End of an era: Last Baťa footwear factory in Central Europe announces closure
One hundred and fifty years after the birth of Tomáš Baťa, the world-famous shoe brand is undergoing a major turning point. The Baťa company has officially announced it will close its last factory in Central Europe, definitively ending production of traditional Bata footwear in its country of origin.
The Baťa company management announced the decision to close its plant in Dolní Němčí in the Uherské Hradiště region earlier this week.
According to the company, operations at the plant, which has been producing footwear since 1970, are no longer profitable. Baťa board member Andrea Montagnoli explained the reasons.
“Ending production at our Dolní Němčí plant was a very difficult decision for us. The structure and capacity of the plant, which was built for large-scale production, no longer corresponds to current market demand. To be profitable, it would have to focus on a different type of production. The investment required for such a transformation would not be efficient given current production volumes and purchase prices and their outlook,“ he said.
The Dolní Němčí factory has been part of the Baťa conglomerate since 1992 and last year produced around 150,000 pairs of shoes for its stores. The decision to end operations will affect 92 employees.
The company plans to gradually wind down operations in several stages. It is in contact with representatives of the municipality and labour office officials and is negotiating with trade union representatives on the terms of employees’ departure. The company management says it has prepared a support program for affected employees focused on helping them find further employment on the labour market, its representatives said.
While the curtain is coming down on traditional shoemaking bearing the Baťa logo in Europe, the brand continues to operate around the world. It currently manufactures in twelve countries. The focus of production shifted primarily to Asia and Africa long ago. The company has factories in India and Bangladesh, where it has two factories each. It also operates in Pakistan, Kenya, Zambia, Zimbabwe and South Africa, as well as in South America, in Bolivia and Colombia, and in Australia and New Zealand.
After the closure of the Dolní Němčí factory, there will be just one address left on the map of Baťa’s European production facilities. It is the Dutch town of Best, in the immediate vicinity of Eindhoven. The local factory, which falls under the specialised Bata Industrials division, is far removed from traditional walking shoes, however. It exclusively produces heavy-duty safety and work footwear for the construction, logistics and industrial sectors.
Despite the end of production in Moravia and the departure from its historic warehouses, Baťa is not disappearing from Zlín. The city remains the administrative heart of the entire company. Baťa ’s Czech headquarters is still based there, as are two representative stores, and the Tomáš Baťa Foundation continues to oversee the legacy of the famous founder. In the Czech Republic, the brand will remain present through its retail network.
