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Five new Czech firms declared their intentions to set up shop in Georgia this week as Czech Transport Minister Martin Kupka completed a whirlwind tour of Atlanta Monday.
Two of the new entrants are motor and electrical component suppliers in Hall County that are setting up distribution facilities within the existing footprint of Albaform, the automotive seat frame manufacturer run by Monika Vintrlikova, the Czech honorary consul in Georgia.
The other three firms, which operate at the intersection of manufacturing and technology, became the first to partake in a new Czech Business Incubator in Peachtree Corners that is co-located with the honorary consulate’s offices at Atlanta Tech Park.
Sopo U.S. Inc. and Silent U.S. Inc. were praised by Mr. Kupka during an early-morning ribbon-cutting as exemplifying the Czech focus on solutions for the future of mobility.
“I am happy to support entrepreneurs and researchers on their path to establish meaningful and long-term collaboration and lead their business and development activities on the U.S. market,” Mr. Kupka said.
Sopo, established near Prague in 1992, makes coils, stators and rotors for electric motors. The company has 300 employees globally with $30 million in annual revenue; it plans to put $2.3 million into a new Georgia facility and create 25 jobs.
Silent, meanwhile, is makes insulating parts and components for the electrical industry, employing 60 people back in the Czech Republic with revenues of $12 million per year.
Ms. Vintrlikova, who set up her family-owned company’s U.S. operation in Flowery Branch more than a decade ago, is looking to help her compatriots avoid the pitfalls she was forced to overcome when setting up shop locally.
“Georgia has it all when it comes to location and economic power, but it also has an available and educated workforce with reasonable entry costs. I sincerely believe that Georgia is the right place for companies from the Czech Republic to begin their U.S. ventures,” Ms. Vintrlikova said in a March 24 news release. “There are many synergies and similarities between Georgia and the Czech Republic, so Czech companies feel comfortable here. In the last five years, the presence of Czech direct investment increased from two companies to six – and I believe that more are on the way.”
Tim Evans, president and CEO of the Greater Hall Chamber of Commerce, said Albaform’s success has paved the way for these new firms.
“The investment and technology from these Czech businesses is a testament to the highly skilled workforce these companies have found and the welcoming environment for top management and their families,” Mr. Evans said in the release.
Ms. Vintrlikova has learned from past experience that providing Czech companies with warehouse space is not enough — they must invest in their sales operations, taking strides to better understand the process for tailoring their products to the U.S. market. With that in view, Albaform has taken an investment stake in the American branches of Sopo and Silent.
Atlanta Cylinders, a subsidiary of Cylinders Holding in Ostrava, was the first Czech company to take Ms. Vintrlikova up on the use of warehouse space in 2023. It is exiting that arrangement in May, though it will still retain a presence in the U.S.
Sopo was among the companies present in Atlanta in mid-March for the opening of the Czech Business Incubator.
Libor Zelenka, founder of Silent-Czech, said that while the company’s core business remains in Europe, it is increasingly serving global customers looking to localize and “manufacture ‘in the region for the region.’”
The U.S. has floated tariffs on foreign-made cars, and uncertainty around trade policy has many international suppliers eyeing domestic operations.
On the tech front, Edima Solutions is setting up shop in the Czech incubator to target U.S. customers for its AI-powered platform for industrial maintenance, Edmund.AI. CzechMath, meanwhile, has a team of 19 mathematicians who help companies get a handle on their data, optimizing processes by finding hidden problems and opportunities. Eprin, a third company, is a systems integrator that helps drive automation in factories by integrating robotics, printers and other tech hardware.
Learn more about the Czech Business Incubator here, find out more on Sopo and Silent, or visit the honorary consulate at www.czechconsulate.com.
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