The Sample, also known as The Sample Dress Shop or The Sample Shop, was a family-owned, high end department store specializing in upscale ladies clothing and furnishings based in

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of New York (behind only New York City) and the seat of Erie County. It is at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of the Niagara River, and is across the Canadian border from South ...

. The original store was established by Anne W. Bunis on Hertel Avenue in North Buffalo in 1928. The company started when Mrs. Bunis returned from a trip to New York City with a set of 48 "sample" dresses, which she in turn sold for $12.75 each. Expansion occurred during the early 1950s with stores at

Lancaster, New York Lancaster is a town in Erie County, New York, United States, centered 14 miles east of downtown Buffalo. Lancaster is an outer ring suburb of Buffalo. As of the 2020 Census, the town population was 45,106. Located within the town is the villa ...

;

Lockport, New York Lockport is both a city and the town that surrounds it in Niagara County, New York. The city is the Niagara county seat, with a population of 21,165 according to 2010 census figures, and an estimated population of 20,305 as of 2019. Its name d ...

; Thruway Plaza (later Thruway Mall) in

Cheektowaga, New York Cheektowaga () is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the town has grown to a population of 89,877. The town is in the north-central part of the county, and is an inner ring suburb of Buffalo. The town is the ...

; South Buffalo at 2182 Seneca Street; and Downtown Buffalo at 554 Main Street, the former home of Flint & Kent. The Downtown Buffalo store closed in 1959. In 1961, a store opened in

Amherst, New York Amherst () is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. Amherst is an inner ring suburb of Buffalo. As of 2020, the town had a total population of 129,595. This represents an increase from 122,366 as reported in the 2010 census. The second ...

and in 1969, a store opened at Seneca Mall in

West Seneca, New York West Seneca is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. The population was 44,711 at the 2010 census. West Seneca is a centrally located interior town of the county, and a suburb of Buffalo. West Seneca, Orchard Park and Hamburg form the ...

. In 1971, a store opened at

Eastern Hills Mall Eastern Hills Mall is a shopping mall located 11 miles northeast of Buffalo, New York on the western border of the Town of Clarence in Erie County, New York, United States. It lies on Transit Road (New York State Route 78). The mall is north o ...

, with another store opening up at the Summit Park Mall in 1972, and in 1985, a store opened in McKinley Mall in

Hamburg, New York Hamburg is a town in Erie County, New York, United States. As of the 2010 census, the town had a population of 56,936. It is named after the city of Hamburg, Germany. The town is on the western border of the county and is south of Buffalo. Ham ...

. The last store in the then 11-store chain opened in 1988 at

Walden Galleria Walden Galleria is a regional shopping mall located in Cheektowaga, a suburb of Buffalo, New York located east of Interstate 90 and New York State Thruway Exit 52 off Walden Avenue. The Walden Galleria comprises more than of retail space, with 1 ...

. In 1990, following the death of company chairman Maer Bunis, the company began a rapid descent into bankruptcy. On January 13, 1991, the flagship Hertel Avenue store closed. The Sample was famous for its "Pup Sale", the semi-annual clearance sale heralded in the newspapers by detailed very funny advertisements which blamed the excess merchandise on their buyer's whims, poor taste or their supposed temporary insanity. The "pups" referred to the excess merchandise which was sold at very low prices. The Pup Sales were quite crowded and generally thought of as the most popular clothing sale of the year in all of Buffalo by its shoppers. The buying frenzy at a Pup Sale was considerable to say the least.

References

* {{cite book, last=Rizzo, first=Michael F., title=Nine Nine Eight: The Glory Days of Buffalo Shopping, url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4LJO6CcF-0UC&pg=PA42, year=2007, publisher=Lulu, Incorporated, isbn=978-1-4303-1386-1, page=42 Sample, The Retail companies established in 1928 American companies established in 1928 1928 establishments in New York (state) Retail companies disestablished in 1991 American companies disestablished in 1991 1991 disestablishments in New York (state) Defunct companies based in Buffalo, New York