exotic dances, or for more routine living. Kids love Lam-Loc Pecky Cedar because they can treat it rough without retaliation. Mom and Dad dig it for quiet moments or for conversation when things get dull. r Dealers find Lam-Loc Pecky Cedar the liuhqe#' too. Nice profit. Easy to handle. One inventory goes both ways-inside or out. And there are a million uses, including Roman baths we hear. As you can plainly see, it makes great stereo cabinets and it's becoming a must for picture galleries. What other lumber product can ofrer you all this? Get started on your palace today. We'll send blueprints for the asking. Ed Fountain Lumben Company, 6218 South Hooper Avenue, Log Angeles 1, California.

As you know, hardwoods account for only about 20 per cent of total U.S. lumber output; yet, probably some 70 per aent of the thousands of markets for lumber and wood products are served primarily by hardwoods.

It is this ratio of production to markets -and the fact that the NWPP seeks to promote wood across-the-board without ' favoring one species or one group of species over another-that has given the hard- wood industry its promotion "bonuses," or ; extra dividends, from our program'

Briefly, let's review some of the most significant NWPP developments affecting the hardwood industry:

There is currently in preparation a de- sign manual to acquaint industrial users with different grades, sizes, chemical prop- 'erties and other characteristics of the prin' cipal hardwood species. This is a project intended to widen the use and increase the acceptance of hardwoods in the industrial marketplace.

NI.fiIA RESEARCI{

Underway at Washington State Univer' sity is an NlMA-sponsored program to de' velop a system of "low-profile" wood floors to compete costwise, with concrete slab construction.

Within the past few weeks we have awarded contracts to the Armour Research

Foundation and the U'S. Forest Products

Laboratory for studies to develop better finishing materials for wood products.

,, As the American hardwood industry has

' watched its share of markets in the United

Kingdom shrink from more than 35 per ' per cent today, pressure has been building up for action to reserve the trend. Accord' , ingly, a plan has been developed-"Operaof increasing U.S. lumber exports, both hardwoods and softwoods, to the United

Kinedom and other areas.

That plan, now being studied by in- dustry principals, proposes an all-out effort by the Timber Engineering Company, a subsidiary of NLMA, to determine, in the light of latest European Common Market developments, what opportunities may exist on the continent for an aggressive sales promotion program on behalf of American lumber.

Hardwood flooring, paneling, doors, cab- inets and trim all have benefited from

NLMA activites in the field of building codes and fire insurance rates-both from the standpoint that such activities have opened up new opportunities for the use of hardwood products as well as the fact that, time after time, we have thwarted the opposition's efforts to contract the market for these materials.

}IEDIA ADVERTISING

NLMA and NWPP publicity has ranged from articles on 'oHow to Recognize WellMade Furniture" to stories citing the floor of the New York Stock Exchange as an outstanding example of wood's resiliency and durability. Other results have included a four-page article in the magazine, o'Interior Design," on the durability, charm and beauty of hardwood furniture, a story in "Administrative Management" on the use of wood in executive offices, and countless newspaper clippings stemming from NLMA releases on the renaissance of wood as a mark of high fashion and a pacesetter in design.

But probably the most dramatic evidence of what the hardwood industry has gained from the NWPP has come from the advertising phase of our program.

Award winning ads in LIFE magazine and in leading architect, builder and school publications have served as a showcase to display hardwood species with their best foot forward as flooring paneling, furniture and architectural woodwork.

Additional penetration of the home, school, church and other light construction markets has come from widespread distribution of our series of eight four-page color folders explaining "Why lVood is Best For , , ." a variety of items in these structures.

Ntma Pubttcations

And, finally. the practical and esthetic values of both softwoods and hardwoods have been given the most professional of editorial and pictorial treatment in such outstanding NLMA publications as "Livability Unlimited," 'oOpen House: previewing Your New Home of W'ood," and 'oBlueprint for Better Schools."

Complementing these booklets have been our top-scoring films, 'oBlueprint for Better Schools" and "Environment for Learning," plus special promotion kits developed for special audiences or specific occasions, including such events as National Forest Products Week which this year begins October 21.

That, gentlemen, is a thumbnail sketch of just some of the highlight benefits that hardwood lrrmber manufacturers have derived from our industry's National Wood Promotion Program.

Do they justify the modest contribution you've been making to this program ?

If your answer is "no," I think this audience would appreciate your telling us where and from whom we can get greater value-more dramatic results-for our promotion pennies.

If lor some reason, youtre not a contributqr to this effort, doesn't a recital of what the NWPP is doing to improve the climate for your salesmen make you fed that, possibly, you should be defraying a small part of the cost of this activity?

These are questions each man must answer for himself.

But I can tell you without qualificationo and without a moment's hesitation, that il I weren't now a contributor to the NWPP, before I left here today I'd want to seek out someone connected with the program and either try to explain to his satisfaction why I haven't contributed to the efiort, or else give him an opportunity to show me why and where I may have erred in my previous judgment not to support this in. dustry-wide activity.

Competition

Most of you gentlemen have been on the frontlines of our struggle against competitive materials and I can understand your impatience, your lack of kindly feeling toward those who refuse to shoulder their fair share of the load. did, that "we shall not escape our dangers by recoiling from them"-that only by meeting head on that which threatens our survival can we hope to establish any basis of security.

