No products in the cart.
As the owner of Lock in SUITE, I would like to share, at the very beginning of the year, news that is exceptionally difficult to write. On 20 December 2025, after a short illness, Karel Kadlec—founder and owner of CarTec Group—passed away. He did not live to see his 66th birthday.
For us at Lock in SUITE, this is not merely a piece of business news. It is a personal loss. We will miss Karel—his quiet strength, uncompromising standards of quality, natural humanity, and his rare ability to see potential before others were able to recognize it.
At Lock in SUITE, we remember him with gratitude. We thank him for believing in us, for being part of our magazine, and for supporting a world in which luxury is measured not only by a brand name, but also by attitude.
Karel Kadlec began his career in finance. In 2003, he founded CarTec in Ostrava as an authorized BMW dealership. Over more than two decades, he transformed what started as a family business into one of the most prominent automotive groups in the Czech Republic.
Today, CarTec Group operates branches in Ostrava, Liberec, Prague, Olomouc, and Brno, and is cited as the largest BMW and MINI dealer in the Czech Republic. His work carried a clear signature: long-term vision, discipline, attention to detail—and, at the same time, a natural respect for people.
Karel Kadlec had a deep understanding of what true luxury means: not only the product, but the entire experience, a culture of service, and trust.
In 2016, CarTec Group opened the official Rolls-Royce Motor Cars representation in Prague. In September 2024, the group expanded its portfolio with the official representation of Aston Martin. In doing so, he helped define what ultra-luxury mobility can look like in our country—delivered with a level of professionalism clients expect in London, Paris, or Dubai.
His entrepreneurial credo was: “The difference is in the approach.” And it was not a slogan. In practice, it meant a family spirit within the company, the highest level of customer care, and a culture built on people.
When he received the EY Entrepreneur of the Year award for the Moravian-Silesian Region in 2021, he emphasized that success was not only about him, but about the team bringing his vision to life. That is characteristic of leaders who build great things without needing to be the loudest voice in the room.
For Lock in SUITE, Karel Kadlec represented modern Czech entrepreneurship—unafraid of global standards, yet always human. His support meant more to us than a partnership. It was trust—the kind that gives you the energy to do things honestly and to a high standard.
Our thoughts are with his family and the entire CarTec Group team. According to the company’s statement, he passed away surrounded by his closest family—his children Karin, Karolína, and Karel. The company’s leadership is being taken over by his daughter, Karin Kadlecová.
We will miss Karel Kadlec. And yet he remains present in what he leaves behind: in the company he built, in the people he inspired, and in the values he proved—every single day.
Thank you.
Jitka Klementová