The May Day celebration, organized every year by the Thomas Bata Foundation in the garden of the Bata Villa, offered a range of unusual experiences for children and adults alike. We
joined forces with Zlín athletes, focused on quality cuisine, and commemorated important Bata anniversaries.
The entire garden at Bata Villa resembled a cozy festival grounds, dominated by sports zones occupied by representatives of selected Zlín sports clubs.
Visitors of all ages could try their skills with popular hockey players from the RI OKNA Berani Zlín club, coaches from the Sad Gym boxing club, young players from the Handball Club Zlín, and even representatives of Zlín‘s cycle ball team.
The garden of Bata‘s villa was also filled with cheerful colours and lots of now iconic inflatable toys by world-renowned designer and innovator Libuše Niklová, which have brought joy to many generations and are still being manufactured by the Fatra company in Napajedla. The connection between Baťa‘s May Day celebrations and Fatra was, of course, no coincidence. Fatra was part of the Bata manufacturing group, and 2025 marks the 90th anniversary of its founding.
During the May Day celebrations, another important Bata anniversary was also commemorated, namely the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Bata School of Work. A themed exhibition entitled „I declare myself a follower of Bata“ by Tomáš Pavlíček was on display in the villa itself.
There were all kinds of creative workshops, a truly rich gastronomic zone consisting exclusively of local suppliers, and performances by leading Czech magician Ondřej Sládek, pupils from the Otrokovice Elementary Art School, and the band Event Jazz.
The partners of the traditional May Day celebrations were the City of Zlín and the companies Fatra, Vitar, Baťa, and Oxalis.
