Buffums Department Store Heavy Knit Quarter-Zip Sweatshirt
Product Details & Size Guide
Celebrate Buffums with a quarter-zip sweatshirt inspired by a department-store name woven into Southern California history. Established in Long Beach in 1904, Buffums grew from a downtown business into a regional chain known for its specialty-store identity and upscale interiors. The downtown flagship expanded over decades before the Long Beach operation moved to Long Beach Plaza in 1982. For former shoppers and local-history enthusiasts, this piece recalls the Grand Dame and the generations who made a visit part of their routine.
Buffums began in Long Beach, California, in 1904, when Charles and Edwin Buffum and other partners bought the Schilling Bros. dry goods business and began operating it as The Mercantile Co. The business grew from a downtown store into a regional chain of 16 specialty department stores across Southern California. Its downtown flagship expanded over several decades: a new building opened in stages in 1924, a parking garage followed in 1941, and additions in 1960 and 1964 enlarged the complex. From the 1950s, the chain gradually added stores and promoted its specialty-store identity. Known locally as the “Grand Dame” of department stores, Buffums used the advertising line “I've been to Buffums” in the 1970s and 1980s. Australian retailer David Jones bought the chain in the 1970s; by the time of its attempted sale in the 1980s, it had become part of Adelaide Steamship Company. In 1982, the Long Beach store and headquarters moved to Long Beach Plaza after the downtown complex was sold; that complex was demolished in 1985. Buffums entered liquidation after the 1990 Christmas season. A brief retail relaunch opened in Long Beach's Belmont Shore neighborhood in October 2015 and closed in March 2016.
| XS | S | M | L | XL | 2XL | 3XL | 4XL | |
| Width, in | 18.50 | 20.00 | 21.50 | 23.00 | 25.00 | 27.00 | 29.50 | 32.50 |
| Length, in | 25.50 | 26.50 | 27.50 | 28.50 | 29.50 | 30.50 | 31.25 | 32.00 |
| Sleeve length (from center back), in | 33.75 | 34.50 | 35.50 | 36.00 | 36.75 | 37.50 | 38.25 | 39.00 |
| Size tolerance, in | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 | 1.00 |
Product features
- 55% cotton / 42% polyester / 3% spandex midweight blend
- Odor-resistant performance fabric
- Silver metal quarter-zip with metal pull
- Self-banded cuffs and hem for structured fit
- Medium-heavy fabric (9.73 oz/yd²) with subtle stretch
Care instructions
- Machine wash: cold (max 30C or 90F)
- Non-chlorine: bleach as needed
- Tumble dry: low heat
- Iron, team or dry: medium heat
- Do not dryclean
EU representative: HONSON VENTURES LIMITED, gpsr@honsonventures.com, 3, Gnaftis House flat 102, Limassol, Mesa Geitonia, 4003, CY
Product information: Mercer+Mettle™ MM3040, 2 year warranty in EU and Northern Ireland as per Directive 1999/44/EC
Care instructions: Machine wash: cold (max 30C or 90F), Non-chlorine: bleach as needed, Tumble dry: low heat, Iron, team or dry: medium heat, Do not dryclean
EU representative: HONSON VENTURES LIMITED, gpsr@honsonventures.com, 3, Gnaftis House flat 102, Limassol, Mesa Geitonia, 4003, CY
Product information: Mercer+Mettle™ MM3040, two year warranty in the EU and Northern Ireland
Care instructions: Machine wash: cold (max 30C or 90F), Non-chlorine: bleach as needed, Tumble dry: low heat, Iron, team or dry: medium heat, Do not dryclean