Hedging their bets.

[epigramophone]

In the early days many gramophone dealers also sold bicycles. This dealer has gone one better with a motorcycle :

[Lucius1958]

The bicycle & sporting goods business was pretty much seasonal; so dealers often added talking machines to tide them through the rest of the year.

- Bill

[alang]

That kind of diversification is still going on today. I remember in Munich, Germany, a store had "Tabakwaren und Fahrraeder" (tobacco wares and bicycles), which I always thought was quite odd. Maybe to cater to those who want to be fit and to those who don't? In Flagstaff, AZ there was a store that sold guns and jewelry, most likely for husbands to bring something nice for the wife to apologize for buying yet another expensive rifle

Andreas

[Steve]

That kind of diversification is still going on today. I remember in Munich, Germany, a store had "Tabakwaren und Fahrraeder" (tobacco wares and bicycles), which I always thought was quite odd. Maybe to cater to those who want to be fit and to those who don't? In Flagstaff, AZ there was a store that sold guns and jewelry, most likely for husbands to bring something nice for the wife to apologize for buying yet another expensive rifle

Andreas

Or maybe they're just catering for those with a fetish for jewel heists who like to re-enact famous crimes?

[Marco Gilardetti]

That kind of diversification is still going on today. I remember in Munich, Germany, a store had "Tabakwaren und Fahrraeder" (tobacco wares and bicycles), which I always thought was quite odd. Maybe to cater to those who want to be fit and to those who don't? In Flagstaff, AZ there was a store that sold guns and jewelry, most likely for husbands to bring something nice for the wife to apologize for buying yet another expensive rifle

Andreas

Funny! Also over here there's a shop that sells wood stoves and bicycles.

[Inigo]

in Madrid in the 1950s there was a store that used to sell window blinders, and also tiger-nut milk refreshment in the summer.
And on the line of strange stores.... there was a fruit store & vegetables grocery whose name was 'The Social Peace'...

[Lee]

In the attached photo....is that a Columbia BC Graphophone in the middle on the counter and a BM to the right??