Those who conceived and sought initial support for this program refused to be cowed by the heavy odds against S:mi;'ri:*ri,,,3 For they believed, as Vinstoh Church$r..S'

And those who organized and brought this program into being also realized this economic fact of life: An indusFy that stands still is inviting others traveling the same business thoroughfare to run it down.

It's always seemed a paradox to me that the biggest companies, the most successful firms, the live-wire organizations that you and I would judge to be least in need of trade associations or industry-wide promotion efforts, these outfits are usually the first ones to answer the call to finance such proj. ects.

And the smaller firms, the ones that are always struggling to keep their heads above water in a sea of red ink. the ones that seem most in need of a sales promotion-life preserver, these are the companies that somehow can't see their way clear to meeting what other members of their industry consider an obvious responsibility to plow back into a common fund a few of the extra sales dollars that fund has helped to generate.

Maybe that's the reason the most successful firms are so successful-because they ar e pr omotion-mind,ed.

And perhaps that's why many of the marginal firms are marginalbecause they lack promotinn saaoy.

Whatever accounts for a firm's success or failure, there's no denying tlat the pro.

(Continued, on Poge 45)

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Northwest dealer finds profits in packaged plywood cabins

The plywood second home market is still growing, and most of the profits are in shell homes, according to Russell Walters of Center Lumber & Construction Co., Tacoma, Wash, The firm has been in the prefab cabin business for twelve years, currently sells 30 to 50 packaged homes and cottages a year. Walters uses plywood as much as possiblq-for siding (Texture One-Eleven), sheathing and subfloors. He likes DFPA trademarked plywood because it saves time and gives him dependable quality construction. Buyers may fnish cabins themselves. or a Center Lumber building crew will do it. Cabin below is DFPA's plan No. 8. See coupon for more information on plywood cabins.

(continued from preceding poge)

Dealer-fabricated trusses are profitable and easy to sell

"Nail-glued trusses with plywood gussets are more profitable to sell, yet more economical to make and handle, than any other truss we've worked with," says Roy Lanham, president of Brown Lumber in Midland, Mich. The firm went into components four years ago, and finds it costs $1 less to build a truss with plywood gussets than with metal. Yet they're so strong and rigid that contractors willingly pay a premium price. Bundles of 20 trusses are easy to transport, and need no special handling because they don't rack and gussets won't work loose. If you'd like more information on plywoodgusseted trusses, write DFPA.

Golor coding and unit loading speed plywood sheathing sales

Sheathing profits are rising for dealers who order standardized unit loads now offered by many mills. Steel-strapped packages of plywood with Exterior adhesive are edge-stained red; Interior, green. The DFPA trademark, grade and thickness are stenciled in black on the side of the bundle. Stacks of plywood are neater, cleaner, and plainly marked. so customer service is faster and ordering is simpler. Pilferage and in-transit damage are eli-inated. The system is keyed to forklift equipment used in most lumber yards; the average package is 30 in. high and weighs 2,900 lbs. For more information on colorcoded unit loads of plywood sheathing, send in the coupon at right.

Supcrmarket merchandising' pays off for Galifornia dealer

Cash-and-carry and customer service, plus quality plywood and other merchandise mean profits for Build 'n Save, Long Beach, California. Manager Robert Marks goes all out to make shopping convenient and interesting. The store has information booths; doit-yourself and architectural consultants; grocery carts for hardware and small items; a self-serve drive-in lumber yard; specially designed display racks for plywood; well-filled shelves of DFPA plans and other literahrre. Build 'n Save emphasizes quality throughout, and stocks only DFPA trademarked plywood. The store is only two years old and already sells at the rate of $3 million a year. Marks says his plywood sales are roughly three times those of the average cashand-cany yard in the L. A. area.

Plywood bins make it easy for customers to help themselves

At Whiting-Mead Builders Market, San Diego, plywood bins for shorts and mill ends make self-service easier for the customers, and free salesmen for other selling jobs. The bins, near the central check-out counter, ate of 5/e" plywood, and rest on skids so they can be handled with a fork-lift. They are roomy and strong so they can take full loads of mill ends, short pieces of plywood and other materials. All stock in the bins is price-marked clearly with colored pencil. The system works so well that a month after the bins were in place, half the yard's inventory of shorts and mill ends was sold.

Be sure you always specify DFPA trademarked plywood

It's good business to use this handy rubber stamp (shown below) on all your plywood orders. ft's your assurance that you'll always get DFPA grade-trademarked plywood, manufactured under a rigid, industry-wide quality control program, When you stock and sell only DFPA trademarked plywood, your customers keep coming back because they know they can depend on its quality. The DFPA trademark also stands for the Douglas Fir Plywood Association's $6-million-ayear promotion program, Through national television and magazine advertising, field promotion and research into new and better uses for plywood, DFPA brings new and repeat business into your store and builds your plywood sales. If you don't have one already, send for your free DFPA order stamp (see coupon). And use it on all your plywood orders. It's always a profitable idea.

DFPA has sales aids andinformation to help you build your plywood business, Booklets-envelope stufterscounter displays-construction plansjust send in the coupon, and we'll see that you get complete lists and descriptions of all available material, on the subjects you're interested in.