Fred Meyer Stores went out for groceries and wound up in Kroger's cart. Freddy's -- as the chain is known -- is a supercenter pioneer providing food and general merchandise to cost-conscious consumers in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. One of the largest supercenter operators in the US (along with Wal-Mart and Costco Wholesale), Fred Meyer's more than 125 multidepartment stores (averaging 155,000 sq. ft.) offer everything from apparel and home goods to groceries, consumer electronics, fuel, and jewelry. Its Web store delivers to the Alaska Bush. Kroger has leveraged Fred Meyer's general merchandising expertise as defense against Wal-Mart, which has overtaken Kroger as the #1 seller of groceries in the US.

The company sells mattresses, bed bases, and other bedroom furnishings through a number of retail chains in Europe. The company operates some 960 stores located across Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, and Switzerland. Beter Bed's retail brands include Matrazen Concord, Beter Bed, DBC, El Gigante del Colchón, and Slaapgenoten/Dormaël Slaapkamers. Each chain maintains its own unique retail concept, from discount furnishings to high-end bedroom accoutrements. The company acquired Spanish retailer El Gigante Del Colchón in 2005.

Holland and Barrett is the UK's leading retailer of vitamins, minerals and herbal supplements. Our stores are a familiar sight in almost every major city and town across the U.K, with new outlets opening up all the time. Interest in natural food supplements has increased considerably over the last few years and Holland and Barrett has always had a commitment to its customers to provide high quality products at value for money prices.

Steinhoff UK Retail wants it customers to fill their homes with furniture with its help. Formerly named Homestyle Group until 2007, the company is one of Britain's largest furniture retailers. Its furniture division, Harveys Furnishing Group, operates about 170 Harveys: The Furniture Store shops throughout the UK. Its beds division operates Bensons Beds (the UK's largest bed retailer with 220 stores and 15,000 branded beds), Bed Shed (more than 50 stores primarily in Scotland), and Sleepmasters (with nearly 120 retail sites in the UK). Steinhoff Europe AG, a subsidiary of Steinhoff International Holdings (SIH), took the company private in 2007.

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.

Restoration Hardware sells upscale home furnishings, hardware, bathware, garden products, and decorative items through more than 100 retail and outlet stores in 30 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada. It also markets products through its catalogs and e-commerce sites. Restoration Hardware's assortment of home and office furniture is supplemented in part by its subsidiary The Michaels Furniture Company. Founded in 1980 by former chairman Stephen Gordon, Restoration Hardware was acquired for $175 million by private equity firms Catterton Partners and Tower Three Partners in 2008.

Victoria's Secret is not hush-hush, but it is unmentionable(s). The largest subsidiary of Limited Brands (based on sales) is also North America's #1 specialty retailer of women's intimate apparel, operating about 1,040 mostly mall-based Victoria's Secret and 250-plus La Senza lingerie stores throughout the US and Canada. Bras, panties, hosiery, swimwear, shoes, and more are sold under the Victoria's Secret brand and grouped in collections such as Dream Angels and Very Sexy. Many Victoria's Secret lingerie stores also sell beauty products. Its sister company Victoria's Secret Direct mails about 400 million of its sexy catalogs per year, offering intimate apparel, women's clothing, and footwear.

Based in Mississippi, Southern Pipe is family-owned and was founded in 1938. Southern Pipe and Supply Co., Inc. sells pipes and anything that connects to them. Serving everyone from contractors and homeowners to commercial real estate property owners, Southern Pipe sells plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning supplies through more than 90 stores located throughout seven southeastern states. The company operates a central distribution center and a handful of Southern Bath & Kitchen showrooms that feature various products for homeowners. Southern Pipe's vendors include dozens of supply companies and manufacturers such as MOEN, Kohler, and Amana Heating and Air Conditioning.

Precision Data Products likes to get it right. Precision company sells electronics such as computers, printers, audiovisual equipment, and accessories directly to customers via telephone and its Web site. Through Precision Data Products' online catalog, customers can view purchasing history, real-time inventory and prices, and product descriptions and white pages on more than 250,000 products. Corporate customers can request custom catalogs with negotiated or contract prices. Precision company carries brands from manufacturers such as Apple, D-Link, Exabyte, Hewlett-Packard, and Symbol Technologies. It also offers on-site or ship-in repair services for computers and printers.

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.

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