Shlomo Zabludowicz

Shlomo Zabludowicz (1915-1994) was an Israeli arms manufacturer and industrialist.

Early Life

Zabludowicz was born into a rabbinical family in Lodz, Poland in 1915. His parents and seven sisters and brothers were killed in the Holocaust. After the liberation, he was sent to a rehabilitation camp in Sweden where he met his future wife, Pola. They moved to Israel in 1948, where they married, before returning to Scandinavia a short time later, settling in Tampere, Finland.

Soltam

In the early 1950s, Zabludowicz founded Soltam as a joint venture between the Israeli industrial conglomerate Sollel-Boneh and the Finnish arms manufacturer, Tampella. The Finnish connection enabled the company to trade in markets that were otherwise closed to the Israelis.

By 1958, Zabludowicz had persuaded the German Bundeswehr to buy Israeli-made weaponry, a deal which sparked controversy when it became known in Israel.

Zabludowicz sold mortars to Iran and formed close links to the Shah's regime before the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

By 1988, Zabludowicz had succeeded in persuading the US Department of Defence to equip itself with Israeli mortars.

In the 1980s, Zabludowicz diversified his interests from defence to include factories making saucepans and construction equipment in Scandinavia, and property in the US and Europe.

By 1989, Soltam was jointly owned by Zabludowicz and the Israeli conglomerate Koor, whose differences led to an agreement whereby Zabludowicz left Soltam and acquired ownership of the international marketing firm, Salgad.

Final Years

Zabludowicz died on 8 August 1994.

Afiliations

• Soltam
• Salgad

Connections

• Poju Zabludowicz - Son