Martin McColl is among the leading operators of newsstands and convenience stores in Great Britain. The company has more than 900 newsstands, 300 convenience stores, and 100 high street shops in England, Scotland and Wales. Its newsstands operate under the Martin's banner while its convenience stores operate under the McColl's banner. About 400 stores have post offices, making it the UK's leading owner of regional substations. Martin McColl, originally named TM Retail, was formed in 1998. Following a management-led buyout in 2005, the company changed its name and its business strategy. Its executive team owns about 80% of the company.

O'Connell Oil operates about 30 Convenience Plus convenience stores and a half a dozen gas stations throughout western Massachusetts, serving customers with Citgo, Mobil, and Shell brand gasoline. Three O'Connell's Heating Oil & Service locations provide heating oil and air conditioner repair services. The company also runs plumbing and industrial lubricant divisions. Namesake Ralph M. O'Connell founded the company in 1925.

O'Connell Oil operates about 30 Convenience Plus convenience stores and a half a dozen gas stations throughout western Massachusetts, serving customers with Citgo, Mobil, and Shell brand gasoline. Three O'Connell's Heating Oil & Service locations provide heating oil and air conditioner repair services. The company also runs plumbing and industrial lubricant divisions. Namesake Ralph M. O'Connell founded the company in 1925.

Old Time Pottery a chain of about 30 stores in about 10 states in the South and Midwest selling discounted closeout and overstock housewares, silk flowers, framed art, linens, rugs, craft supplies, seasonal merchandise, and more. The company gets its inventory, which it displays in a warehouse-type setting, from the canceled orders and excess stock of manufacturers. And it needs lots of inventory, as stores average about 2 acres in size. Founded in 1986, Old Time Pottery is controlled by the Peterson family. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in August 2009 and exited it in August 2010.

Pamida Stores Operating Co. offers more small-town values than a bandwagon of Republicans on the campaign trail. The rural retailer operates 200-plus Pamida general merchandise discount stores in about 15 states, mostly in the Midwest. The stores are located in small towns (5,500 people, on average), most of which are not served by mass merchandisers, such as Wal-Mart. Pamida's stores sell brand-name and private-label apparel, jewelry, health and beauty aids, housewares, electronics, and lawn and garden supplies. Most stores also sell groceries and two-thirds have in-store pharmacies. Formerly a division of ShopKo Stores, Pamida and ShopKo are portfolio companies of private equity firm Sun Capital Partners.

Pilot offers a salve to those suffering from white-line fever. Its Pilot Travel Centers LLC, a joint venture between Pilot and CVC Capital Partners, runs more than 300 truck stops in some 40 states. Each features restaurant chains such as Subway, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell. Pilot has fuel islands large enough to service several 18-wheelers at a time and private showers. Pilot Truck Care Centers provide TLC for big rigs. The firm also owns and operates about 45 convenience stores under the Pilot Food Mart banner in Tennessee. James Haslam II got Pilot off the ground in 1958 as a gas station that sold cigarettes and soft drinks; now his son, CEO James Haslam III, pilots the firm. The Haslam family owns the company.

PITCO Foods, formed by the merger of Pacific Groservice and Pittsburg Wholesale Grocers, operates four membership warehouse stores in San Francisco, Sacramento, San Jose, and Oakland, California under the PITCO banner. The outlets, which are not open to the general public, stock more than 9,000 items and cater to some 10,000 independently-owned retailers and food service operators throughout the Central Valley and Northern California. Customers include supermarkets and convenience stores, drug stores, vending operations, restaurants, and caterers. In addition to various food items, the wholesaler stocks tobacco, janitorial supplies, housewares, health and beauty aids, and auto supplies.

Plaid Pantries operates more than 100 convenience stores under the Plaid Pantry banner in Oregon and Washington. Many of the shops offer in-store Subway and Taco Bell outlets, as well as gas and automatic check-cashing machines. After years of selling its own brand of gas (Plaid-Plus), the regional convenience store chain has switched to offering branded gas (ConocoPhillips and Shell) at its stores that sell fuel. Plaid Pantries got its start in 1960 and got its name, courtesy of founder John Piacentini, from the red-and-white checkered design then featured in all of its locations.

Poundland wants its customers to care as much as it does about the value of British Sterling. Founded in 1990, Poundland is the UK's leading single-price retailer with 260-plus storefronts throughout Britain and plans to add 50 more in 2010/2011. Its typical 3,000 products offered range from drinks to household goods, with more large-size manufacturers coming on board each year. In 2002 then chief executive David Dodd led a management buy-out backed by venture capitalist Advent International.

PriceSmart is wise in the ways of members-only club retailing. The retailer runs more than 25 membership stores under the PriceSmart name in about a dozen countries and one US territory in Central America and the Caribbean. It sells low-cost food, pharmacy, and basic consumer items. In each store, nearly half of the merchandise comes from the US, and the other half is sourced locally. In-store services include auto/tire centers, banking, and photo developing. PriceSmart stores are typically smaller than wholesale clubs in the US, averaging about 50,000-75,000 sq. ft., and the membership fees average about $25. PriceSmart was founded in 1976 by father-and-son team Sol and Robert Price.

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