Tomáš Baťa established the organization in Zlín on August 24, 1894 with 800 Austrian gulden, some $320, inherited from his mother. His brother Antonín Baťa and sister Anna were partners in the startup firm T. & A. Bata Shoe Company. Though the organization was newly established, the family had a long history of shoemaking, spanning eight generations and over three hundred years. This heritage helped boost the popularity of his new firm very quickly. With the introduction of factory-style production and long distance retailing, Baťa modernized the shoe-making industry and the company surged ahead in production and profits right from its nascent years.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom%C3%A1%C5%A1_Ba%C5%A5a