Baltona
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Baltona (full: Baltona Foreign Trade Company Spółka Akcyjna, former Baltona - zaopatrywanie statków) was an enterprise created in 1946 in Poland. Nationalized and subordinated to Polish communist Ministry of Foreign Trade in 1950, it was tasked with resupplying Polish ships, planes, diplomatic posts, airports, seaports, border crossings, and even scientific expeditions. The company grew and became a large export-import company during the 1970s and 1980s. During the time of People's Republic of Poland it was one of the few companies offering Western goods to Polish consumers for foreign (hard) currency. At the height of its popularity during the mid-1980s Baltona operated nearly 250 stores and had over 2,000 employees. In 1984 it was transformed into a joint stock company (Polish: spółka akcyjna or S.A.).