Buchanan joined William Sloan & Co, a
Glasgow shipping firm, as an office boy when he was fourteen or fifteen, and was later promoted to be a clerk. In 1868, he joined his brother William in his
grain business, also in Glasgow. In November 1879, he moved to
London as an agent for the
Leith whisky blenders Charles Mackinlay & Co. He realised that there was an untapped market in
England for bottled
Scotch whisky and set about producing his own, the
Buchanan Blend, which is still available today. He went into business on his own in 1884. Buchanan did not, however, produce his own whisky. It was produced for him by the Glasgow blenders W. P. Lowrie & Co. Marketed in distinctive black bottles with plain white labels, it was commonly known as "
black and white whisky", a name that was eventually actually used on the label. By 1903, when his firm was incorporated as a
private limited company, Buchanan was worth £750,000. By 1909, Buchanans was the best-selling Scotch in England. He supplied whisky to the
House of Commons from 1885. In 1898, he received
Royal Warrants to supply
Queen Victoria, the
Prince of Wales, and the
Duke of York. Buchanan opened a Paris office in 1902 and a New York office shortly afterwards. In 1898 he opened
Glentauchers malt whisky distillery on
Speyside and later acquired two more distilleries. In 1906, he bought Lowrie's and rapidly mechanised their production facilities in Glasgow. In 1907, he acquired an interest in the North British Bottle Manufacturing Company and purchased the Acme Tea Chest Company, both to aid his business. Both were rapidly mechanised. He was a master of publicity, driving a red-wheeled
buggy pulled by a black pony and accompanied by a liveried
footman. In 1909, Buchanan proposed a merger between the "big three" whisky firms: Buchanan's,
Dewar's, and
Walker's. This, however, was not successful. He tried again in 1914, and in April 1915 Buchanan's and Dewar's formed a joint holding company, Scotch Whisky Brands Ltd, renamed Buchanan Dewar Ltd in 1919. In 1925, the "big three" merged with the
Distillers Company. Buchanan was a director, but his age and failing health (he had never been in the best of health) meant he played little part in the company, attending only a single board meeting. ==Other interests==