Bare Escentuals sells its products in the US through about 120 company-owned shops, 870 beauty product retailers, and 1,470 spas and salons. It also boasts distributors in Canada, Japan, and the UK and other European countries. Japanese cosmetics company Shiseido acquired Bare Escentuals for $1.7 billion in 2010. When it comes to keeping its customers looking naturally pretty, Bare Escentuals has a mineral interest. The company, which rolled out its bareMinerals makeup brand in 1976 along with its first retail shop, develops, markets, and sells natural cosmetics, skin care, and body care items. Brand names include bareMinerals, Buxom, md formulations, RareMinerals, and its namesake line.

MBS Textbook Exchange gives college kids around the country some spending cash at the end of every semester. In addition to distributing new and used textbooks to more than 4,000 colleges and universities nationwide, the company also develops and sells the systems that enable bookstores to sell books and buy them back. MBS is organized into MBS Wholesale, MBS Direct, and MBS Systems. The wholesale division supplies campus bookstores, while the direct division provides books to private K-12 schools, vocational schools, teaching hospitals, and community colleges. The company was founded in 1909 as The Missouri Store Company and became MBS Textbook Exchange in 1980.

The year was 1899. Jardine Cycle & Carriage began its life in Kuala Lumpur as Federal Stores, a trader in nutmegs and other sundries, and it became Cycle & Carriage within the same year, selling everything from soap to writing paper and simple machine parts. We soon began to sell bicycles, motorcycles and cars, moving our headquarters to Singapore in 1926.The history of Jardine Cycle & Carriage is inextricably linked to the evolution of the motor car and the emergence of Singapore and Malaysia as independent modern states. Our story reveals fluctuating fortunes as the transportation industry was subject to economic cycles, two world wars and changing government policies.What has stood out through the years despite a rapidly changing environment is the resilience to adapt and grow though our unwavering commitment to achieve excellence in our products and services, and efficiency in our operations, which are still hallmarks of Jardine Cycle & Carriage till this day.

Founded in 1956 by Harry Ritchie, today the regional jewelry chain is run by the third generation of the Ritchie family, including CEO Donald Ritchie. Despite the sound of its name, you don't have to be Mr. or Ms. "Money Bags" to shop at Harry Ritchie's. Harry Ritchie Jewelers offers discounted diamond and gemstone jewelry and specializes in men's and women's wedding sets at about 30 stores in shopping malls throughout the northwestern US (Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and northern California). Harry Ritchie also features its jewelry collections in a monthly catalog distributed to its customers and sells its rings and things online.

Flying Brands' company products are continually flying off the shelves. Flying Brands Limited company sells animal and bird feed, audio books, flowers, and other items through its mail-order operations. It operates under such names as Flying Flowers and Gardening Bird Supplies. Flying Brands Limited company was established in the 1980s as a carnation exporter and has expanded each year since then. Flying Brands owns UK greeting cards business Greetings Direct, as well. Flying Brands Limited company also operates retail websites for each of its subsidiaries, including Flowers Direct and Garden Centre Online. Flying Brands sold its Benham Collectibles business to The Stanley Gibbons Group in late 2010.

With more than 40 years in the automotive industry, JM Family Enterprises is a leading provider of quality products and services. We are a privately-held company, offering a dynamic work environment, world-class benefits and a culture of giving. An unwavering commitment to our associates and customers has earned us national recognition in each of our businesses, and we are dedicated to providing the best service possible to our clients and partners.Exceeding your expectations is an ambitious mission. And we accomplish it every day. How? By having the best people and most innovative processes in the industry.

Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. engages in the retail and direct marketing of vitamins, minerals, nutritional supplements, herbs, sports nutrition formulas, homeopathic remedies, natural pet food, low carb foods, diet and weight management supplements, and other health and beauty aids primarily in the United States. It sells its products through its retail stores, as well as through its catalog and Websites, primarily vitaminshoppe.com. Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. sells its products under its Vitamin Shoppe, BodyTech, and MD Select brand names, including Ultimate Man, Ultimate Woman, and Whey Tech, as well as under national brands, which include Solgar, Twinlab, EAS, and Nature’s Way. As of March 9, 2010, it operated 447 stores in 37 states and the District of Columbia. Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. was formerly known as VS Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. in November 2009. Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in North Bergen, New Jersey.

Desert Sun Motors Inc sells new Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, GMC, and Toyota brand vehicles. And of course, it sells used cars, provides parts and annual service, and operates a quick lube center. The dealership has three locations in New Mexico -- one in Roswell and two in Alamogordo. The Desert Sun Motors Web site allows customers to view featured vehicles and Internet specials, print out service coupons, search the inventory, and make reservations for a test drive. Founder Bobby Martinez owns the company.

The Birthdays concept was later launched in 1986. Clinton Cards purchased its rival Birthdays in 2004 and runs the unit as a separate business. Amid economic turmoil and slowed consumer spending, however, Birthdays collapsed into administration (the equivalent of bankruptcy in the US) in 2009. You say it's your birthday? Well, your friends better run to a Birthdays store for those cards! The company operates about 200 (down from more than 400) Birthdays stores in the UK and Ireland offering discount greeting cards and party supplies for every occasion. Founded in 1966 as Ron Wood Greeting Cards, the company was originally a distributor of cards and gift wrap until the mid-1970s when it opened three card shops.

Hicks may be in the sticks, but it has the supplies sporting goods retailers need. The company distributes marine, fishing, hunting, archery, and other outdoor products to retailers nationwide. Its bi-annual trade shows draw more than 1,500 retailers nationwide to look at boats, guns, fishing tackle, bows, arrows, and other recreational goodies. The company carries more than 30,000 items from 700 vendors and sells through a B2B site, as well. Hicks was founded in the early 1900s and has been family owned and run since. Third- and fourth-generation family members hold the chairman and CFO (John M. Wise) and president and CEO (John M. Wise, Jr.) positions.

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