Grafton Merchanting GB believes in building a solid store base for its customers. A subsidiary of the Grafton Group, the company is the umbrella organization of its parent's building supply retail operations in the UK, which include Buildbase, Jackson Building Centres, Hirebase, Civils & Lintels, Plumbase, PDM, L&G Forest Products, Hendricks Lovell, Acorn Insulation, and Keelsupply. Its network consists of more than 400 locations, which sell lumber, hardware, tools, plumbing and electrical supplies, gardening items, and other building materials, as well as offer hiring services. Grafton Merchanting also sells online. Formed in 2008, the firm brought together Buildbase with Grafton Group's other retail banners.

Kroger's Fred Meyer Stores subsidiary (acquired in 1999) operates about 125 supercenters, which offer groceries, general merchandise, and jewelry, in the western US.Kroger is the nation's 1 pure grocery chain, but it still must watch out for falling prices; Wal-Mart has overtaken Kroger as the largest seller of groceries in the US. While Kroger has diversified through acquisitions, adding jewelry and general merchandise to its mix, food stores still account for about 85% of sales. The company operates about 3,620 stores, including some 2,465 supermarkets and multidepartment stores, under two dozen banners, in about 30 states. It also runs 775 convenience stores under names such as Quik Stop and Kwik Shop

Casey’s General Stores, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates convenience stores under the names of “Casey’s General Store”, “HandiMart”, and “Just Diesel” in the Midwestern states. The company’s stores offer food, beverages, dairy and bakery products, beer, sandwiches, fountain drinks, donuts, cookies, brownies, Danish rolls, pork and chicken fritters, chicken tenders, popcorn chicken, sub sandwiches, breakfast croissants and biscuits, breakfast pizza, hash browns, hamburgers and cheeseburgers, and potato cheese bites. It also provides nonfood items, which include tobacco products, health and beauty aids, school supplies, house wares, pet supplies, photo supplies, and automotive products. In addition, the company offers gasoline or gasohol for sale on a self-service basis. As of September 30, 2010, it operated approximately 1,542 stores in Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, South Dakota, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, and Indiana. Casey's General Stores, Inc. was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Ankeny, Iowa.

Founded in 1922 as a single Phil's Shoes store, Rack Room Shoes is owned by Europe's largest shoe retailer -- Deichmann Schuhe of Germany -- which acquired Rack Room Shoes in 1984. As part of its expansion strategy, the off-price retailer plans to continue opening new stores in the southeastern US; it's focusing specifically on Texas and Arizona. Shoe-a-holics on the hunt for budget-brand names frequent the Rack Room for a fix. Rack Room Shoes sells private-label and brand-name footwear, handbags, and accessories to thrifty customers from some 390 stores in more than 25 states. Rack Room Shoes company also operates some 60 stores under the Off Broadway banner in about 10 states.

Agri-Starts was founded in 1984 by owners Randall Strode and Gerri Abner. Agri-Starts produces and wholesales tissue culture liners and micro cuttings. Put more simply, the company clones plants. The cloning process begins with a single growing tip cut from a plant. From this cut thousands of small plants are grown on a gelled nutrient-rich medium with growth regulators in a temperature- and light-controlled environment. Once the plants are large enough to harvest, Agri-Starts sells them as liners in cell packs to nurseries worldwide. The company maintains about 1,300 plant varieties, and its specialties include elephant ears, bananas, blueberries, and coleus plants.

Dierbergs Florist and Gifts, affiliated with FTD, offers gift baskets and floral services at its stores and over the Internet for local and international delivery. Founded as a trading outpost in 1854, the Dierberg family has owned and operated Dierbergs since 1914.Dierbergs Markets has a taste of what folks in St. Louis like to eat. Dierbergs operates about two dozen upscale supermarkets in the St. Louis area, where rival Schnuck Markets is the market leader. Dierbergs' stores offer food, drugs, photo processing, and video centers, as well as cooking schools, banks, self-service checkout, Krispy Kreme donuts, and made-to-order Chinese food at some locations. The company also offers online grocery shopping.

Bidz.com combines the markdowns of a dollar store, the format of an auction house, and the convenience of the Internet to bring sparkling deals to shoppers. The company buys closeout merchandise and sells it using a live-auction format, with $1 opening bids. It mostly sells jewelry, including gold, platinum, and silver items set with diamonds, as well as precious and semi-precious stones. Visitors can also find deals on electronics, apparel, and a range of collectibles (such as fine art, antiques, coins, and sports cards). In addition, the company operates Buyz.com, a fixed-price e-commerce site that offers similar items being listed for auction.

Through its eponymous print catalog and e-commerce site, Dr. Leonard's Healthcare Corp. offers a variety of health products aimed at seniors, along with clothing, collectibles, exercise equipment, home furnishings, housewares, and shoes. It also runs Carol Wright Gifts, an affiliated catalog and online retailer that sells similar merchandise as well as kitchen gadgets, travel items, gardening supplies, and holiday gifts. The company was established in 1979 by Dr. Leonard Feldman, and it operates as a subsidiary of direct marketing giant AmeriMark Holdings.

Guardian Building Products Distribution (GBPD) is a leading North American distributor of a broad line of building products used principally in home improvement, remodeling, repair work, and new residential and commercial construction. GBPD's product lines include an assortment of insulation, roofing, windows, doors, siding, and a variety of other building materials. Comprised of over 95 stocking distribution centers and brokerage offices, strategically located throughout the United States and Canada, GBPD distributes these products through this extensive branch network to independent building materials dealers, professional builders, large contractors, mass merchandisers and national co-ops. GBPD's sales force of experienced and knowledgeable professionals is committed to quality customer service. Product specialists provide additional support to the customer base. Products are available for delivery out of our warehouse, through special order, or via drop ship from over 500 manufacturers.

Shoebuy is the largest retailer on the Internet focused on all categories of footwear and related apparel. Shoebuy has partnerships with over 1,100 manufacturers and represents over 1,000,000 products from top brands including adidas, Aerosoles, Allen-Edmonds, Bass, Bostonian, Brooks, Clarks England, Crocs, Dockers, Dr. Martens, Easy Spirit, ECCO, Fila, Florsheim, Franco Sarto, Hush Puppies, Johnston & Murphy, Keds, K-Swiss, Mephisto, Merrell, Naturalizer, New Balance, Reebok, Rockport, Samsonite, Sebago, Skechers, Sperry Top-Sider, Timberland, Tommy Hilfiger, and many more. Shoebuy is rated one of the top eTailers in the country for outstanding service by BizRate, one of only 2 Companies to win this award 6 years in a row, and is rated by Hitwise as one of the Internet's Top Ten most visited apparel and accessory shopping and classified sites.

Inviting Real Estate Agents, Job Placements Agents, Educational Institutes, Software Service Providers, Real Estate Builders, Marriage Bureaus, Travel Agents, Restaurant Owners, Health & Fitness Centers and other Local Businesses to Post a FREE Classified Advertisement on Cootera.com Classifieds Website.