Ball and Buck is a hunting-inspired Made in the USA clothing brand. In addition to our online store (www.ballandbuck.com), we have a retail store location on Newbury St. in Boston, where we only sell apparel and products made in the USA.
Our Mission
To build products and experiences that set the industry benchmark for quality and become more valuable with age.
What’s in a name?
During the American Revolution, George Washington encouraged his troops to use “buck and ball” loads for their muskets. This loading method, that used smaller pellets to make a greater impact on target, inspired those of us here in the birthplace of that revolution. Here in Boston a new kind of American company has been born. With a revolutionary twist on an American tradition (pun intended), Ball and Buck is a company with an ambitious vision and strong principles. We may be starting small, but we’re fighting for the greater good.
With your help, Ball and Buck will bring America back to the very roots on which she was founded — one product at a time.
Made In The USA
We’re an all American company — born and bred with red, white, and blue running through our veins. The things that make us American, have always been the things we create. By incorporating the freedom and honor fought for by our forefathers whilst emphasizing American quality over foreign quantity, we’re refocusing on the pride America once had. Through hard work, honesty, & integrity, Ball and Buck is bringing America back to her roots.
Upon the founding of Ball and Buck, many monumental decisions were made. One of our decisions that we are most proud of was the decision to manufacture all of our garments and other products in the USA. There were a few factors that influenced this decision and here at Ball and Buck we proudly stand behind them.
First, we are firmly against labor exploitation–in our country or any other. As a new brand, it’s hard to compete with major corporations when they are paying a fraction of what we pay for labor and make millions of dollars doing it. But there are realities about outsourcing that are much harsher than the loss of American jobs. Garment manufacturing is the number one industry in developing countries. The labor doesn’t require workers to be skilled which draws a lot of uneducated workers into the factories. These workers, acting on dreams of a better life for themselves and their families, give up everything and move far away from home to work in these factories–expecting to make lots of money to send back to their families. Many times, all workers actually get from these factories are amputated limbs and terminal illnesses.
Developing countries don’t have the health and safety regulations that more stable countries, such as the United States, have. This is what allows the workers to be paid next to nothing and completely exploited. What’s worse–American corporations know about all of these things and still choose to outsource their labor. You can pay “fair wages” or “living wages” which are a step in the right direction, but unless someone is physically in the factory monitoring what is going on everyday–there is no way to control the conditions in which products are made. The new American mindset is that making money is the most important thing; once you get your own then you worry about everyone else. At Ball and Buck, we find this deplorable. We would never exploit another human being to take a stride forward–no matter how big a stride it may be. We know we can accomplish our mission without endangering lives or exploiting labor. Most factory workers are in their 20‘s and 30‘s, the same ages as we all are. They could be our best friends, our cousins, our peers. We recognize the suffering they go through to make a living, but we won’t contribute to it. Even if manufacturing in the USA is the road less traveled, it’s the only road on our map.
Because we were founded in 2008, the second consideration was a no-brainer. The economic recession has hit Americans harder than they ever thought it could; unemployment rates are the highest they’ve been since the Great Depression (and in some places, they’re even worse.) It seemed completely unfair to outsource the jobs we had to offer to other countries–the founding of the company gave all of us a future, it would be unjust not to pay-it-forward. So that’s what we’re doing; paying premium prices for labor that we could have gotten cheaper somewhere else. Is this a disadvantage for us? Not at all. The garments we get from our manufacturers are not only of the highest quality available on the market, but we also get peace of mind and moral values that will stand the test of time. After all, garment manufacturing was one of the industries that made the American dream possible–maybe a return to our original values is exactly what the US needs to pull out of this economic disaster. At least we know we’re doing our part.
So that’s where we stand. With manufacturing facilities on the East Coast, we make your garment when you order it in the factory that’s closest to your home. Less time from assembly line to you, less pollution in the environment. We’re creating jobs for Americans, running an honest business, and reducing our carbon footprint. We see that as a win-win-win situation.
Ball and Buck, A TRUE American brand.
