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The operating chain of manufactures - The commercialisation

The book-keeping
The ledger clerks receive the orders and pass them on to the forewoman who deals with execution of the manufactures items.
These cleks control the dispatch of the merchandise and invoice the client, then checks the paiements.
These are several ledgers being kept : suppliers, orders book, supply of finished lace from home lacemakers, follow-up of clients, copies of client mail, "big book" (overall account of the life of the firm).

The salesmen
Apart from the technical "know-how", the success of a manufacture rests on two main points : the quality of the designer on the one hand and the commercial network on the other hand.
The manufactures have retailers, wholesale dealers to cope with the spread of the lace abroad.
From the manufactures and the wholesale dealers the salesmen split the territory and the clients between themselves that is : meeting the clients, the departement stores, haberdasheries, etc.
Each salesman choses his round, some might even cover a quarter of the french territory.
The salesman has an income which is a percentage of the sales made through his intervention.
 

 
Lace sales of the "Experton Frère et Soeur" firm from 1901 to 1930

 

Lace sales of the "Experton Frère et Soeur" firm in United Kingdom and in Irland from 1904 to 1930