| Bata > About Bata Industrials |
Bata Industrials is part of the Bata Shoe Organisation,
the world’s largest shoe manufacturer, and is the market leader in the
Benelux for industrial shoes. Bata Industrials has production
facilities throughout the world. The company headquarters is located in
Best, the Netherlands, where it employs a staff of 170. Bata
Industrials’ facility in Best produces over 700,000 pairs of safety
shoes and 1,000,000 million pairs of socks annually. Bata Industrials
has a progressive Research and Development department and has certified
testing areas at its disposal.
Current development
Research
is the foundation of our market success. We are continuously working on
new cutting edge technological developments for footwear and hosiery.
This helps us meet the latest market requirements and ever evolving
industrial working environments.
Our development strategy is based on three elements:
- Overall product performance
- The practical experience of users
- Technical progress
Each and every detail of Bata Industrials’ products undergoes a
lengthy development process, described in detail in the Technology
section of this site. This strategy helps ensure that our products meet
the highest safety standards. Our efforts are aimed at footwear beyond
safety: we put comfort and health in an equally prominent position.
WELCOME TO BATA NEW ZEALAND
Bata New Zealand was formed in 1948 with the first factoy opening at Owhiro Bay, Wellington in 1951 producing slippers.
The company was flourishing in the 50's and 60's with a second factory opening in Wainuiomata and the introduction of injection moulded footwear.
The now iconic "Bata Bullets" were being produced and extensively promoted by 1969 and the 10 millionth pair of shoes produced by Bata New Zealand was made in April 1974.
By the end of of the 1970's Bata New Zealand had warehouses in Auckland, Wellington, Nelson and Christchurch, with additional factories in Wainuiomata, Carterton, Masterton, Wanganui and Nelson.
During the 1980's there was a world wide trend to relocate factories into Asian countries and by 1987 leather production in New Zealand was deemed unprofitable and as such, 15 shoe manufacturers went out of business and all others including Bata were forced to reduce the size of their operations.
1992 saw the closure of the Wainuiomata factory and all production (PVC gumboots) returned to Owhiro Bay.
Today we produce approximately 200,000 pairs of PVC gumboots per year and import Bata brands such as Marie Claire, Weinbrenner, Bubblegummers and our ever increasing Bata Industrials range. We are also the New Zealand agents for Rieker, Via Nova and Ferracini.
