History of Bata Brand

Bata (also known as Bata Shoe Organisation) is a family-owned global footwear and fashion accessory manufacturer and retailer with acting headquarters located in Lausanne, Switzerland. Organised into three business units: Bata Europe, based in Italy; Bata Emerging Market (Asia, Pacific, Africa and Latin America), based in Singapore, and Bata Protective (worldwide B2B operations), based in the Netherlands, the organisation has a retail presence in over 70 countries and production facilities in 26 countries. In its history the Bata has sold more than 14 billion pairs of shoes and was awarded the Guinness World Record as the "Largest Shoe Retailer and Manufacturer".

Brief History of BATA Brand

Founded in the Czech Republic in 1894, Bata was one of the first manufacturers to sell its products all over the world. As early as the 1930s, the company was active in Switzerland, Germany, England, France, Yugoslavia, Poland, India and the Netherlands. This expansion continued, and in the 1960s, 42,000 employees were working in one of Bata’s thousands of shops and many factories.

The foundation of this success was our continuous commitment to research and development.

Bata Industrials was founded in the 1970s in response to a specific demand from the market for footwear for professionals. Since then, Bata Industrials has evolved to become a designer, producer and marketer of safety footwear and socks, exclusively targeting the professional end user markets.

Today, Bata Industrials is one of the world’s largest manufacturers of this type of footwear, and the only one that is truly a global player. In Europe, the company is widely acclaimed for collections such as the BS2000and The Natural. With offices in the Netherlands, Chile, Mexico, South Africa, Kenya, India, China, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand,  Bata Industrials serves customer markets on virtually every continent.

We started production of the world’s first safety shoe in 1934 and have sold over 200 million pairs of shoes to date.

Now and Then 

2012

Introduction of The Energy Footwear (including Walkline). 

2010

Bata Industrials (Chile) develops a safety shoe for the trapped mineworkers in Chile. One of the trapped mineworkers, Mario Gomez, sends the shoe up to the surface as a ‘kiss’ for his wife.

2009

Bata starts ‘lean’ production.

2008

Bata Industrials’ laboratory receives the A-status certificate from the SATRA research and technology centre. Bata is the first producer of safety shoes to receive this certification.

In September 2008, Thomas J. Bata passes away in Toronto (Canada), right before his 94th birthday. He will be remembered for his warmth and respect.

2006

Bata Industrials offices worldwide enter into a partnership, forming the Bata Branded Business division. Advantages: substantial know-how in terms of specific work environments worldwide, purchasing and product development. The headquarters for this division is Bata Industrials Nederland.

2004

Bata Industrials invests in the further automation and robotization of the machinery and equipment, and the production line. 

1996

Last Bata store in the Netherlands closes. The only remaining retail outlet is the ‘Superstore’ located at the Bata factory in Best where shoes and socks from the company’s own factory, and others, are sold.

1980

Commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Defence, Bata designs an army shoe. Bata decides to use robots for the production of the 90,000 commissioned boots.

1960s-70s

A wage explosion occurs in Western Europe during the 1960s. As a result, the labour-intensive shoe industry is relocated to the low-wage countries. In the late 1970s, Bata Nederland starts to specialise increasingly more in the production of professional and safety shoes and corresponding socks. The step from consumer to industry as customer base has been taken.

Bata no longer needs the large manufacturing complex, and in 1978, it sells part of its land, vacant buildings, and Bata village to the growing municipality of Best. The name ‘Batadorp’ disappears.

1961

150 Bata stores in the Netherlands.

1934

Opening of the Bata factory for the production of women's, men’s, children’s and athletic shoes. Stockings, slippers and rubber boots are also produced here. The Bata factory property is also the location of the boiler room, the tannery, the printer and a building company.

1933

After the success in Czechoslovakia, Bata also builds factories in other countries, including the Netherlands. Bata buys land from the municipality of Best to build a manufacturing complex and Batadorp, an exact replica of company headquarters in Zlín.

Why Best?

In the countryside of the province of Brabant, labour is available in abundance. The factory’s location is also favourable, in spite of the fact that it is situated on rugged and inexpensive heath (a ‘dime’ per m2), and is located a fair distance outside of Best. It is also situated at an intersection where the railway to Eindhoven, the Wilhelmina Canal and the Beatrix Canal meet. The factory has its own branch line, connecting it to the railway.

