Thrifty White Drug Stores is big on small towns. The pharmacy chain operates about 85 traditional drugstores in rural Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, North and South Dakota, and Wisconsin. While most stores are located in shopping centers or strip malls, about 10 pharmacies operate in supermarkets and health clinics. Thrifty White Drug Stores is employee-owned and typically locates its shops in towns with populations of 1,000 to 90,000 people. Thrifty White Drug Stores also has several tele-pharmacies in North Dakota to serve communities that are too small to support a full-scale retail pharmacy. Thrifty White Drug Stores traces its roots to a single store opened in the Dakota Territory of Jamestown in 1884.

Food Lion brand products accounts for about 20% of sales. Founded in 1957 as Food Town, Food Lion is the largest US subsidiary of Delhaize America, a subsidiary of Brussels-based grocer Delhaize.Food Lion is a king among grocery chains in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions where it operates about 1,330 supermarkets under the Food Lion, Bloom, Bottom Dollar, and Harveys banners. About half of the company's stores are in the Carolinas, but it also has outlets in nine other states, including Virginia, Georgia, and Tennessee. Food Lion, which prides itself on extra low prices, has taken a beating from low-cost competitors, most notably Wal-Mart Supercenters, and a weak economy.

Where can Kiwis buy their groceries and their consumer retail goods under one roof? The Warehouse. One of New Zealand's leading retailers, The Warehouse Group operates about 85 department stores and 45 office supply stores under the Warehouse Stationery banner throughout the country. Its offerings include apparel, entertainment, technology, music, sporting goods, grocery items, and gardening accessories, among many others. Founded in 1982, the company decided to exit the Australian market in 2005 and sold that subsidiary (comprising 122 Warehouse Australia stores) to focus on its home market. A bid by Australian retail giant Woolworths to acquire Warehouse Group was blocked by regulators in mid-2008.

Zumiez Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of action sports related apparel, footwear, equipment, and accessories in the United States. It offers apparel, including tops, bottoms, and outerwear, as well as accessories, such as caps, belts, and sunglasses; footwear consisting of athletic shoes and sandals; equipment, such as skateboards, snowboards, and ancillary gear, such as boots and bindings; and other items, such as miscellaneous novelties and DVDs. The company’s stores serve young men and women between the ages of 12 and 24, focusing on skateboarding, surfing, snowboarding, bicycle motocross, and motocross activities. As of January 30, 2010, it operated 377 stores under the Zumiez brand name primarily located in shopping malls in 35 states. In addition, the company sells its products directly through its Web site, zumiez.com. Zumiez Inc. was founded in 1978 and is based in Everett, Washington.

Some people may not like to eat Atomic Spears, but these guys think it is all A Matter of Taste. The company sells specialty food products, such as Atomic Spears (pickles) and Atomic Shrooms (mushrooms), Glow Babies (pickled carrots), P.B. Loco (flavored peanut butter), and cheddar beer soup. A Matter of Taste also peddles quilts and assorted commemorative figurines. While A Matter of Taste Inc. sells its products from its Web site, it also operates a single retail store in Washington.

Kelly's Pipe & Supply Co. was founded in 1960 by James "Kelly" Callahan and G.H. "Herb" Turnbull. It is owned by Pennsylvania-based Hajoca. Why stop at fixing simple bathrooms when you can also make a sea battle come to life? Kelly's Pipe and Supply does both and counts casinos Caesar's Palace, the Mirage, and Treasure Island amongst its clients. The company sells and distributes plumbing products from its million-dollar European Bath, Kitchen, Tile, & Stone showrooms in Las Vegas and Solana Beach, California. Stores also offer fixtures and pipes from such brands as Aqua Glass, Delta Faucet, Kohler, and Price Pfister. Besides plumbing products, Kelly's offers quotation services and procurement project management.

Casual Male Retail Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty retailer of men’s apparel in the United States, Canada, and Europe. The company operates its stores under the Casual Male XL, Casual Male XL Outlets, Rochester Clothing, B & T Factory Direct, Shoes XL, and Living XL trade names. Its retail stores offer a range of basic sportswear, other casual apparel, dress wear, and accessories, as well as a line of its private label collections, such as Harbor Bay, 626 Blue-Vintage Surplus, Synrgy, Comfort Zone, and Oak Hill; and casual clothing for the big and tall customers. As of January 30, 2010, Casual Male Retail Group operated 395 Casual Male XL retail stores, 65 Casual Male XL outlet stores, and 19 Rochester Clothing stores; and a direct business, which included various catalogs and e-commerce sites. The company was formerly known as Designs, Inc. and changed its name to Casual Male Retail Group, Inc. in August 2002 as a result of the acquisition of Casual Male business from Casual Male Corp. Casual Male Retail Group, Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Canton, Massachusetts.

TBC Corporation is the nation's largest vertically integrated marketer of tires for the automotive replacement market. The Company's retail operations include Company-operated tire and automotive service centers under the " Tire Kingdom", "Merchant's Tire & Auto Centers", and "National Tire & Battery" brands, and franchised stores under the "Big O Tires" brand. TBC markets on a wholesale basis to regional tire chains and distributors serving independent tire dealers throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Through its Carroll Tire wholesale distribution centers, the Company also markets directly to independent tire dealers across the United States. Carroll Tire Company sells a wide variety of proprietary and national brands from 38 distribution centers.TBC markets and sells nine proprietary brands of tires through North America. The Multi-Mile, Cordovan, Sigma, Vanderbilt, Sumitomo, Eldorado, Laramie, Telstar, and Jetzon brands are produced by nationally recognized manufacturers and have a reputation for quality, safety, and value. These brands are distributed through TBC Private Brands and Treadways to independent retailers and wholesalers throughout the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In 2005, TBC Corporation was purchased by Sumitomo Corporation of America (SCOA). SCOA is the largest subsidiary of Sumitomo Corporation (SC), one of Japan's major integrated trading and investment business enterprises. TBC Corporation still functions as an independent company of SCOA providing the same services and products it has for many years, but has ended its 22-year stint as a publicly traded company on the NASDAQ.

Homeland still has struggled as a result of stiff competition from Wal-Mart and other rival chains.Shoppers who call Oklahoma home shop at Homeland Stores' supermarkets. The regional grocery chain, a division of grocery distributorAssociated Wholesale Grocers (AWG), operates more than 45 stores throughout Oklahoma and a single store in Kansas. AWG operates Homeland stores through its Associated Retail Grocers subsidiary and supplies the majority of the products sold in Homeland stores. The stores sell groceries and general merchandise; most have delicatessens, pharmacies, and some have specialty departments (ethnic foods, floral services, seafood).

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.

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