The Bata Region

Factory Complex Zlín

The heart of Zlín is the red brick factory complex, where you'll feel like in times of the Industrial Revolution. Corners bustling with steam, sounds of production and factory halls reminiscent of the most famous era of the Bata Company have an inherent charm. Today, the complex serves not only as a factory, but also as an industrial space for cafes, bars, housing and galleries.

The first factory buildings were built in the area around the train station at the beginning of the 20th century. The Bata siblings, led by business-minded Tomas, began to apply the principles commonly used until then - multi-storey buildings with arched windows, the same as in Brno or Ostrava. From his travels overseas, Tomas Bata brought back the idea of the most efficient construction based on modules with dimensions of 6.15 x 6.15 m (i.e. 20 x 20 American feet). Together with František Lýdie Gahura, he gave a new face to the whole factory complex and the city.

Notice especially the practical numbering of the factory buildings. The buildings closest to the city are in the first, second, third and following columns, and the individual rows are numbered second. Thus, building number 21 stands first in the second column. And that is the place where we recommend you to start. Bata's Skyscraper was one of the tallest buildings in Central Europe at the time and had many time-saving features. These included paternosters, an elevator office, perfect air conditioning and many more.

To explore the factory complex, which became a prototype for a number of other factories in Bata satellite towns around the world, we recommend taking a guided tour of the Zlín Zone. It takes place every Wednesday and Saturday from May to September.