The Principal Trading Centers in 20 Zones of Equal Sales Potential

“This map presents a new idea in basic marketing material” [Text, lower right]

This interesting map of the United States was published in 1931 by the International Magazine Company, Inc. of New York. The base map was provided by the Rand McNally Company of Chicago and shows county and state outlines across the United States.

According to text in the lower right box, it presents “a division of the country into twenty sales zones drawn with consideration to the factor of equal consumer sales potential and the practical operation from a transportation standpoint. In these zones we have located the 641 Principal Trading Centers, which for many manufacturers constitute the entire market and for all others the “Market of First Importance”.

The organization of the zones offers some fascinating insight into the distribution of population and economic potential of the country during the Great Depression. A massive Zone 17 encompasses all of Northern California and the Pacific Northwest, whereas Zone 20 is limited to the Greater Chicago Area.