United Dairy Farmers (UDF) changed the way Cincinnati bought its milk. UDF -- which buys milk from area dairy farmers, then processes and packages it for sale in its stores -- has grown into a chain of about 200 convenience stores, mostly in Ohio, but also in Kentucky and Indiana. The company, still owned and run by the Lindner family, sells its own milk products, its Homemade brand ice cream and sherbet, coffee, and a variety of other food products at its stores. UDF locations also offer in-store ice cream parlors and sell Mobil brand gasoline.

H&M opened its first women's clothing store in 1947 as Hennes (Swedish for "hers"); it later bought the hunting and men's clothing store Mauritz Widforss. H&M is controlled by the family of chairman Stefan Persson (the billionaire son of founder Erling Persson). H&M Hennes & Mauritz targets the Hip & Modish. The firm designs cheap yet chic clothing, mainly for men and women ages 18 to 45, children's apparel, and its own brands of cosmetics. Fast-growing H&M operates about 2,000 stores in some 35 countries and has direct sales operations in selected areas. Germany is H&M's #1 market, accounting for about 25% of sales. About 60% of its clothing is made in Asia, the rest is manufactured primarily in Europe.

Groeniger & Company was founded by the late William C. Groeniger, Jr., in the 1950s. Groeniger is almost perfectly fluid and one with the flow. The company distributes pipes and other equipment for wastewater (such as meter boxes, sluice gates, and storm-drain pipes), fire-protection (including fire hydrants, detector check valves, and sprinkler heads), waterworks (pressure fittings and water pipes, for instance), and irrigation (back-flow prevention devices and control valves among other items) through more than 15 locations across California. Groeniger offers such services as application engineering, jobsite storage, delivery, and forklift unloading.

Gate Petroleum company runs a chain of about 225 Gate Food Post stores in six Southeastern states, including Florida and the Carolinas, that sell gas and groceries and offer fleet management services. The firm is also a wholesale fuel distributor to customers throughout the Southeast. The company is also active in the real estate and construction materials businesses. In Florida Gate owns several private clubs, office buildings, and business parks. Subsidiary Gate Concrete has plants in about half a dozen states that make and sell concrete and building materials. CEO Herbert Peyton, who founded the company in 1960, owns the majority of Gate Petroleum.

JCPenney, one of America's leading retailers, operates over 1,100 department stores throughout the United States and Puerto Rico, as well as one of the largest apparel and home furnishing sites on the Internet, jcp.com. Serving more than half of America’s families each year, JCPenney offers a wide array of private, exclusive and national brands which reflect the Company’s vision to be America’s shopping destination for discovering great styles at compelling prices. Traded as “JCP” on the New York Stock Exchange, the $17.6 billion retailer is transforming its organization to support its Long Range Plan strategies to build a sustainable, profitable enterprise that serves its customers, engages it associates and rewards its shareholders.

Ritz Interactive was founded by Chairman David Ritz and CEO Fred Lerner in 1999. It's separate from Ritz Camera Centers, which filed for bankruptcy in 2009. Ritz Interactive is all over the Web. The company, a network of e-commerce Web sites, sells digital cameras and photographic products, as well as marine, boating, and fishing gear, through e-retailers, including RitzCamera.com, WolfCamera.com, and BoatersWorld.com. The company also owns and operates a handful of content-based community portals, such as Photography.com and BoatingOnly.com. Its Ritz Interactive Big Print Gallery allows users to upload digital images, view images posted by other community members, and rate photos or post commentary.

SOK is made up of about 35 independent regional cooperative societies that produce the group's services. Food and grocery account for half of SOK's overall business its market brands include ABC!, Alepa, Prisma, S Market, and Sale. The group was founded in 1904.Suomen Osuuskauppojen Keskuskunta (SOK Corporation) knows a thing or two (or 1,500) about retail. The Finnish group is active in grocery, combination convenience store/gas station, department store, specialty goods, hotel and restaurant, auto trade, and hardware services via 1,590 locations in its home country, throughout the Baltic nations, and Russia.

American Home operates three (down from a dozen in 2007) furniture and housewares stores in New Mexico under the American Home banner. Its products include mostly mid-priced (but some upscale) home furnishings (Kemp, Hillcraft, Natuzzi, DeCoro), lamps, bedding (Sealy, Simmons, Tempur-Pedic), rugs, dinnerware, related accessories, and gift registry and interior design services. Founded in 1936 as American Furniture Company by Emanuel Blaugrund, the company changed its name to American Home in 2000. The furniture retailer emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in March 2010 after closing most of its stores, including all of its locations in Arizona.

Bashas' is an Arizona-based, family-owned and -operated grocery chain known for made-from-scratch bakery items, a full-service butcher shop, fresh local produce and award-winning Chefs Entrees.Brothers Ike and Eddie Basha, Sr. opened the first Bashas' grocery store in 1932. Their mission: provide exceptional service, deliver their personal best, exceed customers' expectations and offer quality products at competitive prices.While much has changed over the years, our mission remains the same. We will always strive to grow and improve our business, but we will never forget who we are and where we came from.Arizona's our backyard, and we have a vested interest in the neighborhoods we serve.With more than 130 stores serving the state's 15 counties, we're proud to be your hometown grocer

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.

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