STOCK-LETTERS. See MAIL ORDER BUSINESS. STOOK-TAKING. See HOTEL ORGANISATION.
STORE MANAGEMENT.—To act successfully in the position of manager to one of the huge undertakings of many departments which are now known as stores requires a good deal of all-round knowledge. It is much easier to control a shop of smaller dimensions than it is to control a large store. In the first place, the manager usually has particular experi ence of the one trade, and most of the men he has to control are under his eye. In a store such as Whiteley's. you have not only many departments, all representing separate trades, but the huge staff has to be ruled by regu lations and is not actually under the observation of the manager. It is impossible for the manager to make the round of the store. He would simply be used up.
The man who rules so many people and guides a huge store to success has to have a great deal of exceptional knowledge. There are so many things that crop up in his clay. First he would want to know his business, and there is more in this statement than is apparent. To run one shop devoted to one line of goods the manager must know that one business, but the manager of a store must know many businesses. He must have of manv departments, each big businesses in themselves, the general knowledge of the proprietor of the smaller business only devoted to one activity. The first step in the education of a store manager is the acquisition of this general knowledge. He must know the consumer's outlook, he must have knowledge of the work of the salesman, and he must also know the duties of the buyer. It would be expected of him that he should know something of the values of the goods sold, the different preferences of the public, and the different qualities of the goods required. He would not attend to all these matters himself, but it is necessary for a successful manager to have a general knowledge of all these subjects.
The actual duties of a store manager are equally numerous. In a busi ness like Whiteley's, he would probably have a board of directors to deal with, and, of course, such a board would be the supreme authority. But to be successful, sufficient power would have to be delegated to the manager, for he is, after all, the administrator, and upon hiip really depends the success of the concern. Directors can correct a policy and do many things,
but the success of an undertaking mitst depend largely, if not wholly, on the managing director or manager. To a large extent the selection of buyers would depend upon the store manager—one of the most important features of profitable store-keeping. The manager would also have to control one or two, or perhaps more, under-managers, and these men he would have to choose with discrimination, because they can make work for the manager, or materially lighten his task, just as they are inefficient or efficient. In the success of his choice of under-managers depends the manager's freedom to pursue his own policy. De cannot do all the work of managing a depart mental store, and he succeeds as a manager by his success in delegating duty. If his choice is wisely made, he will be freed front harassing tasks, and this will enable hint to keep that clear head, unhampered by detail, which is the ideal condition for a manager who wishes to control his store efficiently.
Directly or indirectly, the manager of a store must also control the selling staff and the selection of it. This is a work of first importance, for the salesman is brought in direct touch with the customer, and much of the impression a business .makes on a patron must be due to the ends of the salesman. If salesmen are selected wisely, and do their work well, they influence the customer more than any one ; but a bad selection, or a badly-controlled staff, can do harm to a store which can scarcely be calculated.
Another problem the store-manager has to solve is the dispatch of goods after they have been sold, and here again his organising faculty and wise selection of workers are called into play. Practically a manager is responsible for the goods selected, he has to make arrangements for their reception, he controls their display and their sale, and must finally see that they are promptly delivered. Now this opens up a wide field both for his knowledge and activity.