Bolton Footwear

Our journey started as early as 1859 when Charles Searle, an immigrant from England, settled as a toll keeper at Great Brak River. Like many South Africans living in remote areas, he began making his own rugged leather “veldschoen” stitch-down boots which he supplied to the operators of the ox-wagon trains transporting goods between Cape Town in the West and Port Elizabeth in the East.

In the decades that followed, the company diversified its interests, incorporating a tannery, sawmill, a timber home construction division, retail shops, as well as automotive sales and services.

The Company first listed on The Johannesburg Stock Exchange in 1949 as Searles Holdings under the Clothing, Footwear and Textiles Sector. In 1980 the company was bought by Desmond Bolton and following the rationalisation and reconstruction of the Group, was renamed Bolton Footwear in 1987. During the 1990’s it dis-invested from all activities which were not related to footwear to concentrate and expand this part of the business.

The company steadily grew over the years and became a household name as a well-respected manufacturer of quality shoes. The Company was delisted from The Johannesburg Stock Exchange at the end of 2000 and presently trades as Bolton Footwear (Pty) Ltd.

Barker Footwear joined the stable in 2013 followed by Jordan & Co in 2015 – two major market players in their own right.

Today, Bolton Footwear is one of South Africa’s foremost footwear companies. All footwear offered by the Group is targeted at defined market niches, competitively priced and manufactured from the highest quality of leather and raw material available.

The Group’s three footwear manufacturing plants in Great Brak River, Oudtshoorn and Cape Town have the capacity to produce 8 000 pairs of high-quality leather footwear per day and employ over 1000 employees across all sites.

Seasonal marketing and advertising campaigns are launched on a national scale and complimented by in-store promotions and point-of-sale display materials that support retailers at grass-root level. Participative advertising with key customers is also undertaken on a continious basis.

The company’s growth over the years is a testimony to hard work, principled values and the determination of the founding members together with the desire to succeed and organisational culture of all who are employed.