Darcars was founded in 1977 by chairman and CEO John Darvish, whose family still owns and runs the company. Buying a new vehicle in the Washington, DC, area can expose you to the Darcars side of human nature. Darcars Automotive Group, an automobile dealership holding company, has about 25 automobile dealerships in Maryland and Virginia. They sell new and used automobiles, including cars made by Ford, General Motors, Kia, Nissan, Toyota, Volkswagen, and Volvo. Darcars also offers a full range of automotive services, including collision repair through nearly 10 locations, parts and service departments, and rental cars.

Founded in 1937 with a $35 investment, Stuckey's operated more than 350 stores at its zenith in the 1970s. The Stuckey family, including Bill Stuckey (chairman and son of the founder), is the company's majority owner. Once as integral to a road trip as the destination, Stuckey's owns or franchises about 175 stores located along interstates in some 20 US states, mostly in the Southeast. Its store concepts include the traditional blue-roofed stand-alone locations and Stuckey's Express, in which a Stuckey's outlet is located inside other convenience stores and travel centers. Stuckey's sells primarily candy (taffy, peanut brittle, and its famous pecan logs) and souvenirs (T-shirts, postcards, and trinkets).

Dreams, Inc. company owns and operates about 20 Field of Dreams and FansEdge stores across the US -- in addition to some 10 franchised stores -- that sell signed balls, jerseys, photos, plaques, and other collectibles, which it licenses from the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, NCAA, and NASCAR. It also reaches shoppers via the FansEdge catalog and online (including FansEdge.com and ProSportsMemorabilia.com). Dreams' Mounted Memories division makes and distributes sports memorabilia, while its Greene Organization handles special appearances, endorsements, and other off-field activities for athletes.

Midas, Inc. provides retail automotive services through franchised or company-operated shops primarily in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells Midas, SpeeDee, and Midas-SpeeDee co-branded franchises. Midas company’s retail shops offer automotive repair and maintenance services, such as exhaust, brake, suspension, air conditioning, tires, batteries, and various other maintenance services. As of January 2, 2010, it operated the Midas network of 1,602 shops located in the United States and 9 Canadian provinces; the SpeeDee network of franchised and company-operated shops consisting of 112 shops located in 12 states in the United States; and 776 Midas shops licensed in 14 other countries, and 57 licensed SpeeDee shops in Mexico. Midas, Inc. also involves in the real estate activities, including the development, ownership, and lease of Midas and SpeeDee shops in the United States and Canada; and supply chain activities comprising the provision of value-added merchandising services to franchisees. In addition, it owns, develops, sells, and leases automotive shop management software to Midas franchisees and other third-party automotive service providers. Midas, Inc. was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Itasca, Illinois.

Jerry Biggers Chevrolet (dba Biggers Chevy Heaven) certainly enjoys its size. The company, which has been in business for more than 40 years, sells Chevy Camaros, Corvettes, Impalas, and Yukons along with Isuzu Rodeos, Ascenders, and Amigos at a dealership in Elgin, Illinois. It also offers a variety of used car models. In addition to cars, Biggers Chevrolet sells aftermarket accessories like DVD players and truck bed liners and offers parts, service, and fleet sales. Its Web site allows customers to apply for financing, search new and used inventory, and schedule service. Help is available in English, Spanish, and Polish. The big dog at Biggers is owner Jim Leichter.

Founded in 1993 with about 60 stores, Calendar Club now operates more than 800 locations in the US and 250-plus outlets in Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and the UK. The company also sells merchandise year round on its Web sites, including Calendars.com and DogBreedStore.com. Bookseller Barnes & Noble sold its majority stake in Calendar Club to CEO Marc Winkelman and the firm's management in 2009 for $7 million. During the holiday season, Calendar Club transforms empty retail space in Canada and the US into shops under the banners Calendar Club, San Francisco Music Box Company, and Go! Games, and Go! Toys. The company's temporary stores range in size from kiosks to some 6,000 square feet.

Famed toy store FAO Schwarz is a kid pleaser, but as a business it's had its ups and downs. The oldest toy store in the US charms the young (and young at heart) at its landmark store on New York's Fifth Avenue where it sells unique, hard-to-find toys, such as life-size stuffed bears and $50,000 kid-size Ferraris. A major tourist attraction, it hosts more than 3 million visitors each year. Being a kid itself, FAO Schwarz has a sweet tooth, with its sweets shop called FAO Schweetz. After years of unprofitable expansion in an age where mass merchants, such as Wal-Mart, rule toy retailing, it's down to a single location, a catalog, and a website. Toy titan Toys "R" Us added FAO Schwarz to its toy chest in 2009.

The Paradies Shops operates more than 500 shops in airports, hotels, and aquariums throughout the US and Canada. It serves more than a half billion passengers annually, with retail sites that include bookstores, gift shops, jewelry stores, ladies accessory shops, newsstands, sunglass stores, and western stores, among others. Paradies Shops is also the exclusive licensee of Brooks Brothers, CNBC, PGA Tour, and the New York Times. The firm operates several hotel properties and the retail program for the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta. The company was founded by the Paradies family in 1960. In mid-2010 it sold a majority stake to Freeman Spogli & Co.

Archibald's knows hot wheels when it sees 'em. The auto dealer specializes in the sale of used luxury vehicles from a single location in Kennewick, Washington. Archibald's swanky rides include BMW, Acura, Cadillac, Jaguar, and Mercedes Benz. Visitors to the company's Web site can check inventory, view photos of each vehicle, check trade-in values, and apply for financing. Archibald's claims its success is due to applying the golden rule, treat other people the way you would like to be treated, to its business model. The company is owned by president John Archibald and vice president Daniel Archibald.

Tangram Interiors keeps it all on the inside. Tangram Interiors company is an office furniture manufacturer and dealer specializing in Steelcase products. Other brands include Brayton, Vecta, Metro, and Lightolier. Tangram Interiors, with two showrooms in southern California, offers asset management, furniture rental, network installation, remanufacturing, and moving and relocation assistance. Tangram sells an "acoustic privacy system" that allows workplace conversations to remain private by broadcasting a signal that scrambles speech patterns into white noise. The company's Tangram Studio provides design services, project management, and custom architectural elements. Tangram Interiors is part of Steelcase family of companies.

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