The decision to favor expansion in the United States instead of China or Russia partially explains his company’s move to Hall County,Jan Vintrlik, president of the Czech-owned ALBAform.inc, told Global Atlanta.

Also important was the strong friendship that had developed between his wife, Monika, and Kelly O’Donnell, an American from Dallas, when they were roommates in a study abroad program of the Largo, Fla.-based Schiller International University in the late 1990s.

Mrs. Vintrlikova’s father, Jan Maderic, is the CEO of ALBA-METAL, which manufactures metal components for the automotive industry and is the parent of ALBAform.inc

Located in the Moravia region in the southeast of the republic, ALBA-METAL started in the early 1990s as a cleaning company but by the middle of the decade focused on producing metal components for hospital beds and the automobile industry.

Among its early clients was a Czech manufacturer who was supplying products to theSkoda Auto manufacturer, a Czech firm that eventually became wholly owned by the Volkswagen Group.

Read More