Formed by the 1997 merger of Cotter & Company (which supplied the True Value chain) and ServiStar Coast to Coast, the retailer-owned hardware cooperative serves more than 5,000 retail outlets in some 55 countries. Stores offer home improvement and garden supplies, as well as appliances, housewares, sporting goods, and toys. In addition to the flagship True Value banner, members operate under the names of Taylor Rental, Grand Rental Station, Home & Garden Showplace, and Induserve Supply, among others. True Value also manufactures its own brand of paints. To survive against home improvement giants such as The Home Depot and Lowe's, True Value (formerly TruServ) is relying on the true value of service.

Founded in 1939 by brothers Roger and Bill Slakey, the company became employee-owned in 1990. Slakey Brothers distributes heating, ventilation, air-conditioning, and plumbing products through about 30 locations in California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, as well as online. The company also operates three retail plumbing showrooms and three distribution centers. Its fleet of about 100 trucks delivers most of its orders within a 200-mile radius. Slakey Brothers offers brands such as 3M, BrassCraft, Honeywell, Kohler, and Nutone to contractors, the government, industrial users, and retailers. Subsidiary The Plumbery is a kitchen and bath retailer with three showrooms.

Hannaford Bros. may have started as a fruit and vegetable stand in 1883, but it has expanded from its Maine roots to become an upscale grocer with more than 170 stores under the Hannaford Supermarkets banner throughout Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, upstate New York, and Vermont. Still, produce continues to be a major focus at the Hannaford supermarkets, as are expansive meat selections and natural food products. More than 75% of the Hannaford stores are combination grocery stores and pharmacies. The stores average about 48,500 sq. ft. Maine's largest supermarket chain, Hannaford Bros. is owned by Delhaize America (parent of Food Lion), which in turn is owned by Belgium's Delhaize Group.

Founded in 2000, the fast-growing online retailer attracts more than 5.3 unique visitors each month. Co-founder and CEO Nick Robertson owns about 14% of the company's shares. ASOS aims to become the leader in the UK online fashion world ASAP. The UK-based company is a leading online apparel retailer specializing in discount celebrity-style fashions. ASOS (which stands for "as seen on screen") serves mostly Web-savvy, fashionable 16- to 34-year-old men and women (the company claims to sell clothes in the style of superstars Sienna Miller and Victoria Beckham). It sells T-shirts, denim, dresses, footwear, lingerie, swimwear, sunglasses, purses, personal care products, and jewelry through its retail Web site.

Anaheim Patio & Fireside is a casual furniture retailer with three store locations in the state of California selling outdoor furniture (aluminum, wicker, wood), barbeque grills and accessories (briquettes, brushes), hearth products (gas logs, ranges, stoves), and related patio accessories (chair covers, chairs and rockers, swings). The company also offers related services such as installation of outdoor fire places and barbecue grills, as well as repair of patio items. General manager Bonnie Richins is the daughter of Anaheim Patio's founders.

The business was spun off by Limited Brands in 1999 and changed its name to Tween Brands from Too, Inc. in 2006. Dress Barn bought Tween Brands to extend its retail reach to young girls. Justice serves up apparel and accessories to girls ages 7 to 14 from some 890 stores throughout the US and Puerto Rico. A division of The Dress Barn, which bought the chain when it purchased Tween Brands in 2009, Justice stores sell value-priced apparel, shoes, accessories, cosmetics, toys, and even electronics and furnishings to trendy "tweens." Outside the US, the chain has about 35 franchised locations in the Middle East and Europe. It also sells via its website and through "catazines" (catalogs with editorial content).

Horizon doesn't worry about the rain clouds. The company, operating through about 60 locations in 11 mostly western US states, offers products for landscapers and other professionals in the landscaping industry. The company markets fertilizer, landscape lighting, turf and irrigation equipment, and other related products including mowers, pruners, blowers, and chainsaws. It specializes in helping golf course groundskeepers keep the greens green and the roughs soft with products like Rain Bird Golf nozzles and rotors, Seed Research forage and grass seeds, and Lasco Fittings swing joints. Pool supply company Pool Corporation (formerly SCP Pool) owns Horizon.

Mingledorff's, Inc., is a wholesale distributor specializing in equipment and parts for heating, ventilating and air conditioning. It is a total support organization dedicated to meeting the overall needs of the HVAC industry. The company has been a distributor of Carrier equipment for over 60 years. It began as a contracting firm that designed and installed air conditioning systems. It became a strictly wholesale distributorship in 1958, when Carrier realized the need for an extended network of dealers and contractors to handle Georgia's rapidly expanding economy and population. Mingledorff's, Inc., was asked by Carrier to help develop this customer base. At that time the company relocated from Savannah to Atlanta so it could better serve its distribution area. Mingledorff's, Inc. is now a major distributor for Carrier, Bryant, Payne, and over 150 other manufacturers of heating and air conditioning equipment and accessories with a sales territory covering most of GeorgiaThroughout our 17 locations in Georgia, we carry in inventory around 120,000 items. The company has roughly 4,000 retail customers. Of those, 1,000 are very active accounts, and the rest are occasional customers who maintain a charge account with us. Our services to customers include: equipment sales, sales assistance, advertising and sales promotion programs, engineering aid, product and service training, business management assistance, technical assistance and parts supply. Because the HVAC industry is constantly evolving with more technologically advanced equipment, it's crucial for Mingledorff's to assist our staff and customers in keeping pace by offering excellent, on-going training. Credit for the success and growth of the company can be given to the support and training received from Carrier and other vendors, a well-trained staff with knowledge of new technology, new equipment and new parts, and a solid base of good, knowledgeable customers. In order to provide fast and efficient order processing and management information, in 1998, the company made the substantial investments required for the latest in modern computer systems specifically designed for distributorships. All locations are networked on a computer system that can be accessed from all sales and parts locations. Customers can place orders with our staff, or be quickly provided information on order status, product availability, pricing, etc. Engineering support plays a vital role in the application of much of the highly specialized equipment the company distributes. A completely staffed engineering department assists customers in every phase of equipment application, and in the design of controls and energy saving programs.

Bossini wants to be the boss of Asian apparel retailers. Bossini International Holdings Limited company manages a brand of casual fashion wear and accessories in the Asia/Pacific region; its core markets are Hong Kong, China, Taiwan, Singapore, and Malaysia. Products include clothing for women, men, and kids. Bossini operates more than 1,000 directly owned and franchised outlets in some 30 countries. It opened its first exclusive store in Hong Kong in 1987. Bossini International Holdings Limited company is now one of the largest retail fashion chains in the region. Through business partners, Bossini has exported franchised outlets across Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Central America.

BIM wants to make grocery shopping as easy as bim, bam, boom. With more than 2,700 stores, the company is Turkey's largest supermarket chain.Known as "the Turkish ALDI,"BIM operates a similar warehouse-style discount store model and only offers about 600 products per store, mostly under its private-label brands Dost St,Homemaxx,and Yuva.BIM stores also offer toys, housewares, and home appliances.Stores range in size from 2,000 to 6,000 sq. ft.,and the company also operates its own trucking and logistics service to cut costs.BIM was founded in 1995.Together, Chairman Mustafa Latif Topbas and Saudi Arabian industrialist Abdulrahman El Khereiji own more than 30% of the company

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