For right or wrong reasons, Bata India Limited (Bata) always made the headlines in the financial dailies and business magazines during the late 1990s. The company was headed by the 60 year old managing director William Keith Weston (Weston). He was popularly known as a ‘turnaround specialist’ and had successfully turned around many sick companies within the Bata Shoe Organization (BSO) group. By the end of financial year 1999, Bata managed to report rising profits for four consecutive years after incurring its first ever loss of Rs 420 million in 1995. However, by the third quarter ended September 30, 2000, Weston was a worried man. Click here to read more…
