Walter Alexander, the company's president, is a grandson of the founder, John Alexander, who ran Alexander Lumber until his death in 1944. Gabriel Garcia Marquez wrote One Hundred Years of Solitude, and Alexander Lumber can tell you about 100 years of selling wood. More than a century, in fact. The family-owned company was established in 1891. Alexander Lumber conducts wholesale and retail sales of tree products from about 25 retail lumberyards in Illinois and Wisconsin. Alexander Lumber's manufacturing division, Cortland Components, designs and builds wooden trusses and joists for construction at a plant in Cortland, Illinois.

Artfulhome.com, an online and catalog retailer of fine art and gifts, is an offshoot of The Guild, an art publishing company founded in 1985 that represents more than 1,200 North American artists. The Web site and catalog, which feature fine art prints, paintings, photography, and sculpture, were launched in 1999. In addition Artfulhome.com sells nontraditional works of art (made of glass, fiber, metal, and wood), ceramics, home furnishings and lighting, tableware, jewelry, and books. Toni Sikes, a Madison entrepreneur, launched the company from a Wisconsin warehouse. The firm changed the name of its Web site from Guild.com to Artfulhome.com in 2008.

Shoprite stores offer fresh produce from local growers and regional specialty items, Waitrose-brand fresh foods, and Iceland brand frozen goods. Shoprite Group is a subsidiary of Nicholson Investments and is run by Deryck Nicholson.Shoprite wants consumers to exercise their right to shop. Shoprite Group owns and operates about 10 Shoprite supermarkets, a Mercedes-Benz dealership, two shopping centers, and a wine warehouse on the tiny Isle of Man. To stay afloat in the competitive UK grocery market, Shoprite Group has adopted an everyday-low-pricing strategy popularized by US retail giant Wal-Mart Stores, which bought Britain's ASDA Group in 2000.

American Signature operates about 130 stores in 20 states under the American Signature Furniture and Value City Furniture banners. Stores feature wood and upholstered home furnishing collections, as well as bedding. In addition to its retail operations, American Signature designs and manufactures its own pieces and operates its own warehouses and distribution centers. The American Signature Furniture concept was introduced by parent Schottenstein Stores in 2002, in an effort to expand the company's higher-end offerings.

The regional grocery chain is pursuing a "fresh store" strategy with a heavy emphasis on fresh foods. Parent company A&P, which added Super Fresh to its shopping cart in 1982, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in late 2010. The company plans to keep all of its stores open while it reorganizes.Super Fresh Food Markets operates more than 60 grocery stores in Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia. About half of the locations have in-store pharmacies, and some are open around the clock. Other amenities include takeout meals, floral shops, and a Just for Kids aisle.

The Jones Group Inc. engages in the design, marketing, and wholesale of apparel, footwear, and accessories in the United States and Canada. Its products include skirts, blouses, pants, jackets, sweaters, jeanswear, suits, dresses, casual tops, outerwear, shorts, and vests for women’s, juniors, and girls market. The company also sells footwear, handbags, and small leather goods, as well as costume, semiprecious, sterling silver, and marcasite jewelry. It markets its products under various brands, including Jones New York, Nine West, Anne Klein, Gloria Vanderbilt, Kasper, Bandolino, Easy Spirit, Evan-Picone, l.e.i., Energie, Enzo Angiolini, Joan & David, Mootsies Tootsies, Sam & Libby, Napier, Judith Jack, Albert Nipon, and Le Suit. The Jones Group also markets costume jewelry under the ‘Givenchy’ brand licensed from Givenchy Corporation, and footwear under the Dockers and Dockers brand licensed from Levi Strauss & Co. In addition, Jones Group licenses its brand names to manufacturers and distributors of women’s and men’s apparel and accessories products. The Jones Group sells its products through specialty and department stores, and mass merchandisers, as well as through company-owned network of retail and factory outlet stores, and e-commerce Websites. As of December 31, 2009, it operated 321 specialty retail and 617 outlet stores. The Jones Group was formerly known as Jones Apparel Group, Inc. and changed its name to The Jones Group Inc. on October 18, 2010. The Jones Group Inc. was founded in 1975 and is based in New York, New York.

GLENTEL (TSX: GLN) is a leading provider of innovative and reliable telecommunications services and solutions in Canada and the United States. Founded in 1963 and headquartered in Burnaby, BC, GLENTEL comprises three operating divisions – Retail Canada, Retail US and Business – that service thousands of consumers and commercial communications customers. The company operates more than 280 stores across Canada as well as 138 mall stores in the United States. GLENTEL's Retail Division consists of three consumer brands in Canada: WIRELESSWAVE/WAVE SANS FIL, Tbooth wireless/la cabine T sans fil, and WIRELESS etc./SANS-FIL etc. providing wireless and wired communications products and services as well as a choice of cellular brands to consumers through retail malls and Costco Wholesale stores. With locations in British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, GLENTEL is now one of the largest multi-carrier retailers in Canada. Through its Diamond Wireless locations, it offers Verizon Premium Retailer service in the US. GLENTEL’s Business Division, with branches across Canada, provides integrated wireless solutions for public safety, government and business customers. These solutions include designing and commissioning wireless networks for commercial applications in three core areas: terrestrial radio systems, satellite network services, and advanced mobile solutions. With more than four decades of experience in wireless communications, GLENTEL has the largest technical staff of its kind in Canada to develop, install and support a broad range of end-to-end solutions. GLENTEL has been publicly traded on the Toronto Stock Exchange since June 1, 1983, and is headquartered in Burnaby, British Columbia.

Where can Kiwis buy their groceries and their consumer retail goods under one roof? The Warehouse. One of New Zealand's leading retailers, The Warehouse Group operates about 85 department stores and 45 office supply stores under the Warehouse Stationery banner throughout the country. Its offerings include apparel, entertainment, technology, music, sporting goods, grocery items, and gardening accessories, among many others. Founded in 1982, the company decided to exit the Australian market in 2005 and sold that subsidiary (comprising 122 Warehouse Australia stores) to focus on its home market. A bid by Australian retail giant Woolworths to acquire Warehouse Group was blocked by regulators in mid-2008.

Slumberland has some reclining, bedding, and sofa solutions. Primarily situated in the upper Midwest region of the US, the company operates more than 110 stores in 10 US states. It first opened its doors as a mattress shop and La-Z-Boy specialty shop in 1967, but today Slumberland has extended its reach into furniture for the bedroom, dining room, and living room. The company is a leading retailer of La-Z-Boy upholstery and also sells Natuzzi leather pieces and both Sealy and Simmons mattresses. Franchising has become an increasingly vital part of Slumberland's strategy for expansion.

Raymours Furniture Company operates more than 90 retail stores, including about 10 clearance centers, in half a dozen states. It sells furniture for just about every room in the house (bedroom, dining room, home office, living room), offering such pieces as bookcases, entertainment centers, headboards, mattresses, nightstands, recliners, sofas, and tables. Brands such as Broyhill, Hooker, Klaussner, La-Z-Boy, Natuzzi, and Tempur-Pedic are represented. Founded in 1947 by brothers Arnold and Bernard Goldberg, Raymour & Flanigan is run by next-generation Goldbergs, president and CEO Neil and EVPs Michael and Steven.

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