Batadorp

Bata builds Batadorp (Bata village) near the factory so that the employees could live near the factory. The neighbourhood comprises 130 homes, has its own school, medical centre, football club, tennis club, etc. Working, living, school and leisure time: it was all Bata. Batadorp was fairly isolated from Best due to the lack of a bridge over the Wilhelmina Canal. This contributed to the creation of a close-knit Bata community. You can still see a few of these Bata houses, across from the Bata Industrials head office and factory in Best. They are recognisable by their typical flat roofs.

1932

On 12 July, Tomas Bat’a dies when his private jet crashed near his own factory complex. Tomas Jr. inherits the majority of the Bata business and establishes the holding company ‘Bata Shoe Organisation’.

1922

Official opening of the first Dutch Bata shop in Amsterdam.

1894
Thomas Bat’a (pronounced ‘Batya’) establishes shoe factory in Zlín, Czechoslovakia. Thanks to smart entrepreneurship, mechanisation and competitive prices, in just a few decades, Bat’a succeeded in becoming one of Europe’s leading shoe manufacturers.

Fun facts:

• Bata was the first to implement a new system, whereby employees have regular working hours (6:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.), are paid their wages on a fixed day, all employees have their own specific task in the production process, and people live outside of the workplace. Bata also maintains complete control over the spare parts for Bata products, the entire production process, and the retail trade in its products. 
• Bata was the first business to place large advertising signs at its own points of sale, to advertise in magazines, and to ensure that the prices end with the number 9.
• During World War I, Bata received an enormous order from the army, which helped the company prosper, even during wartime.
• Basic assumptions: A good shoe for the average man. The customer’s wish is sacred.

History of Nike Brand

A brief history of Nike

The Nike athletic machine began as a small distributing outfit located in the trunk of Phil Knight's car. From these rather inauspicious beginnings, Knight's brainchild grew to become the shoe and athletic company that would come to define many aspects of popular culture and myriad varieties of 'cool.'

Nike emanated from two sources: Bill Bowerman's quest for lighter, more durable racing shoes for his Oregon runners, and Knight's search for a way to make a living without having to give up his love of athletics. Bowerman coached track at the University of Oregon where Phil Knight ran in 1959. Bowerman's desire for better quality running shoes clearly influenced Knight in his search for a marketing strategy. Between them, the seed of the most influential sporting company grew.

The story goes like this: while getting his MBA at Stanford in the early '60s, Knight took a class with Frank Shallenberger. The semester-long project was to devise a small business, including a marketing plan. Synthesizing Bowerman's attention to quality running shoes and the burgeoning opinion that high-quality/low cost products could be produced in Japan and shipped to the U.S. for distribution, Knight found his market niche. Shallenberger thought the idea interesting, but certainly no business jackpot. Nothing more became of Knight's project.

Cut to 1963. Phil Knight traveled to Japan on a world-tour, filled with the wanderlust of young men seeking a way to delay the inevitable call of professional life. Seemingly on a whim, Knight scheduled an interview with a Japanese running shoe manufacturer, Tiger--a subsidiary of the Onitsuka Company. Presenting himself as the representative of an American distributor interested in selling Tiger shoes to American runners, Knight told the businessmen of his interest in their product. Blue Ribbon Sports--the name Knight thought of moments after being asked who he represented--was born. The Tiger executives liked what they heard and Knight placed his first order for Tigers soon thereafter.

By 1964, Knight had sold $8,000 worth of Tigers and placed an order for more. Coach Bowerman and Knight worked together, but ended up hiring a full-time salesman, Jeff Johnson. After cresting $1 million in sales and riding the wave of the success, Knight et. al. devised the Nike name and trademark Swoosh in 1971.

By the late '70s, Blue Ribbon Sports officially became Nike and went from $10 million to $270 million in sales. Katz (1994) describes the success via Nike's placement within the matrix of the fitness revolution: 'the idea of exercise and game-playing ceased to be something the average American did for fun,' instead Americans turned to working out as a cultural signifier of status. Clearly, the circumstances surrounding the shift are not this simple; it is one of the aims of this project to discover other generators of popular attention to health.

