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.

Farm Stores Corporation is exploring plans to expand its concept nationally. Founded in 1935, the Bared family, fronted by company president and CEO Carlos Bared, bought Farm Stores out of bankruptcy in 1992.Farm Stores Corporation's drive-thru markets, you never leave the car. With more than 100 Express Markets throughout Florida, Farm Stores is the nation's largest drive-thru grocery retailer. The chain's pre-paid Farm Stores Quick Card (think of it as a debit card for milk) allows customers to buy gallons more cheaply by paying in advance. The grocery chain's stores are supplied by Associated Grocers of Florida.

Keller Supply was founded by Howard Keller in 1945 and is still owned and run by the Keller family, including CEO Nick Keller. If you're building a house in the Pacific Northwest, Keller has the supplies you need. Through about 55 locations in Alaska, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington, Keller Supply distributes residential and commercial HVAC, plumbing, and pool and spa products from more than 1,000 manufacturers including Kohler, Honeywell International, Rheem, Porter-Cable, and Pentair . Customers include contractors and home improvement retailers as well as international customers in Canada and farther afield.

JLP has several manufacturing subsidiaries that make wooden furniture, and bedding; its 4,000-acre Leckford Estate in Hampshire grows apples, pears, mushrooms, and produces milk, poultry, and eggs for sale in Waitrose supermarkets. JLP has an online shopping service, John Lewis Direct, and its employee pension plan owns about 24% of Internet grocer Ocado, which delivers Waitrose products.What began as a London drapery shop is today one of the UK's largest retailers -- and arguably its most oddly organized. John Lewis Partnership (JLP) runs about 30 John Lewis department stores and some 235 Waitrose supermarkets, primarily in London and southern England, but also in Scotland and Wales.

Alexon Group is an apparel retailer with more than 100 shops throughout the UK and Europe as well as about 900 concessions inside large UK department stores. It also markets clothing online. The company's brands include Alex & Co., Ann Harvey, Dash, Eastex, Kaliko, and Minuet. Undergoing changes designed to improve profits and focus, the company sold its Bay Trading subsidiary, which operated about 260 stores, to Rinku Group after placing the chain in administration in 2009. The rest of the Alexon Group did not go into administration but is suffering from slumping sales.

Mar-Cone Appliance Parts Center was founded in 1932 by Harry Markow as a door-to-door rebuilt vacuum cleaner company. CEO Mitchell Markow is the founder's grandson. Marcone Appliance Parts Center helps keep your refrigerator, dishwasher, and air conditioner running. Mar-Cone Appliance Parts Center distributes appliance repair parts; it also sells HVAC and plumbing supplies. Marcone operates through more than 40 locations in the US, mostly in California and Florida. Mar-Cone Appliance Parts Center provides parts from vendors such as KitchenAid, Whirlpool, and Maytag. It also exports parts to clients in about 120 countries around the globe. Marcone has been growing through acquisitions while consolidating business operations.

The regional home improvement center chain was founded in 1962. A management group led by chairman and former CEO Charles Bender acquired the company in 1988 and now owns about one-quarter of Busy Beaver, which is facing heavyweight competition from big-box chains, such as Home Depot and Lowe's. They're busy as, well, you know what kind of animals at Busy Beaver Building Centers. The company has 15 stores in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia selling ceilings, flooring, lumber, plumbing fixtures, and other building materials, along with garden supplies, hardware, power equipment, and tools. Busy Beaver serves the professional contractor as well as the do-it-yourselfer.

CEO and president Dan Brettler founded the company in Bellevue, Washington, in 1987. When you outgrow toy cars, you're likely to find Car Toys. Car Toys sells in-car DVD systems, satellite radios, audio components, security systems, navigation systems, radar detectors, and wireless phones and plans. The company offers such brands as Alpine, Audiovox, JBL, Motorola, Panasonic, Pioneer, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless. Car Toys peddles its products through about 50 retail locations in several states, including Colorado, Oregon, Texas, and Washington, as well as through its website. In addition to offering electronics, Car Toys stores provide installation services and advice.

Some people may not like to eat Atomic Spears, but these guys think it is all A Matter of Taste. The company sells specialty food products, such as Atomic Spears (pickles) and Atomic Shrooms (mushrooms), Glow Babies (pickled carrots), P.B. Loco (flavored peanut butter), and cheddar beer soup. A Matter of Taste also peddles quilts and assorted commemorative figurines. While A Matter of Taste Inc. sells its products from its Web site, it also operates a single retail store in Washington.

Groupe Samse (formerly Society Samse SA) is helping build France. Samse is one of the country's top wholesale distributors of building and do-it-yourself materials, with about 250 outlets, serving some 260,000 customers across two dozen French provinces. It operates two commercial business segments: multi-specialists (supplying technical solutions to building professionals) and specialists (targeting building and public works professionals). Its third segment, do-it-yourself, caters to individual rather than commercial clients. Through La Boite a Outils and and Entrepot du Bricolage retail stores, Samse sells a variety of home building and improvement products similar to The Home Depot and Lowe's in the US.

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