An Urban Explorer's Guide to the Buffalo-Niagara Region: Unique Landmarks, Historic Gin Mills, Old World Neighborhoods, History, Nickel City Oddities, Tours and More!
Before computer “cyber shopping,” making purchased from home consisted of a pile of printed catalogs from trusted national retailers like Sears, JCPennys and Montgomery Ward or from one of the many regional catalog retailers. It was a time where you could open up a catalog page and see 10-15 different products at a single glance for quick comparison shopping. Kids could take the catalog into bed and dream about what to put on their Christmas list. Call the hotline or visit a neighborhood “catalog gallery.” Place your order with one of the short pencils, and minutes later, your items would slide down a conveyor belt for your review. It was simple. It was civilized. 1952-2001: During the Spring of 2001 Brand Names Sales Inc announced that it would soon end its run as a locally owned retailer. Founded by George Hambleton Jr., the catalog shopping center was the last of these types of retailers in the Western New York market that at one time included Naum’s & Century stores. In 1996, the chain was purchased by Richard Tamulski, who tried to reinvent Brand Names by moving away from its dependency on catalog shopping. A 30,000-sqaure-foot “superstore” on Niagara Falls Blvd. was opened but it was not enough to save the popular retailer. At the time of closing, 12 Brand Names and six Brand Names Furniture Galleries retail locations remained. And what about the catchy holiday tv/radio jingle “Bring Brand Names Home for the Holidays... Take a listen at Steve Cichon’s tribute to Buffalo retail at: http://www.staffannouncer.com/retail.htm
