SINCE 1861 THE ORIGINAL MICHEAL THONET'S FACTORY
The Thonet Villa , today TON showroom; Today the villa is part of TON a.s. headquarter.
The Thonet Villa was built in 1873 as a consequence of the second large fire to affect the factory, when some flats used by the Thonet family were burnt down. The building of the new family Villa in the factory park was initiated by Thonet’s sons - and successors, August and Jacob. Different branches of the family used it as their residence until the Nineteen-forties.
However, Michael himself never occupied the villa; since he died before the building was finished in 1871. There is a bronze memorial plaque with his portrait by the Viennese artist, Peter Breithut, dating from 1904. It was originally situated on a gable of the oldest manufacturing building.
Afterwards, when the premises of the villa were no longer used for living purposes, it was used as a representative and administrative building. Up until 1989, it was used as the site of the company doctor, dentist and other medical facilities. In 2008, the building underwent a complete reconstruction process which restored its original appearance. Nowadays, you can visit the TON Company showroom there.
In 1861, a bent furniture plant was opened in Bystřice pod Hostýnem and today it is among the oldest in the world. It was no coincidence that its founder Michael Thonet, whose name the plant bore, chose this place. Surrounded by beech forests offering enough material for the manufacturing process, Bystřice pod Hostýnem also saved on transportation and labour costs thanks to its location. Very unusual industrial labour organisation system, where the workers were specialised in only one task, and also use of unique technologies were other factors that helped the chairs from Bystřice compete at a reasonable price and expand all over the world.
Even ten years since the opening, 300,000 items of bent furniture were being made every year. By 1912, the number had risen to 445,000 items and almost 2,000 people looked after the products. In return, the Thonet family took care of their employees. They set up vocational schools for wood processing, kindergartens, a band in Bystřice pod Hostýnem and supported the construction of a railway, built homes for workers and even opened a casino.
After the First World War, which left a heavy toll on the economic situation, the plant merged in 1924 with the Kohn-Mundus joint stock company and changed its name to THONET-MUNDUS. This new corporation operated until 1940. Until the end of the Second World War it was managed by a caretaker appointed by the Reich Protector. Following a decree of the Ministry of Industry from March 7, 1946, THONET became a national enterprise and in 1953 it was renamed as TON (the abbreviation standing for Továrna Ohýbaného Nábytku – bent furniture factory). After the transformation of the political situation in the Czech Republic in 1989, the organisational structure was changed and the company became a state enterprise. Since 1994, TON has been a joint stock company.
