A hundred years ago, phonograph dealers started to realize that radio was, indeed, going to be a thing. And if they wanted to remain profitable, they would have to start selling radios.

The August 1922 issue of Talking Machine World included a number of radio ads, of which this one was typical. The general theme was that if you wanted to stay in business, then you should start selling the other kind of talking machine, namely, the radio.

This one, from the Harpanola Company of Celina Ohio, itself a phonograph maker (and before that, furniture maker) was typical. The time to act was now, and you couldn’t wait for the horse to be stolen before locking the barn door. There were radio stores out there, but the ad admonished the phonograph dealer to “let the radio stores sell the experimenters and the boys.” The phonograph dealer would be the place to go for those who wanted a “drawing room” radio, in a well-finished cabinet. The company promised that it would “show you the way to introduce cabinet radios successfully. The profits and volume of sales are going to set new records in money-making.”