Among the optimistic Americans who migrated westward in the late 1800's was A.C. Houston, who founded A.C. Houston Lumber in 1884. The pioneers of the time had set out to build new lives, and Houston established the company that would provide building materials to do so. The first A.C. Houston Lumber yards opened in the small Kansas towns of Eureka and Hamilton. More than one hundred twenty-five years later, A.C. Houston Lumber yards can be found in three western states of California, Idaho, and Nevada with the corporate headquarters being located in North Las Vegas. The corporate headquarters was located in Kansas until 1998, when it relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada.Much has changed since 1884, but the business philosophy of A.C. Houston has been passed down unchanged to third-generation family member, Robert A. Houston, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. "Our goal is to sell products of quality and strength, give the customer their money's worth, and to treat each customer the way we, ourselves, would want to be treated," Houston says. A.C. Houston Primarily a volume supplier of lumber and building materials to the professional contractor, A.C. Houston Lumber operates retail centers offering products that supplement the construction trade. We fabricate roof and floor trusses at our manufacturing plants using computerized, state-of-the-art equipment in addition to providing engineering assistance and truss design. We encourage you to stop by one of our locations and chat with our staff. They are eager to assist you with all of your building material needs.

Pier 1 Imports, Inc. operates as an importer and specialty retailer of imported decorative home furnishings and gifts in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates retail stores under the name of ‘Pier 1 Imports’. These stores offer various furniture, decorative home furnishings, dining and kitchen goods, bath and bedding accessories, candles, gifts, housewares, seasonal assortments, and other specialty items for the home. The company’s decorative accessories include decorative wood accents, lamps, vases, dried and artificial flowers, baskets, ceramics, dinnerware, bath and fragrance products, candles, bedding, and seasonal and gift items. Its furniture products comprise furniture and furniture cushions to be used in living, dining, office, kitchen and bedroom areas, sunrooms, and on patios, as well as consists of wall decorations and mirrors. As of August 28, 2010, the company operated 1,048 stores in the United States and Canada, as well as operated 36 locations in Mexico. Pier 1 Imports, Inc. was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.

FJ Benjamin additionally controls an expanding roster of upscale pubs and sports bars in Singapore and Indonesia. Guess? what? FJ Benjamin brings 20-plus upscale western brands to Southeast Asia and Australia. The company operates about 185 retail outlets and distributes fashion apparel in eight Asia Pacific cities. (The company began opening Gap stores in Singapore and Malaysia in 2006.) With brands like Guess?, Valentino, Gap, La Senza, and house label RAOUL, FJ Benjamin derives two-thirds its turnover from the retailing and distribution of fashion products. The balance of its business lies in the distribution of timepieces, with Guess?, Girard-Perregaux, Nautica, and Marc Ecko boosting sales.

Kesko also operates about 870 other retail outlets from department stores and home and specialty shops (shoes and sporting goods), to stores selling hardware, builders' supplies, agriculture goods, and machinery. Kesko also is a wholesaler and imports vehicles made by Volkswagen and Audi through its VV-Auto division. You name it, Kesko sells it. The Finnish firm is big in importing, distributing, and wholesaling in its homeland and in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden, and now Russia and Belarus. Its largest division, Kesko Food (about 45% of sales) includes more than 1,000 of its own "K" food stores (operating in a variety of formats mostly in Finland and in the Baltic countries).

Stage Stores, Inc. operates as a specialty department store retailer in the United States. It offers brand name and private label apparel, accessories, cosmetics, and footwear, as well as sportswear, dresses, intimates, home and gift products, outerwear, swimwear, and other products for women, men, and children. It primarily focuses on consumers in small and mid-sized markets. As of January 30, 2010, the company operated 758 stores in 39 states under the names of Bealls, Goody’s, Palais Royal, Peebles, and Stage. Stage Stores, Inc. was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

The Jean Coutu Group (PJC) is one of Canada's leading drugstore chains with more than 375 franchised outlets in New Brunswick, Ontario, and Quebec under the PJC Jean Coutu, PJC Clinique, PJC Sante, and PJC Sante Beaute banners. The company dominates the Quebec market but trails rivals Shoppers Drug Mart and Katz Group in overall store count. Its Pro-Doc subsidiary (acquired in 2007) makes generic drugs. In mid-2007 the company sold its troubled US arm, the Brooks Eckerd chain of more than 1,850 drugstores, to Rite Aid in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $4 billion. The sale made PJC Rite Aid's largest shareholder with about 28% of the firm's shares.

Sapp Bros Travel Centers (formerly Sapp Bros Truck Stops) has the usual air, gas, food, but also offers human conveniences such such as laundry rooms, mailbox rentals, private showers, and TV lounges. The company operates a chain of some 15 truck stops -- readily identifiable by the giant red-and-white coffeepot logo -- along interstate highways from Utah to Pennsylvania; with a concentration in Nebraska. Half of the locations also operate service centers, offering oil changes, new tires, and safety checks. Its sister company, Sapp Bros Petroleum, distributes petroleum products in Nebraska and western Iowa. The firm is run by CEO Bill Sapp, one of the four founding Sapp brothers.

Fieldens is an independent tyre and wheel supplier and Honda Power Equipment Dealer based on the outskirts of Stowmarket, Suffolk. With a team of thirty we have built a solid, international reputation as the supplier of specialist tyres and wheels right across agriculture, industry and civil engineering, amenity and quarrying industries.At Fieldens we have tyre specialists with experience across every area of operation. We maintain excellent relationships with tyre and wheel manufacturers of all types from around the world; major brands with an extensive line-up of products for most uses, budget brands with a more limited offering and specialist manufacturers with industry specific ranges. Our warehouse holds stocks ranging from 42” flotation and 54” rowcrop tyres, tyres for ATVs to ride-on garden tractors all the way down to 8” wheelbarrow!

A.S. Watson (ASW) is the retail and manufacturing arm of the Hong Kong conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa. Like its powerful parent company, ASW is a giant in its industries, with operations in some 35 markets throughout Asia and Europe. Its businesses include supermarkets (Park'N Shop), health and beauty stores (Watson's, Drogas, Trekpleister, and Kruidvat), Fortress consumer electronics and appliance stores in Hong Kong and Macau, soft drink and water bottling operations, and wine retailing (Watson's Wine Cellar). In all, ASW operates 20-plus retail chains with more than 8,700 stores including the UK's Superdrug and Savers chains. ASW also has a joint venture with German discount health and beauty chain Rossmann.

Founded in 1945, the company is owned by the family of president Steve Cook. Northeastern Supply keeps its little corner of the world cozy. Through about 30 locations in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia, the company distributes air conditioning, heating, plumbing, ventilation, and water system equipment along with fixtures and hardware to contractors and other building professionals. Major suppliers include American Standard, Bradford White, Delta, Elkay, Jacuzzi, and Moen. Northeastern also offers online credit applications, electronic funds transfers, and e-mail invoicing to its customers.

Inviting Real Estate Agents, Job Placements Agents, Educational Institutes, Software Service Providers, Real Estate Builders, Marriage Bureaus, Travel Agents, Restaurant Owners, Health & Fitness Centers and other Local Businesses to Post a FREE Classified Advertisement on Cootera.com Classifieds Website.