Propane appliances used in 1941

Retailers sell appliances to gain propane customers

Propane appliances can provide propane retailers with extra business to endure the industry’s slower summer months.

Today, some retailers sell gas grills, water heaters and other appliances to generate additional revenue. During LP Gas’ inaugural year in 1941, propane appliances were prominent in the magazine, as retailers leaned on them as a means to gain new customers.

A number of retailers decked out their storefronts of the times with appliances such as refrigerators, gas ranges and water pumps to attract locals into purchasing them, along with the fuel.

In LP Gas’ inaugural year, the magazine published feature articles on how to sell propane appliances. In November 1941, for example, Robert Ewing of Ewing Butane Gas Co. advises retailers to sell water pumps to rural residential accounts that added electricity. Ewing believed rural areas with electricity opened sales opportunities for butane equipment as farmers and residents modernized their homes.

“With running water … the farmer probably will be interested in having hot water as well as cold,” Ewing says. “This interest introduces the water heater; and the water heater involves the use of butane.”

Propane appliances are also highly visible in advertisements that appeared on pages throughout the 1940s, including this gas range from Cavalier Corp.

Cooking ranges serve as a segue to LP gas sales

LP Gas magazine devoted some page space in 1941 to cooking appliances. LP Gas educated readers on gas ranges and how to sell them. The magazine even kept tabs on the number of propane and electric cooking ranges in the United States to help retailers determine the strongest markets for these appliances.

Because appliances served as a gateway to new LP gas customers, retailers educated themselves on the nuances of appliances so they could be influential salespeople. This contributed article from Conde Nast Publications gives retailers a background on how gas ranges and ovens work, as well as their various styles.