Gucci Group, an Italian company with a Dutch address that sells French fashion, does quite well in Japan, too. Offerings include handbags and other leather goods, shoes, ready-to-wear clothing, cosmetics, skin care, jewelry, and watches. Gucci family squabbles and imprudent licensing once nearly doomed the firm. New management revived it with fresh product lines and stricter licensing, as well as heavy investing in its Asian presence. Gucci operates about 425 stores worldwide and wholesales products through franchisees and upscale department stores. French retailer PPR purchased almost all of the remaining shares in the company in 2004, taking its interest up to 99.4%.

Founded in 1857, the company offers thousands of writing instruments and art products. Sanford, part of the Office Products business segment of consumer products giant Newell Rubbermaid, makes pens, markers, highlighters, paints and brushes, pastels, and art pencils. Its portfolio includes a variety of popular brands, such as DYMO, EXPO, Paper Mate, Parker, Liquid Paper, mimio, Prismacolor, Pelouze, Rolodex, rotring, Sharpie, uni-ball, CardScan, and Waterman. Sanford peddles its products through mass merchants, office superstores, office supply stores, contract stationers, and other retail formats.

Pookie Products was founded in 2001 by two New York University sorority sisters. Combine cosmetics and terms of endearment, and you get Pookie Products. The firm makes and markets lip balms using beeswax, shea butter, and natural oils such as avocado, apricot kernel, sweet almond, and coconut. Balms include its champagne-flavored I Do lip balm, It's a Boy! and It's a Girl! mini-tins, mint and vanilla Apookalips, as well as private labeling balms for wedding parties, bridal showers, and other special occasions. The company's products, which have expanded to include bath and body products and apparel, are available in specialty retailers (like Anthropologie) and through its online store.

Nikken Global Inc. company is owned by Isamu Masuda, who founded it in Japan in 1975. Nikken Global customers count on the company's magnetism to help them rest and relax. The company markets magnetic therapeutic devices and other wellness products through its global network of independent consultants and e-commerce site. Nikken's magnetic products include sleep masks, bedding, shoe inserts, support wraps, massagers, and jewelry. The firm also offers nutritional supplements, organic skin care items, pet products, air and water filtration systems, and weighted athletic shoes. Nikken serves customers in about 35 countries in the Asia/Pacific region, Europe, and North America.

CEO Tina Aldatz Norris founded Foot Petals, Inc. in 2001. Foot Petals makes insoles and shoe cushions designed for stilettos, strappy sandals, pointy-toed shoes, and other fashionable footwear. Its shoe cushions are made from a foam urethane called PORON (made by Rogers Corporation) and are named Killer Kushionz, Sole Stopperz, Tip Toes, Haute Heelz, Strappy Slips, and Amazing Arches. In 2007 the company extended its reach into slippers, legwear, gift sets, and accessories. Foot Petals, which also makes Sole Kings for men, peddles its products at Nordstrom, Zappos, and Target.

Founded in 1976, Walsh & Simmons is co-owned by company president Bill Simmons and vice president Mike Walsh. Walsh & Simmons company manufactures wood and metal furniture primarily for use in the restaurant industry. Its products, distributed through authorized dealers and representatives, include upholstered and wooden booths, stools, wooden and metal chairs, waiting settees, and table tops and bases.

Baxter of California is embraced worldwide by well-groomed male Baby Boomers. Named for Baxter Finley, who founded the company in the mid-1960s and sold it to president and CEO Jean-Pierre Mastey in 2000, the firm makes men's grooming products for shaving, skin care, anti-aging, and hair and body. It's one of the first personal care products companies to cater exclusively to men. Baxter of California products are sold in spas, salons, and specialty stores such as American Male and the UK's House of Fraser. The company rounds out its personal care products with apparel, candles, and grooming accessories.

Credited with the popularization of the banquet chair in 1959, Shelby Williams has maintained the #1 market position for hospitality in seating worldwide. It became top of mind with interior designers that specify furniture products for hospitality installations such as hotels, restaurants, casinos and country clubs. Because Shelby offer the broadest product offering and highest quality in the industry, it is close to impossible to open the Shelby Williams catalog and not find a design that conveys the proper image for a facility. In addition, Shelby offer custom-designed products around Shelby client’s unique design and function requirements, with the manufacturing capacity to supply very large projects with relatively short lead times.

Wolverine World Wide, Inc. company was founded in 1883 and is based in Rockford, Michigan. Wolverine World Wide, Inc. is a designer, manufacturer and marketer of a range of casual shoes, rugged outdoor and work footwear. Approximately 46.6 million pairs of the Company’s branded footwear were sold during the fiscal year ended January 3, 2009 (fiscal 2008). The products are marketed throughout the world under brand names, including Bates, Cat Footwear, Chaco, Cush, Harley-Davidson Footwear, Hush Puppies, HyTest, Merrell, Patagonia Footwear, Sebago and Wolverine. The Company’s footwear products are organized under four operating units: the Wolverine Footwear Group, the Outdoor Group, the Heritage Brands Group and The Hush Puppies Company. The Company operates in Branded Footwear, Apparel and Licensing segment. The Company’s Other Business units consist of its retail stores, leathers and pigskin procurement operations. The Company acquired the Chaco and ULU Footwear businesses in January 2009.

Empire Office is owned by the family of Abraham Gaslow, who founded it in 1946. Empire Office company's products -- which come from some 300 manufacturers -- range from cubicle workstations to products for the executive offices, including storage units, lighting, seating, case goods, and accessories. Empire Office also provides installation. Empire Office is one of the leading Steelcase furniture dealers in the US.

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.