Thomas Bata
 Thomas Bata    (businessman) | |
|---|---|
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| Born | September 17, 1914 Prague, Bohemia, Austro-Hungarian Empire |
| Died | September 1, 2008 (Age 93) Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Nationality | Czech |
| Parents | • Tomáš Baťa • Marie Menšíková |
| Spouse | Sonja Bata |
Czech-Canadian "Shoemaker to the World", ran the Bata Shoe Company from the 1940s until the 1980s. Attended 3 Bilderbergs, possibly in relation to subjects such as "How Should The West Deal With The Soviet Bloc?" (Bilderberg/1985), "Strategy Toward The USSR" (Bilderberg/1987) and "Economic Relations With Eastern Europe" (Bilderberg/1990). | |
Tomáš Jan Baťa, anglicised to Thomas J. Bata, was a Czech-Canadian businessman who ran the multinational Bata Shoe Company from the 1940s until the 1980s.
He attended 3 Bilderbergs, possibly in relation to subjects such as "How Should The West Deal With The Soviet Bloc?" (Bilderberg/1985), "Strategy Toward The USSR" (Bilderberg/1987) and "Economic Relations With Eastern Europe" (Bilderberg/1990).
Background
Baťa was born in the city of Prague, in what is now the Czech Republic, the son of Czech industrialist Tomáš Baťa. Baťa's father, however, was killed in a plane crash in 1932, when young Baťa was only 17.[1]
Career
Between the 1920s and 1940s, Bata built factories in Asia, South America and Africa (which he foresaw as a virgin market), thus becoming the largest shoemaker in the world.
Baťa attended school in Czechoslovakia, England and Switzerland. Anticipating the Second World War, he, together with over 100 families from Czechoslovakia, moved to Canada in 1939 to develop the Bata Shoe Company of Canada. Baťa successfully established and ran the new Canadian operations and during the war years, he sought to maintain the necessary coordination with as many of the overseas Bata operations as was possible. In 1948, however, Czechoslovakia was fully controlled by a communist government, and Bata enterprises in Poland, East Germany, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria were lost.
Relocating the headquarters to the UK, the Bata Shoe Organization then expanded around the world. In February 1942 he became aCanadian citizen, he also became a captain in the Canadian army
Between 1946 and 1960, 25 new factories were built and 1,700 company shops opened. In the 1960s and 1970s, the Bata white canvas sneaker/running shoe was iconic in the third world, representing between 60% and 80% of the shoe production in the countries where it operated. Bata moved the headquarters of the organization to Toronto, Canada in 1964,
The Bata Shoe Organization, whose guiding principle was "Our customer – Our Master" was the largest of its kind in the world. Baťa led the organization until 1984, when his son Thomas George Bata became the CEO.
In December 1989, after the communist government fell in Czechoslovakia, Baťa made a triumphant return to his hometown, the old company town of Zlín. Václav Havel, the Czech dissident leader and playwright turned president, asked Baťa to return.
By 2000, the Bata company was struggling in Canada. In 2000, the original Batawa factory was closed. In 2001, the Bata stores in Canada were closed and the Bata Organization relocated its headquarters to Switzerland.
Baťa participated in several leading business organizations. In Canada, he had been a director of Canadian Pacific Airlines and IBM Canada. He was a founding member of the Young Presidents Organization, chairman of the Commission on Multinational Enterprises of the International Chamber of Commerce, chairman of the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD and founding member of the Canada India Business Council.
Events Participated in
| Event | Start | End | Location(s) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bilderberg/1985 | 10 May 1985 | 12 May 1985 | New York US Arrowwood of Westchester Rye Brook | The 33rd Bilderberg, held in Canada |
| Bilderberg/1987 | 24 April 1987 | 26 April 1987 | Italy Cernobbio | 35th Bilderberg, in Italy, 106 participants |
| Bilderberg/1990 | 10 May 1990 | 13 May 1990 | New York US Glen Cove | 38th Bilderberg meeting, 119 guests |
| WEF/Annual Meeting/2004 | 21 January 2004 | 25 January 2004 | World Economic Forum Switzerland | 2068 billionaires, CEOs and their politicians and "civil society" leaders met under the slogan Partnering for Prosperity and Security. "We have the people who matter," said World Economic Forum Co-Chief Executive Officer José María Figueres. |
References
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