Keeping up with the latest developments has enabled a historic Bradford company to expand into new product areas to meet a demand for up-market camping equipment.

BCT Outdoors is looking to capitallse on a growing trend for glamorous camping – known as ‘glamping’ – by holidaymakers and music festival-goers, which involves more luxurious accommodation and facilities.

The company’s expansion plans are being backed with a £70,000 investment from funding body Finance Yorkshire.

BCT Outdoors, which started in 1896 as Bradford Cover and Twine Company, is based at Windsor Street, Bowling, where it manufactures tents for youth groups, tour and adventure holiday operators as well as garden marquees and soft play equipment for individual and large international clients.

Managing director Chris Fawcett said: “The company’s success relies heavily on research and development and listening to customers, and this philosophy, backed by traditional skills, has enabled the company to build a large customer base both at home and abroad. Everything in our collection is manufactured at our Bradford factory. We do not import any tents.

“We were looking to bring more new ‘glamping’, as well as soft play products, to market but designing and registering the products – as well as the machinery to bring them into production – can be a costly process.”

The Finance Yorkshire investment has helped Mr Fawcett expand and improve areas of the business.

He said: “As well as new glamping products, we have been able to design and launch a children’s portable play frame suitable for use in creches, pubs, shops and at home.”

The company has also used the investment to print brochures and catalogues, buy a branded delivery vehicle and improve its website by enabling customers to buy from an online shop.

Mr Fawcett said: “The money also helped pay for us to attend an exhibition, the Motorhome, Caravan and Camping Show in London, where we met a lot of new contacts and raised our profile further in the industry.

“Our order books are full for the next few months and then the new product lines will kick in. We’ve done all the spade work by researching and developing these products and we’re now ready for the company to grow.”

Finance Yorkshire investment manager Jonathan Craig said: “The business may be more than a century old, but Chris and his team are continuing to innovate by ensuring their products reflect current trends and therefore remain popular with customers all over the UK. It is also heartening to see a well-established Yorkshire business that is keeping traditional skills and jobs in the region by manufacturing its own products.”