Family And Entertainment

Pakistan, one of the largest Muslim states in the world, is a living and exemplary monument of Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah

 The clothing of Roman women was simple in cut; styles changed little for centuries. The effect varied with the quality of material and the grace with which garments were worn. Ordinarily a matron was dressed in a subligaculum, an under tunic, and an outer tunic (stola). She often wore a scarf indoor and a palla (shawl) outdoors. Over or under the inner tunic she often had a belt or sash to support the breasts

 1894    The T.&A. Bata Shoe Company is registered in Zlin, Czechoslovakia by the siblings Tomáš, Anna and Antonín Bata. Innovative from the beginning it departs from century old traditions of the one-man cobblers’ workshop.
 
  1895   Antonin leaves the Company to join the army, his sister Anna follows shortly after to get married. Tomas Bata takes over the company leadership alone.
 
  1897   Tomas introduces the ”Batovka”, the first fabric shoe and with it production mechanization.
 
  1905   Production reaches 2,200 pairs per day, produced by 250 employees. Constant innovation of footwear to meet customers’ needs. T.Bata’s motto is “ Our customer is our Master”
 
  1909   First export sales and first sales agencies in Germany, in the Balkans and in the Middle East. Bata shoes are of excellent quality and are available in more styles than had ever been offered before. Demand grows rapidly.
 
  1917   Sales reach 2 million pairs per year produced by 5000 employees. Advanced production equipment is imported. As the Company prospers so do the communities where it operates. Bata creates stores, builds housing, schools and hospitals near factories.
 
  1922   Following the first world war currencies are devalued and consumer purchasing power is at an all time low. Bata cuts shoe prices by 50%; stores are flooded with customers forcing the industry to follow the lead.
 
  1925   The “Bata system” organizes operations in autonomous workshops with employee profit sharing introduced since 1923. Each one in the company is an entrepreneur. The Bata School of Work founded. It provides rigorous education and practical training to future Bata managers.
 
  1929   Introduction of customs tariffs. Bata responds by building factories in Swiss, Germany, England, France, Yugoslavia, Poland, Holland, the USA and India
By the early 1930s, Bata is the world’s leading footwear exporter.
 
  1932   At the time of Tomas Bata’s tragic death in a plane crash the company intensifies diversification into the production of tires, aircrafts, bicycles, machineries. Still a young man, Thomas J Bata, his son, convenes the 1st international congress of young Bata people.
 
  1939   Bata operates 63 companies in various industries but footwear remains the core business with 60 million pairs sold per year in more than 30 countries.
 
  1940   Part of the Company management under the leadership of Thomas J. Bata starts to operate from Batawa, near Toronto, Canada.
 
  1945   All Bata companies in Eastern European countries are nationalized by communist governments.
The Company starts rebuilding itself from the remaining entities located outside Eastern Europe.
 
  1960s   The Company’s headquarters are officially relocated in Toronto under the leadership of Thomas J Bata. The Company expands its international reach through new factories serving local markets.
 
  1970s   Private labels are created to be marketed to new customer segments: Bubblegummers, Power, Marie Claire, North Star.
 
  1980s   Retail excellence is becoming even more important. Bata develops a variety of retail concepts such as Bata city stores, large format stores and sport concept stores.
 
  1989   Following the political changes the Bata Company is invited to return to the Czech Republic where the Company remains a symbol of national pride and achievement.
 
  1990s   Creativity, product innovation and research for higher quality levels lie at the core of Bata product development policy. The result is the international high standard Bata Premium collection.
 
  1995   Partnerships develop in Eastern Europe. Bata stores reopen in Russia, Poland, Croatia, Slovenia.
 
  1999   To adjust to the market evolution Bata undertakes a major reorientation from manufacturing to designing, marketing and distribution.
 
  2001   Thomas G Bata, founder’s grandson becomes the Group’s chairman. A new international structure is implemented around 4 meaningful business units (MBUs) to give more focus to the business and gain synergies within each region, especially in sourcing and product development.
 
  2002   As part of re-inventing its core competencies, Bata Shoe innovation Centres open around the world to focus on the development of shoes with exclusive comfort technology features and designs.
 
  2004   New steps in China with the opening of the Bata procurement centre in Guanzhou and a distribution partnership for the opening of Bata retail stores.
 
  2006   Start of the 262 acres Riverbank township construction to modernize the Batanagar factory complex, near Kolkata. It is expected to be completed by 2011 with 2500 modern housing for employees, a large hospital, a school, an IT park, a hotel and residential flats along the riverside.

Launch of the Branded Business Division to consolidate our existing worldwide branded business activities into a leading industrial and professional footwear company.
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Evidence showed that the Chinese and Vietnamese shoe manufacturing sectors had benefited from state-backed cheap financing, non-market land rents, tax holidays and improper asset valuation. This allowed them to export shoes to the EU at a price lower than the market value proper competitive market circumstances would dictate – amounting to ‘dumping’.

The Commission estimates that the resulting tripling of imports from the two countries over the past four years has caused the closure of 1000 footwear companies, the loss of 40,000 jobs and a drop in production of 30%.

The EU is empowered to impose anti-dumping duties in such circumstances by the Anti-dumping Regulation of 1996, which implements World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules. The Commissioner’s recommendation has to be endorsed by the member states.

