Big Y Foods began as a 900-sq.-ft. grocery at a Y intersection in Chicopee,Massachusetts.It now operates some 60 supermarkets throughout Massachusetts and Connecticut. Most of its stores are Big Y World Class Markets,offering specialty areas such as bakeries and floral shops, as well as banking.The rest consist of Big Y Supermarkets and a single gourmet food and liquor store called Table & Vine in Springfield,Massachusetts.Some Big Y stores provide child care, dry cleaning, photo processing, and even propane sales,and their delis and food courts offer to-go foods.Big Y is owned and run by the D'Amour family and is one of New England's largest independent supermarket chains.

AUTOBACS SEVEN was founded in 1947. AUTOBACS SEVEN is driven to provide one-stop shopping to Japanese motorists. The company sells automotive items at about 520 stores throughout Japan, under the names AUTOBACS, Super AUTOBACS, AUTO Helloes, and AUTOBACS Hashiriya Tengoku, among others. AUTOBACS are small, automotive convenience-type stores, while the larger-sized Super AUTOBACS carry a broad range of auto products. The Hashiriya Tengoku locations boast used parts. AUTOBACS also provides safety inspections and maintenance services, and it sells cars and gas. In 2009 the company sold its US arm, AUTOBACS STRAUSS (acquired in 2007), and exited the US market.

What do adventurers Ted Baker and J. Peterman have in common? They're both charming, slick, stylish (of course), and sheer fabrications of marketing. British clothier Ted Baker is the official outfitter of trendy lads in the UK. For men on the go, Ted makes a wrinkle-proof suit, an anti-bacterial shirt, and a bed-in-a-box linen set whose pillows contain a special condom pocket. For the birds and the nippers, there are Ted Baker Woman, Teddy Boy, and Teddy Girl. Accessories include skinwear, fragrances, eyewear, and watches. Ted has about 70 retail shops located in the UK and internationally; "his" clothes can also be found in about 125 other stores. CEO Raymond Kelvin owns about 40% of Ted Baker.

Building in the American heartland builds business for Amerhart. The company distributes hardware, lumber, and building materials, including decking, insulation, plywood, shingles, and siding through locations in Green Bay, Milwaukee, Sun Prairie, and West Salem, Wisconsin, as well as one in Perkin, Illinois. Amerhart also offers services, including floor plan design. The company's vendors include Ply Gem Industries, Louisiana Pacific, and CertainTeed. Tracing its roots back to 1940, Amerhart takes its name from the 1963 acquisition of American Millwork and Supply by Hartman Wholesale.

Cash Converters International makes cash advances in return for used merchandise, including electronics, jewelry, musical instruments, tools, and more, which it resells to the public. The second-hand goods retailer and pawnbroker operates about 500 franchised and company-owned stores in its home country of Australia and another 20 countries worldwide, including Canada, the US, and the UK. The company also offers customers cash advances on their paychecks. Stores operate under the Cash Converters banner. Texas-based EZCORP acquired a 30% stake in the firm in 2009.

Champion Window Manufacturing is looking for a home-improvement boom as its window of opportunity. The company makes custom-built, vinyl-framed replacement windows and doors and sells them directly to homeowners through about 75 sales and installation offices in some 30 states. It also manufactures patio rooms, porch enclosures, and vinyl siding; remodels basements; and sells patio furniture made by third-party vendors. Champion Window, founded in 1953 by Alvin Levine and Arthur Stevens as a maker of aluminum storm windows, doors, and awnings, was owned by former executives Edward Levine (son of Alvin) and Bernard Barbash until mid-2007, when a private-equity investor gained control of day-to-day operations.

Kohler Mira went from dreaming in the shower, to dreaming about the shower. Founded in the 1920s, Kohler Mira is a leading UK bathroom products company. The company's offerings, which include showers, faucets, enclosures, trays, and brassware, are sold through bath and housewares specialty retailers in more than 40 countries worldwide. Its names include Mira Platinum, Biocote, and Mira Eco. Mira developed the world's first thermostatic shower, which gained popularity in the 1960s. Then called Mira Showers Group (which included its Rada, Meynell, and Alstone brands), Kohler Mira Limited company was acquired by US-based Kohler Co. in 2001 and became Kohler Mira.

Founded in 1945, the company is owned by the family of president Steve Cook. Northeastern Supply keeps its little corner of the world cozy. Through about 30 locations in Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia, the company distributes air conditioning, heating, plumbing, ventilation, and water system equipment along with fixtures and hardware to contractors and other building professionals. Major suppliers include American Standard, Bradford White, Delta, Elkay, Jacuzzi, and Moen. Northeastern also offers online credit applications, electronic funds transfers, and e-mail invoicing to its customers.

Burton Lumber & Hardware Co. was founded in 1911 by Willard C. Burton. cFamily-owned-and-run Burton Lumber & Hardware designs, makes, and installs truss and floor packages, wall panels, and doors (interior and exterior) from its facility in Salt Lake City. It also sells and installs Heatilator-brand fireplaces and building materials made by Trex, James Hardie, and other companies. Burton Lumber & Hardware operates half a dozen locations in Utah and offers delivery services throughout the state. Its customers have included contractors, home builders, and government agencies.

Peirce-Phelps has developed unique solutions to meet the needs of a variety of markets including consumer electronics, home appliances, heating, ventilating and air conditioning products, computers, and solid surface counter top products. Our business and has grown to one of the 50 largest HVAC distributors in the country. Peirce-Phelps continues to gain product lines, open HVAC Sales Centers at strategic locations throughout the region and aggressively expand its residential and commercial customer base.The company remains true to the values of our founders and has formed business relationships with our customers that span decades and generations. Peirce-Phelps has remained successful by being flexible and responsive to the ever changing needs of the market, through deep knowledge of our industries, and by listening to our customers. Now starting our eightieth year, we remain more committed than ever to this philosophy. We thank you for your business and look forward to succeeding together in the future!

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