Václav Klement (October 16, 1868,
Velvary
Velvary () is a town in Kladno District in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 3,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban m ...
– August 13, 1938,
Mladá Boleslav
Mladá Boleslav (; german: Jungbunzlau) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 42,000 inhabitants.
Mladá Boleslav is the second most populated city in the region and a major centre of the Czech automotive in ...
) was a
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
automotive pioneer, co-founder of
Laurin & Klement
Laurin & Klement was a Czech automobile, motorcycle and bicycle manufacturing company founded in 1895 in Mladá Boleslav, Kingdom of Bohemia by automotive pioneers Václav Laurin and Václav Klement. Car production commenced in 1905, and the com ...
, what is now
Škoda Auto
Škoda Auto a.s. (), often shortened to Škoda, is a Czech automobile manufacturer established in 1925 as the successor to Laurin & Klement and headquartered in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic. Škoda Works became state owned in 1948. After 199 ...
.
Early life
Klement had an unhappy childhood. His mother died when he was young, and he was raised by his stepmother. From the age of 14 he worked manual jobs, but was also a good student, and became an apprentice in a bookshop in the town of Slaný while finishing his secondary studies.
After some time working in Prague, Klement moved to
Mladá Boleslav
Mladá Boleslav (; german: Jungbunzlau) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 42,000 inhabitants.
Mladá Boleslav is the second most populated city in the region and a major centre of the Czech automotive in ...
, where he worked in another bookshop. When the owner of the bookshop died Klement bought it, but the business did not prosper and Klement had to sell the bookshop to pay off his debts.
Laurin & Klement
Together with
Václav Laurin
Václav Laurin (16 October 1865, Kamení near Pěnčín – 3 December 1930, Prague) was a Czech engineer, industrialist and automotive pioneer who, along with Václav Klement, founded automobile manufacturer Laurin & Klement that later became ...
, Klement started a business repairing bicycles, based on Klement's business acumen and Laurin's technical knowledge. In 1895, they founded the Laurin & Klement Company, producing their own bicycles, known as Slavia bicycles. In 1899 they went on to produce motorcycles, which were sold both domestically and on the international market, and used in sport competitions.
In 1902 Laurin & Klement motorcycles were successful in the Paris—Vienna race, the only motorcycles which were able to complete the 1430 km race without any breakdowns in 31 hours.
Soon the company stopped producing bicycles to focus on the production of motorcycles. By 1903 the company had around 200 employees and was producing around 2,000 motorcycles each year. In 1905 the company started making cars, and in 1907 it expanded, registered on the stock exchange, and stopped motorcycle production.
In 1925 the Laurin & Klement Company joined the Pilsner Škoda Concern and the name of the factory was changed to Laurin & Klement - Škoda, subsequently only Škoda.
See also
*
Laurin & Klement
Laurin & Klement was a Czech automobile, motorcycle and bicycle manufacturing company founded in 1895 in Mladá Boleslav, Kingdom of Bohemia by automotive pioneers Václav Laurin and Václav Klement. Car production commenced in 1905, and the com ...
References
External link
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Klement, Vaclav
20th-century Czech businesspeople
European founders of automobile manufacturers
Czech automotive pioneers
Škoda people
People from Kladno District
1868 births
1938 deaths
19th-century Czech businesspeople