Amy's outlandish ice-cream scoopers (staff members sport unusual piercings or funky hats and are encouraged to put on a show) dish out ice cream from a rotating list of some 300 flavors, including Guinness and Shiner Bock (that's right, beer). Smoothies, malts, shakes, and other treats are all made from the rich butterfat ice cream. Amy's Ice Creams, Inc. operates more than a dozen stores in Austin, Houston, and San Antonio. Amy's also caters and has wholesale operations. Its ice cream is available at dozens of Austin and Houston eateries. Owner and CEO Amy Simmons founded Amy's Ice Creams in 1984.

Minnesota Timberwolves Basketball owns and operates the Minnesota Timberwolves professional basketball franchise, which joined the National Basketball Association as an expansion franchise in 1989. Playing host at the Target Center in Minneapolis, the Wolves have yet to claim an NBA Finals appearance. Local businessmen Harvey Ratner and Marv Wolfenson were first awarded the franchise; Glen Taylor, chairman of printing giant Taylor Corporation, led a group of investors who bought the team in 1995.

Surely the Clapham House Group has something to satisfy your taste! The company operates more than 65 restaurants in the UK under such brands as The Bombay Bicycle Club, Gourmet Burger Kitchen, and The Real Greek. Its Bombay Bicycle Club, an Indian restaurant chain, offers sit-down, take-away, and home-delivery services from three restaurants and nine delivery kitchens in London. Gourmet Burger Kitchens offer a variety of sandwich options, while Real Greek features Mediterranean food and wines.

On March 27, 1985, attorneys Rick Rosenfield and Larry Flax traded in the courtroom for the dining room. Having always wanted to get into the restaurant business, they pitched their legal pads to serve hearth-baked pizzas. They introduced flavors and tastes from around the world, from Thai to Jamaican Jerk...all on a pizza. All of our innovative pizzas are creatively designed on a delicious crust, and hearth-baked to perfection. Also served are creative salads, made-to-order pastas, soups, sandwiches, appetizers and desserts.

China Lodging Group has a group of, you guessed it, hotels. The company operates about 235 economy-priced hotels in 40 cities, mostly in China's east coast region. It has another 140 in development, which would put the ratio of leased-and-operated to managed-under-franchise about even, though the company makes most of its revenue from the former category. China Lodging's banners include HanTing Express and HanTing Seasons, both business hotels, and HanTing Hi Inn, a budget hotel. The company locates its hotels in the country's more industrial and tourist-oriented cities. China Lodging began operations in 2005 and filed to go public in 2010. Pre-IPO, CEO Qi Ji owns about 62%.

The Celtic Football Club is one of 17 teams that compete in the Scottish Premier League. The Celtics beat city adversaries Glasgow Rangers in 1888 to initiate one of the longest and most storied rivalries in world sport. The team won the Scottish Cup in 2006-2007. Celtic gains most of its revenues from activities related to the football club itself with merchandising income also contributing to the total revenue. Yearly participation in European competition is a large factor in revenues added each year to football (soccer) operations. The team plays at the 60,000-capacity Celtic Park, which is the largest football stadium in Scotland. Celtic's uniform is sponsored by Carling beer and supplied by Nike.

The Denver Nuggets professional basketball franchise was formed by trucking magnate J. W. "Bill" Ringsby in 1967 as the Denver Rockets (renamed in 1974), a charter member of the American Basketball Association. Since joining the National Basketball Association in 1976, the team has had little postseason success, although the signing of star forward Carmelo Anthony in 2004 has helped spur fan interest, giving a boost to attendance at the team's Pepsi Center arena. St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke will relinquish ownership to his son Josh Kroenke in 2010.

The Rams Football Company owns and operates the St. Louis Rams professional football team, which boasts three National Football League championships, its last coming in 2000. The franchise started as the Cleveland Rams in 1936 and moved to Los Angeles in 1946. The team moved to St. Louis in 1995 where it hosts home games at the Edward Jones Dome. Former minority owner Stan Kroenke is now the majority owner of the Rams after purchasing the Rosenbloom family's stake for about $750 million in 2010.

Starbucks Corporation engages in the purchase, roasting, and sale of whole bean coffees worldwide. It offers brewed coffees, Italian-style espresso beverages, cold blended beverages, various complementary food items, and a selection of premium teas, as well as beverage-related accessories and equipment, through its retail stores. Starbucks Corp. also licenses its trademark through other channels, such as licensed retail stores, as well as through certain of its licensees and equity investees. In addition, Starbucks Corporation produces and sells ready-to-drink beverages, which include bottled beverages, espresso drinks, chilled cup coffees, and ice creams.

New Jersey Basketball owns and operates the New Jersey Nets professional basketball team, a storied franchise of the National Basketball Association. Organized by Arthur Brown in 1967 as the New Jersey Americans of the American Basketball Association, the team won two ABA titles as the New York Nets with the help of Julius "Dr. J" Erving. It returned to the Garden State and joined the NBA in 1976. The team has yet to claim an NBA title. The Nets play host at The IZOD Center at the Meadowlands in New Jersey. Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov purchased control of the Nets from New York real estate developer Bruce Ratner in 2010.

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