Vera Bradley Designs was formed in 1982 by friends Patricia Miller and Barbara Bradley Baekgaard when they realized a lack of good-looking luggage for women. They named the company after Barbara's mother, Vera Bradley. Vera Bradley Designs likes its customers to carry around lots of baggage. It designs and makes quilted handbags and travel bags, as well as travel accessories, such as cosmetic bags, curling iron covers, and pocket wallets. The company's products are available in some 3,500 gift and specialty stores and about 30 Vera Bradley retail stores in the US. In addition to its core products, it offers licensed items, including Vera Bradley-brands rugs, eyewear, stationery, and home decor items.

Silgan Holdings Inc. company was founded in 1987 and is based in Stamford, Connecticut. Silgan Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of metal and plastic consumer goods packaging products in North America, Europe, Asia, and South America. Its products include steel and aluminum containers for human and pet food; and custom designed plastic containers, tubes, and closures for personal care, health care, pharmaceutical, household and industrial chemical, food, pet care, agricultural chemical, automotive, and marine chemical products. The company also offers metal, composite, and plastic vacuum closures for food and beverage products. Silgan Holdings markets its products through direct sales force and a network of distributors primarily to consumer products companies.

Lady Burd Exclusive Cosmetics, a private-label manufacturer of personal care products, makes skin care items, color cosmetics, mineral cosmetics (such as those made by Bare Escentuals), hair care products, children's products, makeup brushes, cosmetic bags and cases, and displays. The company also provides custom printing and labels for products. Lady Burd Exclusive Cosmetics operates showrooms in California, New York, and Florida and offers make up courses (ranging from workshops for professional makeup artists to private consultations for teens and adults). The family-run business was founded by Roberta Burd more than 45 years ago.

Ergoresearch develops and produces custom-made foot and seat orthotics, as well as foot insoles and cushions, in its certified laboratory. Ergoresearch also employs health specialists who act as on-site orthotic consultants. The Canada-based company was founded in 1990. In 2008 the firm acquired Orthoconcept Quebec, a maker of orthotic and prosthetic devices. In 2005 it bought Clinique du Pied Equilibre, aka Equilibre, a specialized medical-grade foot orthotics manufacturer. President and CEO Sylvain Boucher and his family own nearly 45% of the company.

Frederick's of Hollywood Group is making big business out of little somethings. Through the 2008 merger of Frederick's of Hollywood and Movie Star, the group pairs two of the top intimates makers and retailers. The group boasts US retail operations and wholesales in the US and Canada. Its Frederick's of Hollywood subsidiary peddles intimates, as well as wigs, hosiery, and dresses, through its catalog, e-commerce site, and more than 130 namesake stores. The group's Movie Star unit designs intimate apparel, sleepwear, leisurewear, and loungewear under brands Movie Star, Cinema Etoile, and others. Movie Star sells to discount, specialty, mass merchandise, and department stores and to catalog merchants.

Beiersdorf loves the skin you're in and wants to improve it one product at a time. A subsidiary of Beiersdorf AG, the company makes and markets skin care brands NIVEA, Basis, and Eucerin. Beiersdorf's products are sold in some 100 countries. NIVEA, developed and named in 1911 from the Latin word "nivius" meaning "snow-white," marked the foundation of Beiersdorf's portfolio of brands. In addition to body care, NIVEA now extends to lip care, anti-aging creams (DNAge), and men's products. The company discovered Eucerit, the industry's first water-in-oil emulsifier, at the turn of the century. Beiersdorf products are available worldwide through grocery stores and mass merchant retailers, such as Target.

Michael Kors dresses the stars, both real and imagined. The company designs and distributes high-fashion apparel and footwear for men and women. It has expanded its products portfolio through the years by inking several licensing agreements, such as timepieces with Fossil, eyewear with Marchon Eyewear, swimwear with Warnaco Swimwear, and socks with American Essentials. The firm's collections include such brands as Michael Kors, KORS Michael Kors, and MICHAEL Michael Kors. Michael Kors, himself, owns about 15% of the company, while Sportswear Holdings, the holding company owned by fashion investors Silas Chou and Lawrence Stroll, bought some 85% of the company in 2003.

CEO Tina Aldatz Norris founded Foot Petals, Inc. in 2001. Foot Petals makes insoles and shoe cushions designed for stilettos, strappy sandals, pointy-toed shoes, and other fashionable footwear. Its shoe cushions are made from a foam urethane called PORON (made by Rogers Corporation) and are named Killer Kushionz, Sole Stopperz, Tip Toes, Haute Heelz, Strappy Slips, and Amazing Arches. In 2007 the company extended its reach into slippers, legwear, gift sets, and accessories. Foot Petals, which also makes Sole Kings for men, peddles its products at Nordstrom, Zappos, and Target.

The Procter & Gamble Company was founded in 1837 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Procter & Gamble Company engages in the manufacture and sale of consumer goods worldwide. The company operates in three global business units (GBUs): Beauty, Health and Well-Being, and Household Care. The Beauty GBU offers cosmetics, deodorants, fragrances, hair care products, and personal cleansing and skin care products under the Head & Shoulders, Olay, Pantene, and Wella brands; and blades and razors, electric hair removal devices, face and shave products, and home appliances under the Braun, Fusion, Gillette, and Mach3 brands. The Health and Well-Being GBU provides feminine care, oral care, and personal health care products under Always, Crest, and Oral-B brands; and pet food and snacks under the Iams and Pringles brands. The Household Care GBU offers air care products, batteries, dish care products, and fabric care and surface care products under the Ariel, Dawn, Downy, Duracell, Gain, and Tide brands; and baby wipes, bath tissues, diapers, facial tissues, and paper towels under the Bounty, Charmin, and Pampers brands. The company offers its products to mass merchandisers, grocery stores, membership club stores, and drug stores.

GoldToeMoretz boasts licensing agreements with the likes of Kathy Ireland, New Balance, and Under Armour and ships some 360 million pairs of socks each year. Moretz, founded in 1946, was acquired by buyout firm The Blackstone Group in late 2006 and merged with 90-year-old Gold Toe to form GoldToeMoretz. The deal, valued at $400 million, created a pair of the US's largest maker of socks. GoldToeMoretz wants to sock it to the competition. It's a sockwear maker for sporting goods stores and retailers, such as Gap, Target, and Old Navy, and private labeler for companies including Cherokee, Faded Glory, and Pro Spirit. It peddles the PowerSox brand -- a heavy hitter in performance socks -- as well as Gold Toe.

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