In 1923 Frank McCoy founded a roofing company, which his son, Emmett, combined with McCoy Supply to form the McCoy Corporation. Today the firm is still family owned and led by CEO Brian McCoy, Emmett's son. Even though it's battling home-improvement giants The Home Depot and Lowe's, McCoy still has time for a day off. The company owns and operates about 80 McCoy's Building Supply Centers, which are concentrated primarily in Texas but also in Arkansas, Mississippi, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. In keeping with its Texas roots, McCoy's also stocks farm and ranch products, and it runs two millwork facilities. The retailer adheres to a steadfast tradition of closing stores on Sundays.

Specialty Merchandise Corporation (SMC) wants to be the first company you call. SMC warehouses thousands of gifts and home decor accessories, and its members sell them at a markup. Its inventory includes everything from bird feeders to cutlery sets to billiards tables. The company offers its members merchandise catalogs, a business coach, a personalized e-commerce site, and selling manuals and videos for either $300 upfront (gold plan) or about $480 paid in monthly installments (silver plan). Marketing information covers running a business via home parties, flea markets, mail order, and fundraising, among others.

Steinhoff UK Retail wants it customers to fill their homes with furniture with its help. Formerly named Homestyle Group until 2007, the company is one of Britain's largest furniture retailers. Its furniture division, Harveys Furnishing Group, operates about 170 Harveys: The Furniture Store shops throughout the UK. Its beds division operates Bensons Beds (the UK's largest bed retailer with 220 stores and 15,000 branded beds), Bed Shed (more than 50 stores primarily in Scotland), and Sleepmasters (with nearly 120 retail sites in the UK). Steinhoff Europe AG, a subsidiary of Steinhoff International Holdings (SIH), took the company private in 2007.

US Airconditioning was founded in July 1990 when former Carrier employees John Staples and John Scarsi, now CEO and CFO respectively of US Airconditioning, bought Carrier Los Angeles. US Airconditioning Distributors ended its relationship with Carrier in 2007. US Airconditioning Distributors cools down (and heats up) the West. US Airconditioning Distributors distributes heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning products from such manufacturers as York, Coleman, MagicAire, and Siemens through about 70 locations in California, Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Arizona, and Florida. HVAC products available from US Airconditioning Distributors run from single window units to heating and cooling systems for retailers and offices. It also sells parts and components.

Operating in the Pacific Northwest since the 1950s, the company was acquired by W. W. Monroe in 1974. Through more than 20 locations in Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington, Thermal Supply has built a business distributing air-conditioning, heating, and refrigeration equipment, parts, and accessories. The company, which grew from a mere three locations over the years, specializes in supplying products from Copeland, Larkin, Manitowoc, Mitsubishi, Sporlan, and other manufacturers.

Etna Supply was founded in 1965. Unlike the volcano in Sicily that shares its name, Etna Supply spews out water, not fire. The company distributes equipment and supplies for residential and commercial plumbing, hydronic heating, waterworks and sewage facilities, and fire protection. It operates through about 15 locations in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio. Etna Supply company also offers related services, such as custom pipe flaring and threading, welding, valve and hydrant maintenance, and meter reading. Customers include architects, engineers, contractors, and homeowners.

Spain's Cortefiel has something for everyone. Its five main store brands -- Cortefiel, Pedro del Hierro, Springfield, Women'secret, and Milano -- target young men, older men, young women, cost-conscious women, and high-end clothing. Cortefiel operates more than 1,400 stores, mostly under the Cortefiel and Springfield banners. Although the retailer operates in about 50 countries, Spain is home to more than half of the group's stores. It owns its European stores and franchises locations in Asia, the Americas, and the Middle East. The Hinojosa family had controlled Cortefiel before CVC, PAI Partners, and Permira acquired more than 86% of it in 2005.

The story of Wilkinson Hardware defines DIY, and not just because the do-it-yourself trend has made the business a success and has allowed it to ride out a couple recessions. Founded in Leicester in 1930, Wilkinson Hardware Stores operates more than 330 home and garden shops throughout England and Wales. Each of its locations peddles some 25,000 products. Wilko, as the company is known, is one of the largest privately-held companies in the UK. The business is led by the founding Wilkinson family. J.K. Wilkinson founded the original store after gathering the seed money by saving £1 a week from his wages for nearly six years. Chairwoman Karin Swann is the founder's granddaughter.

Hartco was founded by chairman and CEO Harry Hart in 1960 and, though now public, is still operated largely by the Hart family. If you really heart computers, Hartco is for you. Through its operating divisions, which together include more than 60 locations across Canada, Hartco delivers IT products, services, and solutions to private and public sector organizations. Its distribution and franchise segment operates under the Metafore, MicroAge, and Northwest Digital brands. Its commercial segment includes the business activities operated by the company's limited partnerships under the names of Metafore LP, Solutions Technologiques Dorval LP, and MicroAge.

Walgreen Co., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the operation of a chain of drugstores in the United States. The company’s drugstores sell prescription and non-prescription drugs, and general merchandise. Its general merchandise comprises household products, convenience foods, and seasonal items, as well as personal care, beauty care, candy, and photofinishing products. The company offers its products and services through drugstores, as well as through mail, telephone, and the Internet. As of August 31, 2010, it operated 8,046 locations in 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam. Walgreen company also owns 37 strip shopping malls. Walgreen Co. was founded in 1901 and is based in Deerfield, Illinois.

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