If Nike didn't start the fitness revolution, Knight says, "We were at least right there. And we sure rode it for one hell of a ride" (Katz, 66). The 80s and 90s would yield greater and greater profits as Nike began to assume the appearance of athletic juggernaut, rather than the underdog of old. "Advertising Age" named Nike the 1996 Marketer of the Year, citing the "ubiquitous swoosh...was more recognized and coveted by consumers than any other sports brand--arguably any brand" (Jensen, 12/96). That same year Nike's revenues were a staggering $6.74 billion. Expecting $8 billion sales in fiscal 1997, Nike has targeted $12 billion in sales by the year 2000.

And all from the back of a car.

Few can question Nike's financial hegemony. But nearly $7 billion in revenues clearly begs the question, What sells these shoes? It is my assertion that Nike's power to sell comes from deep-rooted yearnings for cultural inclusiveness and individual athletic accomplishment. These seemingly paradoxical desires collide in consumers hearts and minds and produce the unyielding zeal for Nike shoes and apparel. Unfortunate effects of this zeal can be found in the rash of Nike apparel killings in 1991 and the profusion of Nike collectors and webpages designed around the company's products.  Nike appeals to these disparate elements of Americans' personalities through an advertising philosophy that is, at once, simple and sublime. In addition, Nike's practice of top-level athletes promoting their products appeal to countless ages and creeds as a way to identify with and emulate their athletic heroes. These forces work powerfully upon the individual consumer, but one should not lose sight of the cultural context in which the individual moves.

How Woodland Became a Famous Brand.

How Woodland Became a Famous Brand.

Woodland. A name which all of us trust for its quality, durability and style.

This blog will focus on How Woodland Became a Famous Brand.

In 1992 Russia was divided into various socialist states and one big country was converted into various socialist ststes and named USSR. Now this we all know. But what we do not know is that this let to the foundation of Woodland shoes and the brand itself.

Aero Club the award winning export house from Delhi suffered heavy loss due to this division of Russia as its major exports was into Russia and hence not only it lost business but also was left with heavy inventory of shoes which was made for exports. The inventory included of leather casual shoes and industrial boots.

The chairman of Aero Club Mr Avtar Singh decided to launch some of the styles lying in the inventory in the Indian market to see what kind of response is received.

Among these shoes there was one shoe which made the brand woodland. Many of us reading this blog about woodland shoes must have even worn that shoe sometime in their lifetime.

The shoe was made of very thick buff leather and even had leather laces. The sole was made of hard rubber. The upper of the shoe was hand made and hand stitched. In short this was a shoe which could last seasons without any trouble at all.

After lots of brain storming sessions these shoes were launched with the brand name Woodland. Initially it was launched in only 2-3 selective stores in New Delhi at south extention-2 and CP inner circle which were owned by Aero club. However, lots of big and small shoe stores in Delhi were given some stock for selling on commission basis.

Since then Aero Club never looked back. Customers went crazy for the hand stitched leather shoe and its demand increased from every where. This shoe had a style number G-0092 as it was the year 1992 and ‘G’ stood for gents. Though Aero Club had lots of inventory of this shoe which they initially made for exports but Mr Avatar Singh being a futuristic businessmen did foresee the demand for the shoe and asked the shoe to be made in 5 different colors which were khaki, black, olive, camel and a mixed color including combination of these colors.

This rocked the shoe market and word of mouth spread and so did the name Woodland. The best part about these shoes was that they were hand made, hand stitched, very stylish which could be worn with trousers, denims or cargo trousers and shorts. Though, the factor which helped most in making these woodland shoes famous was the shoes durability. Customers who bought these shoes wear them for 5-6 years and nothing could wear them off, specially the G-0092 one. This increased the brand loyalty of Woodland Shoes.

At that time in early 1990's not too many shoes brands were their in the Indian market apart from Bata and this situation of lack of competition also favored the growth of Woodland shoes.

Once the people became aware of Woodland Mr Avatar Singh sensed another opportunity in the Indian market and that of casual shoes demand. He observed that there is no casual shoes brand in the Indian shoe market and this unidentified and unattended demand can be taken care of.

Since then Woodland Shoes has been launching casual and tracking shoes which are very popular among the young people. Also Woodland has grown as a brand since then and now it has around where 250 stores all over India.