Founded in 1984, The Strategies Group serves some 1,700 construction and real estate management firms in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Arkansas. The company's primary strategy is to sell and service the Southwest. The Strategies Group resells construction and real estate software from Timberline, as well as several other software firms including Deltek. The reseller carries such software title as Sage Timberline Office, Sage Master Builder, Sage CRM, Sage AccPac ERP, and Deltek Vision. The firm also provides technical consulting and installation services, as well as classroom and Web-based training to support its software sales.

Savers depends on thrifty people to make its business a financial success. The resale giant is the largest for-profit thrift store chain in North America. It operates about 225 Savers, Value Village, and Village des Valeurs (in Quebec) stores in more than 20 US states, 10 Canadian provinces, and Australia. The company's retail outlets sell everything from designer and vintage clothing to unique home decor, electronics, hardcover and paperback books, and toys. Savers also partners with 120 charity offices. Founded in 1954 as Salvage Management Corp., Savers is owned by the private equity firm Freeman Spogli & Co.

Siam FamilyMart may be the second-largest convenience store chain in Thailand, but it still has a long way to go to catch up with #1: Seven-Eleven Japan. The fast-growing company operates more than 550 convenience stores throughout Thailand, about a tenth the number of its larger rival. The stores offer hot and cold snacks and beverages, sandwiches, rice balls, cigarettes, and other convenience items. Established in 1993, FamilyMart is a subsidiary of Japan's FamilyMart chain of convenience stores. The company franchises its individual stores and provides support in the form of managerial advice, training, advertising, promotions, store equipment, and the preparation of annual tax documents.

Saks Incorporated began as Proffitt’s, Inc. with just five Proffitt’s stores in metropolitan Knoxville, Tennessee. Proffitt's, Inc. became a public company in June 1987. From 1994 to 1998, we added McRae’s, Parisian, Younkers, Herberger's, and Carson Pirie Scott & Co. (which included Bergner's and Boston Store) as well as 32 additional stores from Lovemans, Hess, Parks-Belk, and Brody’s, which were converted into existing store nameplates.

One man's corvette summer in 1974 turned into a lifelong business. Mid America Motorworks (MMA) is a large supplier of parts and accessories for Corvette, Volkswagen, and Porsche automobiles. Offering parts for every year the Corvette has been in production, Mid America Motorworks sells its products through catalogs, the Web, and, for those in the neighborhood, at its headquarters. It also installs custom interior and performance parts. MMA's annual Corvette Funfest lays claim to being one of the largest Corvette gatherings in the world. Mid America Motorworks also hosts biannual swap meets for Corvette and VW enthusiasts. MMA is owned and operated by Mike Yager, who started the business by selling Corvette parts and accessories.

EDION, which was established in 2002, also generates sales online and through a catalog. Gadget lovers in Japan look to EDION Corporation for a technology and A/C fix. EDION Corporation is one of the country's leading electronics retailers, but it also sells air conditioners, microwave ovens, rice cookers, and washing machines. EDION is a holding company that operates primarily through its handful of subsidiaries. During the past few years, EDION has been expanding its operations in western Japan. EDION Corporation serves customers throughout Japan from more than 1,000 stores that are mostly franchised.

Founded in 1939, RONA generates about 40% of its sales from distribution. RONA has employed an aggressive acquisition strategy to expand throughout Canada. RONA believes a tool belt befits both genders. The company is Canada's top home improvement retailer (ahead of Home Depot of Canada) with about 685 franchised, affiliated, and corporate stores. Looking beyond traditional male customers, RONA stores court women shoppers (more than half of its customers) with features such as decorator boutiques and product displays set for the average woman's eye level. The stores range in format from small RONA L'express shops to RONA L'entrepot big-box outlets and the retailer carries some 2,000 RONA-branded products.

Richer Sounds stands behind its name. Founded by then-19-year-old Julian Richer, Richer Sounds PLC today is Britain's biggest hi-fi and electronics retailer, selling audio and video electronics gear from more than 40 stores throughout the UK. Stores sell such products as CD and DVD players, home theater systems, plasma and LCD TVs, speakers, turntables, amplifiers, and more. It also sells its wares from its retail company web site (Mr. Richer guarantees that prices in the two media will always match.) Richer Sounds PLC is owned by chairman Julian Richer, who opened his first store at London Bridge in 1978.

Harps operated as a family-run chain until 2001 when it became an employee-owned business.It's tough to survive in the face of Arkansas giant Wal-Mart, but Harps Food Stores (founded when Sam Walton was 12 years old) is putting up a fight. The company, which got its start when Floy and Harvard Harp put down $500 cash and opened the first Harp's Cash Grocery in 1930, operates more than 60 grocery stores, mostly in Arkansas but also in Missouri and Oklahoma. Its stores, operating under the Harps Food Stores and Price Cutter Food Warehouse banners, range in size from 13,000 to 63,000 sq. ft. and often feature bakeries, pharmacies, and meat departments

Lund Food Holdings has been adding pharmacies to many of its stores. The grocer also operates an online shopping and home delivery service.Lund Food Holdings operates about 20 Lunds and Byerly's upscale grocery markets in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota. The company took its present form in 1997 with the merger of Lunds and Byerly's. Both chains specialize in gourmet, high-quality foods, with locations offering artisan breads, bakeries, a line of organic foods and natural products, wine stores, florists, catering services, housewares, cooking demos, and community meeting rooms. Byerly's also runs a culinary school out of one of its stores. Through a partnership with Minnetonka-based PrairieStone Pharmacy.

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