Exemptions

The Commissioner will recommend that childrens’ shoes and top-of-the-range special technology advanced footwear (STAF) (i.e. high-tech sports shoes) be exempted from the duties. He was unwilling to impose a possible burden in the way of higher prices on families with children and the number of STAF sport shoes manufactured in the EU was too small to warrant anti-dumping duties.

The staggered imposition of duties was set to take into account goods already in transit.

Impact of the measures

The Commissioner did not anticipate any or any significant increase in the price of shoes on the retail market.

In the Commission’s estimation the duties will effect only 9 out of every 100 shoes sold in the EU and would amount to a sum of just €1.5 added to the average €8.5 wholesale price. Such shoes retail at between 30 and 100 euro. Since, in the view of the Commissioner, dumped wholesale prices had not, since 2001, been reflected in the retail price charged to consumers, there would be ample margin for importers and retailers to absorb any price increase

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It’s not even October yet, but GM’s already released images of the all-new 2009 Chevrolet Cruze compact sedan ahead of its debut at the 2008 Paris motor show.

Riding on the newly-revamped Delta platform, the Cruze will serve as GM’s global small-car, replacing both the Daewoo-built Lacetti (known to the U.S. as the Suzuki Forenza) overseas and the Chevrolet Cobalt here in North America.

Designers claimed they aimed for a “wheels-out, body-in” look, but what we see looks remarkably like a Holden up front, albeit with a split grille tacked in place. It’s certainly more aggressive than the tame Cobalt, but we’ll wait to see how it looks in person.

 
Europeans will be able to buy their Cruzes with a 112-hp 1.6-liter I-4, 140-hp 1.8-liter I-4, or a 150-hp 2.0-liter turbodiesel I-4 underhood. Transmission choices include either the standard five-speed manual or an all-new six-speed automatic.

They’ll also be able to buy a Cruze before we will: the car goes on sale in Europe in early 2009, while we’ll have to wait until 2010 or 2011 to see production begin at GM’s factory in Lordstown, Ohio.

Not content with building the world’s most extraordinary two-seat supercars, Lamborghini now wants to make the planet’s most uncompromisingly sporty four-door sedan. The new Estoque, which is to be unveiled at October’s Paris auto show, previews a four-door four-seat Gallardo-priced (about $200,000) Lambo supersedan. If it is well received, and the credit crunch hasn’t wiped out too many Lamborghini customers, it will go into production, “potentially in four years,” says president and CEO Stephan Winkelmann. It would be Lamborghini’s third model line, after the Murcielago and Gallardo, and its first four-door apart from the Rambo Lambo LM002 off-roader.

 
The Estoque, true to Lamborghini form, takes its name from bullfighting — in this case a 3-ft-long rapier used by matadors. What’s bad news for bulls is good news for those who fancy a 180-mph or so (no top speed is quoted) 500-hp-plus V-10 front-mid-engine sedan that goes and sounds like a Lamborghini but also has space for four adults and three sets of golf clubs.

 
“Lamborghini customers own many cars,” says Winkelmann, a dapper 42-year-old German who was brought up in Rome and who, with his tight-fitting dark suits, sharp ties, and tan shoes, looks more Bolognese than Berliner. “They currently own other sports cars, maybe an SUV, and almost certainly a luxury sedan or two. We would like that luxury sedan to be made by Lamborghini rather than by a rival.” Equally, there are many customers who find the current Lambo models a touch too extreme. The Estoque is a Lambo that can be used every day, that motoring contradiction: a sensible car (more or less) from Sant’Agata.

The Paris concept car is a production-feasible machine and a proper runner, so there’s no doubting the company’s intent. If the car hits the showroom, volumes would likely be 2000 to 3000 a year, according to Winkelmann. That’s almost exactly double what the Fighting Bull brand sells now — last year’s total was 2406 cars — and a huge boost on the average 250 cars a year that Lamborghini sold from inception (in 1962) until the Audi takeover 10 years ago.

 
The Estoque is a long, low, wide sedan: longer and wider than a Cadillac STS, and 1.7 inches taller than a Porsche 911. Power, at least in the Paris concept car, comes from a Gallardo LP560-4 5.2L V-10 engine, though in production it would be tuned to give slightly less power and more torque in keeping with its more sensible-shoes image. (Current Gallardo: 552 hp, 398 lb-ft)

The engine is front-midship-mounted — so behind the front-axle line. The gearbox would be a DSG-style twin-clutch paddle-activated semi auto; if the owner wants to drive it in full automatic mode, then fine. As with all current Lamborghinis, it comes with four-wheel drive. Unlike the current two-seat sportsters, though, the Estoque gets an electronically controlled center diff that activates the front drive only when necessary — such as during a loss of traction. Most of the time, you’re in rear drive only. This helps all-around fuel economy, says engineering boss Maurizio Reggiani (this may be the first time a Lambo engineering boss has ever discussed fuel economy). On the other hand Reggiani will not discuss top speed or acceleration. It’s too early. “Top speed could be anywhere from 250 to 320 km/h [155-200mph].” Lamborghini also happily discusses the possibility that the Estoque could use V-8 hybrid power