What was advertised in a colonial American newspaper 250 years ago today?
“Those who are acquainted with his Prices, will not need to be told that he sells at low Rates.”
Samuel Eliot made consumer choice and low prices the centerpieces of the advertisement he inserted in the April 19, 1773, edition of the Boston Evening-Post. He first established that he stocked a “very fine Assortment of English and India Piece GOODS.” He also stated that his inventory included a “Variety of Genteel Looking-Glasses” as well as “Stationary, Cutlery, and Hard Ware.” He did not provide as extensive a list of individual items as Caleb Blanchard did for his “large and general Assortment of English and India GOODS” or Daniel Waldo did for his “compleat Assortment of London, Bristol, Birmingham, and Sheffield Hard Ware Goods,” but he did conclude with “&c. &c.” (an abbreviation for et cetera) to indicate that he sold goods beyond those that appeared in his advertisement.
Rather than listing dozens of items like some of his competitors, Eliot devoted more attention to promoting his prices. In a paragraph that appeared in italics, he declared, “Those who are acquainted with his Prices, will not need to be told that he sells at low Rates.” Even though they did not need to be told, Eliot offered a reminder that simultaneously presented an opening for elaborating on his prices for “those who are not” already aware of the bargains he offered. He invited them “to call on him,” confidently asserting that once they visited his shop near Dock Square or his store on Wilson’s Lane they “shall be satisfied he makes no idle Profession, when he engages to sell his Goods on the most reasonable Terms.” Eliot suggested that he set such low prices that many consumers already associated good deals with his merchandise. For those not already aware, he issued a challenge to confirm his “low Rates” for themselves. Getting prospective customers into one of his locations, Eliot likely surmised, increased the chances of making sales, especially if his prices were indeed as low as he suggested. Other merchants and shopkeepers, like Ebenezer Storer, made passing references to “the lowest Rates” for their goods. Eliot, in contrast, encouraged engagement with readers of the Boston Evening-Post by creating a narrative around his prices.