Bukta

History

E.R. Buck & Sons was founded in 1879, mainly producing shorts for soldiers fighting in the Boer Wars. In 1884 football team Nottingham Forest were pictured wearing kit produced by Bukta. Later Newcastle United. and others were wearing kit made by Bukta.

In 1885 Bukta moved into a new factory in Manchester, leased from Lord Vernon, employing less than 30 people. They were one of the first companies to produce uniforms for the Scout Movement and produced underwear and hospital and tropical uniforms for the British Army for the First World War. In 1920 Bucks bought the factory in the sale of the Vernon Estate. In 1923 E.R. Buck and Sons became a limited company, by this time they employed between 130 and 200 people.

In 1938 the factory in Poynton was closed and the company moved to a factory at Brinksway, Stockport. Members of the Buck family ran the company until 1982 when a consortium led by Sir Hugh Fraser purchased it.

Football teams that have worn kits produced by Bukta include Aberdeen, Ajax, Arsenal, Bolton Wanderers, Bradford City, Bristol Rovers, Charlton Athletic, Chesterfield, Crystal Palace, Derby County, Dundee, Dundee United, Everton, Hearts, Hibernian, Huddersfield Town, Hull City, Leicester City, Leyton Orient, Limavady United, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Millwall, Motherwell, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, Plymouth Argyle, Port Vale, Rochdale, Scunthorpe United, Sevilla FC, Sheffield Wednesday, Southend United, Stranraer, Swansea City, Vitesse Arnhem, Watford, Wolves and West Ham. The Rochester Lancers of the second American Soccer League and, later, the North American Soccer League, were also outfitted for a time by Bukta.

In 2005, the Bukta brand was relaunched, having had millions of pounds spent on it, after an absence of more than six years, as a brand for up-market independent stores. Much of Bukta's design and distribution is outsourced to the Cavden Group.