Selling the Product

 

One of the more fascinating aspects of the Brinsmead piano business was the company's vigorous approach to advertising.  Over the years we have collected a variety of Brinsmead advertisements and brochures and in the process learnt more and more about their approach to "selling the product". Recently, we made a real find, in a library in Victoria, Australia. Horace George Brinsmead, one of John Brinsmead's Sons, took on the responsibility of promoting the colonial business. He kept a hand written diary of his activities in Australia over about 8 months as he set about making contacts, dealing with distributors and, most especially, trying to put the firm in the best light for the great exhibitions in Sydney in 1880 and Melbourne in 1881where there were medals to be won and judges to be persuaded.

The Brinsmeads made much play of their success in International competitions. Perhaps this is best illustrated by their letterhead shown in this example from 1901 which one would be hard pressed to call modest.

The Brinsmeads actively sought out the type of awards shown in this picture and while no doubt they produced a number of high quality pianos, many of these awards resulted from active promotion and international deal making rather than the simple application of blind justice. The reality was that, during the last half of the 19th century, the piano business was a highly competitive trade.

Another method of promotion involved courting favour amongst the great artists of the time. Endorsements by musicians featured heavily in Victorian advertising. The second version of the advertisement below from 1909 features several glowing endorsements from musicians of the day. For a further account of one of these artists and his approach to such endorsements see: DE PACHMANN AND THE PIANO by Prof. Carl Abbott, MD, FRCP, FACP.


 

John Brinsmead and Sons advertised heavily in the Illustrated London News. Sometimes they used smaller advertisements of the following type:

At other times the Brinsmeads produced more elaborate advertisements taking up a full page. Here are a few of the more attractive ones, all taken from the Illustrated London News in the 1890's.