The Inchcape lighthouse lies 11 miles out to sea off the East coast of Arbroath, Scotland. It stands on one of the most treacherous submerged reefs in the northern hemisphere and is one of the seven wonders of the Industrial Age.Thanks to the pioneering spirit of a young engineer, Robert Stevenson, who dreamed of building the impossible, a lighthouse was planned on the ‘Rock’ that had claimed over 100 lives.Despite many obstacles, Stevenson never lost faith in his plan, and by February 1811, the lighthouse on Inchcape Rock was finished. It is the oldest, sea-standing lighthouse in the world and today, still saves lives.100 years later, inspired by this pioneering spirit, Inchcape’s founder James Lyle MacKay, when awarded a title for his services to industry became the first ‘Baron Inchcape of Strathnaver’ and so named the company that he led.

In 1959, William Jacobs started Columbus Fair Auto Auction based on excellent customer service and fairness. He recognized that auctions offered a solution to automobile dealers' needs for a source and marketplace for used motor vehicles.Obviously, the financial risk of leasing space at the Ohio State Fairgrounds to run a one-lane auction in 1959 was small, but significant for this startup entrepreneurial endeavor. It, however, pales in comparison to the present multi-million dollar investment in today's 85-acre facility in Obetz. However, the original strategy of offering a marketplace for used vehicles where buyers and sellers would congregate for the benefit of both continues today.

Sensational Beginnings (SB) helps kids start having fun early. The catalog and online merchant sells educational toys, furniture, and safety and child care items for infants and toddlers. (SB also operates a single store in Michigan.) Toy categories include science and nature, ride-ons, musical instruments, indoor active play, travel kits, and seasonal items. SB also offers gift-giving and parenting advice, a gift registry, and an online photo gallery of children using company products. Customers can shop by brand, category, or age group or get advice on age-appropriate toys and games. President Debra Shah, a former nurse specializing in mother and child medical care, founded Sensational Beginnings, Inc. in the early 1990s.

IKON was acquired by Japan's Ricoh, a key supplier, in 2008 for $1.6 billion. IKON Office Solutions works to ensure that when it comes to buying business equipment, customers say, "I can and I will." A subsidiary of office equipment giant Ricoh, IKON sells and services its parent's brand of office equipment, including copiers, printers, scanners, fax machines, and more, throughout the US, Canada, and Europe. IKON Office Solutions, Inc. also offers such services as document management outsourcing, electronic file conversions, facilities management, and training. Customers are primarily large and small businesses and government agencies.

Paper is as good as gold for Gould Paper, one of the largest distributors of business and printing papers in North America. The paper merchant distributes and sells paper to multiple markets, including fine paper, commercial printing, lithography, newsprint, direct-mail, catalog, envelope, and specialty paper companies. Gould also supplies paperboard, which is used in packaging material for consumer and industrial products, and operates paper-converting operations. Touting sales of 2 million tons of paper products annually, Gould Paper Corporation company represents most major domestic and offshore mills. Founded in 1924, Gould Paper sold a majority stake in Gould Paper Corporation company to the US arm of Japan Pulp & Paper (JPP) in 2010.

Jules Seltzer & Associates was founded in 1940 during the early days of "modern" organic interior design by Jules Seltzer. Back bothering you after hours at the desk? Has Jules got a chair for you! Jules Seltzer & Associates distributes high-end office furniture, including the cult status Aeron chair, to small offices, design firms, and retail stores. The company's inventory includes chairs, desks, modular systems, floor coverings, and related accessories. Jules Seltzer & Associates carries products made by such manufactures as Herman Miller and Knoll. It also provides design, project management, logistics, CAD, and installation services to its customers.

Blackwell UK (known as Blackwell's) operates about 50 bookshops throughout the UK under the Blackwell's and Heffers names, as well as Blackwell's Online Bookshop. Blackwell's Book Services (headquartered in the US, with offices in the UK) supplies books and bibliographic products to some 3,500 research, academic, and specialty libraries around the world. The original B.H. Blackwell's store was opened in Oxford on New Year's Day 1879, and today it is one of the company's flagship locations. The Blackwell family still owns and runs Blackwell's. The family also owns academic publisher Blackwell Publishing.

Alvarez Lincoln-Mercury began when president Ramon Alvarez, the son of a family from Tijuana that founded Baja California's first airline, purchased floundering Riverside Lincoln-Mercury in 1996 and renamed it. Within months the dealership was at the top in sales for the region after tapping into the Hispanic market.As its name implies, Alvarez Lincoln-Mercury sells new Lincolns and Mercurys, but also high-end car make Jaguar through its dealership in Riverside, California. The dealership also sells many models of used cars. Its Web site lets visitors search inventory, price cars, arrange for a service appointment, order parts, and apply for financing.

The Music People! serves music people by distributing professional audio equipment and accessories, including microphones, wireless systems, recording and mixing systems, and racks and stands. The company makes the On-Stage Stands brand of support stands, including microphone stands, orchestra stands and accessories, and speaker stands. It also makes on-stage sticks and drum hardware. The Connecticut-based firm sells to dealers, contractors, and businesses only.

Books-A-Million, Inc. operates as a book retailer in the southeastern United States. The company operates superstores and traditional bookstores that offer a selection of hardcover and paperback books, magazines, and newspapers. It also offers other merchandise, including gifts, cards, collectibles, magazines, music, and DVDs, as well as coffee, tea, and other edible products. The company also offers its products over the Internet at Booksamillion.com. It markets its products under the trademarks of Books-A-Million, BAM! Books-A-Million, Bookland, Books & Co., Millionaire’s Club, Sweet Water Press, Thanks-A-Million, Big Fat Coloring Book, Up All Night Reader, Read & Save Rebate, Readables Accessories for Readers, Kids-A-Million, Teachers First, The Write-Price, Bambeanos, Hold That Thought, Book$mart, BAMM, BAMM.com, BOOKSAMILLION.com, Chillatte, Joe Muggs Newsstand, Page Pets, JOEMUGGS.com, FAITHPOINT.com, Faithmark, Joe Muggs, Anderson’s Bookland, Snow Joe, American Wholesale Book Company, AWBC, and NetCentral. As of January 31, 2010, the company operated 223 stores, including 201 superstores under the Books-A-Million and Books & Co. brands; and 22 traditional stores under the Bookland and Books-A-Million brands in 22 states and the District of Columbia. Books-A-Million, Inc. was founded in 1917 and is based in Birmingham, Alabama.

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.