The Alexander Doll Company (ADC) was founded 80 years ago by Madame Beatrice Alexander Behrman, the daughter of Russian immigrants. She was raised over her father's doll hospital—the first in America—and often played with the dolls waiting to be mended. Her love of dolls led this dynamic woman to creating her own line of dolls.The company manufactures a variety of dolls, including collectibles and play dolls, in addition to its signature line of Madame Alexander Dolls. The firm sells its products through several thousand specialty retailers, as well as online through its company Web site. Alexander Doll Company also provides its customers with repair services through its Doll Hospital. Founded by Madame Beatrice Alexander the company was acquired by the private capital fund, Kaizen Breakthrough Partnership in 1995.

Cherokee Inc. markets, licenses and manages their owned brands, which include Cherokee, Sideout, Carole Little, Chorus Line, Saint Tropez West and All That Jazz brands, as well as represents other brands in various consumer product categories such as apparel, home, food, fashion accessories and footwear and recreational products. The brands that Cherokee owns and represent generate over $4 billion in annual retail sales worldwide. The Company’s principal focus is global “retail direct” licensing. The Company has partnered with many well-known retailers throughout the world to provide consumers with well-known brands at affordable prices. These global retailers include Target Stores, Wal-Mart Stores, TJX Companies, Tesco Plc, Zellers (Hudson Bay Company), Grupo Eroski, Comercial Mexicana, Pao de Acucar, Tottus Stores (Falabella), Arvind Mills, Shufersal, Geant (Al Hokair) and Pick ’n Pay. The Company’s retail licensing partners license these well-known brands, and receive the exclusive right to sell branded merchandise in their geographic areas.The Cherokee brand, which began as a footwear brand in 1973, is one of the preeminent global family lifestyle brands with annual retail sales approaching $3.0 Billion worldwide. Sideout is a young active lifestyle brand, which was acquired by the Company in the late 1990’s. In addition, in 2002 the Company acquired the trademarks for Carole Little, a well-regarded women’s wear brand, and Chorus Line, All that Jazz and Saint Tropez West, three women’s sportswear brands. The Company seeks to develop relationships and strategies that benefit its retail and wholesale partners through licensing arrangements both in the U.S. as well as throughout the world.

Schurman Fine Papers, which operates American Greetings, Carlton Cards, and Papyrus retail stores, offers specialty gift products such as greeting cards, stationary, gift wrap, and other paper products. Its retail network consists of more than 500 stores located throughout the US and Canada. More than 170 of its stores operate under the Papyrus name, a brand on which the company was originally built (the brand was sold to American Greetings in 2009). Schurman Fine Papers was founded in 1950 by Marcel and Margrit Schurman; their daughter Dominique Schurman now heads the company.

Hilasal makes and sells cotton towels and robes for all manner of uses including bath and beach towels, sports and kitchen towels, promotional and printed towels, as well as making robes for adults and children. The company sells its products through a variety of retailers including department stores, discount stores, and boutiques including Wal-Mart, Gigante, JC Penny's, Marshall's, and TJ Maxx. Hilasal exports just over one-third of it products to the US for sale.

Spanx, Inc. makes footless and footed hosiery, tights, and body shapers to give its customers a slim and smooth look with any style shoe. Spanx also sells bras (Bra-llelujah!), slips (Hide & Sleek), panties (Power Panties), and lined apparel (Bod-a-Bing!). The firm's products are sold at such retailers as Nordstrom, Saks Fifth Avenue, Lord & Taylor, and Bloomingdale's. Discounter Target developed ASSETS (bodyshaping hosiery) with Spanx in 2006; they're also sold at www.loveassets.com. Company founder Sara Blakely is credited with inventing footless pantyhose. In 1998, she founded Spanx with $5,000 of her own savings and patented her footless body-shaping pantyhose.

Katy Industries, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of commercial cleaning products sold primarily to janitorial/sanitary and food service distributors. These distributors supply end users such as building service contractors, restaurants, hotels, healthcare facilities and schools.Katy's businesses serve this group of customers by producing and sourcing quality products and delivering them efficiently. Katy fosters internal growth through a focus on low-cost manufacturing, superior customer support, and innovative marketing and product development.

Based in Englewood Cliffs, NJ, Asta Funding, Inc., is a leading consumer receivable asset management company that specializes in the purchase, management and liquidation of performing and non-performing consumer receivables. Asta generates revenues and earnings primarily through the purchase and collection of performing and non-performing consumer receivables that have typically been either charged-off by the credit grantors or not considered to be prime receivables. These receivables include MasterCard, Visa and other credit card accounts issued by banks and other consumer loans issued by credit grantors. Asta may also purchase bulk receivable portfolios that include both distressed and non-conforming loans.

Aircraft Cabin Systems L.L.C. serving the business jet and commercial airline markets, ACS develops and produces plasma (42-50 inch) and LCD (10.4-52 inch) flat-panel displays for in-flight entertainment use. The company's first customers were VIP aircraft and business jets owners, but ACS eventually moved into the commercial sector; the company expects to continue to expand its commercial airline customer base. Some of the company's current customers include Delta and US Airways. ACS was founded in 1999 by Yukio Sugimoto.

GE has a strong set of global businesses in infrastructure, finance and media aligned to meet today’s needs, including the demand for global infrastructure; growing and changing demographics that need access to healthcare, finance, and information and entertainment; and environmental technologies.The company produces aircraft engines, locomotives and other transportation equipment, kitchen and laundry appliances, lighting, electric distribution and control equipment, generators and turbines, and medical imaging equipment. GE is also one of the preeminent financial services companies in the US. General Electric Capital, comprising commercial finance, consumer finance, aircraft leasing, real estate, and energy financial services, is its largest segment. Other operations include the NBC television network.

Watkins Incorporated manufactures more than 350 natural products, including body lotions and bath salts, organic dish soaps and bathroom cleaners, and organic black pepper and vanilla extracts. Watkins, which distributes its products in the US, Canada, the UK, and the Philippines, sells through retailers such as Target, Wal-Mart, and Whole Foods, as well as through its e-commerce Web site. Owned by chairman Irwin L. Jacobs since 1978, Watkins' roots go back to the 1860s.

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