he regional grocery chain also operates about a half a dozen larger Smith's Marketplace stores (154,000 sq. ft. on average) in Utah that combine full-service grocery, pharmacy, and general merchandise departments. Smith's joined the Kroger family when Kroger, the 1 US grocer, bought its parent, Fred Meyer, in 1999.From a small grocery store founded by Ren Smith in Brigham City, Utah, Smith's Food & Drug Centers has grown into a regional powerhouse with supermarkets in Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah, and four other western states. Most of its 130-plus stores are conventional supermarkets with in-store pharmacy departments and many offering bakeries, one-hour photo labs, and other services.

Brookshire's stores average about 40,000 sq. ft., while its warehouse-style Super 1 Foods stores average 80,000 sq. ft. More than 110 of Brookshire Grocery's stores have pharmacy departments. Originally part of the Brookshire Brothers grocery chain (dating back to 1921), the company split from it in 1939. By selling staples, specialties, and Southern hospitality, Brookshire Grocery Co. has grown into a chain of about 155 Brookshire's, Super 1 Food, Olé Foods, and ALPS supermarkets in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. The company also owns three distribution centers, a dairy, and BGC Manufacturing, its private label manufacturing unit.

Through its eponymous print catalog and e-commerce site, Dr. Leonard's Healthcare Corp. offers a variety of health products aimed at seniors, along with clothing, collectibles, exercise equipment, home furnishings, housewares, and shoes. It also runs Carol Wright Gifts, an affiliated catalog and online retailer that sells similar merchandise as well as kitchen gadgets, travel items, gardening supplies, and holiday gifts. The company was established in 1979 by Dr. Leonard Feldman, and it operates as a subsidiary of direct marketing giant AmeriMark Holdings.

Boyles Distinctive Furniture sells home furnishings through five locations, including a clearance outlet, in North Carolina and online. Customers can buy traditional wood, leather, and upholstered pieces from manufacturers such as Bernhardt, Hooker Furniture, Maitland-Smith, and Ralph Lauren. The company offers interior design support and nationwide delivery service. Internet shoppers can chat with store reps and get a quote via the retailer's Web site. Boyles' showrooms are distinctive as well, ranging from glass-fronted modern stores to shaker-style buildings. Founded in 1949, the company is part of the Hendricks Furniture Group, which filed for Chapter 11 in 2009.

PCC (stands for Puget Consumers Co-op) today is the largest consumer-owned natural food cooperative in the US, with about 40,000 members. Lifetime membership in the regional cooperative costs $60.PCC Natural Markets operates about 10 organic and natural food stores in Washington. More than 90% of the produce sold by the coop is certified organic, according to USDA rules. It also offers cooking classes featuring guest chefs, natural foods, exotic dishes, and lessons for children. PCC Natural Markets watches out for its customers' health, removing all products from its shelves that contain trans-fats and the like.

Connor Co. was founded as Kinsey & Mahler, a brass valve manufacturer, in 1850. It became Connor Co. in 1936. Goldilocks would like Connor Co. If it's too hot or too cold, the heating and A/C company can make it just right. Through about 20 locations in Illinois and one in St. Louis, the company distributes heating and air conditioning equipment along with boilers, fittings, furnaces, pipes, pumps, valves, wells, and other industrial equipment. Connor company also conducts its business online. Connor Co. boasts sheet metal fabrication and valve automation facilities and peddles Kohler products within its showrooms in many locations.

Calloway’s Nursery is an independent Texas-based garden center founded by local nurserymen, Jim Estill, John Cosby, and John Peters. Calloway’s operates 17 stores in the Dallas and Fort Worth market and two stores in the Houston market. More than half of the company’s employees are Texas Certified Nursery Professionals.Calloway’s opened its first store in the spring of 1987 in Richardson, Texas and by the end of that spring had opened three more stores in the Dallas area. Calloway’s continued to grow rapidly expanding into the Fort Worth market and entering the Houston market through an acquisition. In 1999, Calloway’s acquired Houston-based Cornelius Nursery.

America’s Body Company (ABC) was founded in 1976 as Great Lakes Truck Equipment a truck equipment distributor in Cleveland, OH. Since that time, ABC has grown to 14 locations nationwide with installation and service facilities located in Columbus, OH / Cleveland, OH / Louisville, KY / Tampa, FL / Clinton, MD / Portland, OR / LaGrange, TX / Pontiac, MI / Denver, PA / Bowmansville, PA / Reading, PA / Abington, PA / Seneca, PA / Suffolk, VA.ABC has all major OEM chassis pools available at all locations and General Motors and Ford ship-thru capability.ABC manufactures dry-freight van bodies and Citi Van cutaway van bodies. In addition, ABC distributes Pinnacle service bodies, Rugged American platform and stake bodies, Marauder dump bodies and snow plows.,/ ABC is an industry leader when it comes to developing new and innovative products and is broadly recognized as a national leader in “Green” technology utilizing weight-saving, fuel-saving composites and aluminum in various product lines. The Rugged American Platform, Landscaper and SMART Rack and the Pinnacle Aluminum Service Bodies and Service Van improve fuel efficiency up to 12%* and are inherently corrosions-resistant providing longer life.ABC has the one of the largest direct sales force in the industry, with more than 20 knowledgeable and experienced outside sales representatives nationwide. ABC sales representatives work closely with OEM dealers, fleets and end users to cultivate business in each local area. ABC, owned by The Reading Group, LLC, a Reading, PA-based leader in truck equipment founded in 1955 as Reading Body Works, is backed by one of the strongest engineering and research and development teams in the truck equipment industry.

Founded in 1943, BMD employee owned. California's many immigrants might feel a bit more at home thanks to BMD Building Materials Distributors. The company imports building materials from around the world and distributes them to lumberyards, building material dealers, home improvement chains, and window and door specialty retailers, primarily in California, Colorado, and other western states. It also exports building materials throughout the world. Products include cabinets, construction tools, countertops, housewrap and insulation, millwork, roofing, siding, and stairs. BMD offers inventory management, logistics, and warehousing services and operates a dozen distribution centers in the US and western Canada.

Milaeger's was founded in 1960 by Dan and Joan Milaeger. Milaeger's has the difficult task of keeping things green on the banks of Lake Michigan. The company operates two nurseries in Racine and Sturtevant, Wisconsin, selling seeds, soil, plants, mulch, as well as apparel, Christmas collectibles, figurines, folk art, outdoor furniture, and home decor. It also offers landscape services including lawn, tree, and shrub care along with design services. Milaeger's regularly hosts shows by collectibles merchants, local fashion shows, and gardening workshops. The company's Java Garden Cafe, onsite at both locations, offers hot and cold beverages, dessert, and light lunch and dinner items.

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