Sam's Club runs about 600 "no frills" stores in 48 US states, plus another 135 or so stores in Brazil, China, Mexico, and Puerto Rico. The chain's 47 million-plus members -- many of them small-business owners -- pay an annual fee to shop there. The stores average 133,000 square feet and offer more than 4,000 discounted items, including bulk office supplies and food, electronic goods, jewelry, clothes, insurance and travel services, and Member's Mark store-brand products. Samsclub.com is the company's online incarnation.

In 1978 a group of 13 pharmacists banded together to form what is now known as Value Drug Mart Associates Ltd. Their mission was clear—to provide quality healthcare and great products in community-minded, independently owned and operated stores. Today, the association consists of 35 member shareholder Value Drug Mart stores, 11 Apple Drugs member stores, 11 Rxellence Professional Dispensaries, and 300 affiliated stores. Our Central Office and Distribution Centre in Edmonton, AB is located in 85,000 square feet that is owned and operated by the member shareholders, under the direction of an elected Board of Directors. The original concept of the founding member shareholders was to provide the existing and future member shareholders with an organization designed to provide increased profitability to individual store owners rather than to create a wholesale profit centre. That direction remains to this day.

Cinder Block wants to help you expand your beloved concert T-shirt collection. The merchandising and licensing company got its start in 1989 on a Berkeley sidewalk where co-founder and president Jeffery Bischoff set up a card table and hawked manually printed T-shirts to students and tourists. Today Cinder Block's client roster numbers more than 300 artists, including musical acts Radiohead, Green Day, the Pixies, and Weezer. In addition to traditional apparel offerings, the company provides merchandising services for concert tours. Cinder Block's venture, Cinder Block Ticketing, was created in partnership with Baseline Ticketing to offer online ticket presales. It was acquired by Transom Capital Group in 2009.

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.

The Gap, Inc. operates as a specialty retailing company. The company offers clothing, accessories, and personal care products for men, women, children, and babies under the Gap, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Piperlime, and Athleta brand names. Its products include wardrobe basics, such as denim, khakis, and T-shirts; fashion apparel; casual apparel and accessories; maternity apparel; women’s underwear, sleepwear, loungewear, and sports and active apparel; and shoes and accessories. The company also franchises agreements with unaffiliated franchisees to operate Gap and Banana Republic stores worldwide. As of March 24, 2010, it operated approximately 3,100 stores in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Japan, and Ireland. The Gap also offers its products through catalogs, as well as gap.com, bananarepublic.com, oldnavy.com, piperlime.com, and athleta.com Web sites. The Gap, Inc. was founded in 1969 and is based in San Francisco, California.

Doc's Drugs was founded by Dave Sartoris, who runs the company with his son Tony. After visiting the doc, customers in northeastern Illinois can fill their prescriptions at Doc's Drugs. The regional drugstore chain operates more than15 pharmacies under the Doc's Discount Drugs banner. In addition to dispensing prescription medications, Doc's Drugs sells medical equipment, collectibles, electronics, and toys, as well as offering in-store photo processing. Doc's Drugs also sells more than 100 products online. Doc's Drugs, Ltd. company is remodeling many of its stores to focus on its pharmacy operation, which accounts for 80% of sales. To that end, it is eliminating hardware, liquor, and groceries from its shelves.

Fred's, Inc. and its subsidiaries sell general merchandise through retail discount stores and pharmacies in the southeastern United States. It offers pharmaceuticals, household goods, food and tobacco products, apparel and linens, health and beauty aids, household cleaning supplies, disposable diapers, pet foods, paper products, and various beverage products principally to low, middle, and fixed income families. The company also sells general merchandise to franchised Fred's stores. As of April 3, 2010, it operated 669 discount general merchandise stores, including 24 franchised stores. The company was founded in 1947 and is headquartered in Memphis, Tennessee.

Giordano was founded in 1981 by Jimmy Lai. Think of Giordano International as the Old Navy of the Pacific Rim. Named after a New York pizzeria, the retailer is known for colorful, low-cost casual apparel and chipper service. Its store banners include Giordano, Giordano Ladies, Giordano Junior, and the budget-conscious Bluestar Exchange. Giordano operates or franchises more than 1,900 stores in China and Hong Kong (its primary markets), and a dozen other Asian countries, as well as Australia, and the Middle East. Expanding internationally it has opened its first stores in Egypt, Russia, and the US (in Los Angeles). Giordano International Limited company has been reducing its exposure to unprofitable garment manufacturing operations.

George Bence & Sons has provided builders with the tools of their trade for more than a century. Established in 1899, the firm sells construction products including concrete blocks, insulation, hardboard, and paints to national builders and do-it-yourself buyers. Its delivery program utilizes a 20-vehicle fleet that operates within a 40-mile radius. Other services include plot scheduling, in which housebuilding items are delivered on a pre-arranged schedule, and landscape planning. George Bence & Sons operates from offices in Cheltenham and Bristol.

Adams Fairacre Farms was founded in 1919 by Ralph Adams Sr. as a roadside produce stand where the Adams family sold the excess from its 50-acre farm. The company added other items as customers requested them. Descendants of Adams, including some third generation members, own and run the family business. From seeds to seafood and fertilizer to fencing, Adams Fairacre Farms has a few things covered. The company's three locations in New York's Hudson River Valley offer groceries, including fresh produce, power equipment (John Deere tractors and mowers, chippers, chain saws), fencing supplies, landscaping materials, and gifts and gardening supplies (plants, seeds, soil, pest control).

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