Dealer discounts such as the stepped discounts mentioned by Mr. Zachow, were, in my opinion, the downfall of Parker Brothers. Dealers who had no blood in the production of Parker guns made much more profit on individual guns than did Parker Brothers. Some of the stepped discounts were brutal, like 25-10-10-5. This would mean that a $100 DH grade gun would sell to that dealer for $57.72 or $50.00, depending on how the discount was calculated. The dealer, in turn, could sell the gun for $100, meaning up to a 100% profit at the retail level. Conversely, Parker Brothers would be left with little or no profit after actually manufacturing the DH grade gun. In addition, at certain times in their history, Parker Brothers gave or lent many guns to their faithful competitors as well as allowing their paid salesmen like Captain Dubray to donate guns for prizes at competitive events. On a similar subject, when a certain type or configuration became dated, quantities of these guns were closed out to volume dealers at prices as low as $19.00. Chuck has probably seen order book entries for guns priced even lower.
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