Jewel-Osco is a regional supermarket chain in the Chicago metropolitan area, headquartered in Itasca, a western suburb. In 2007, the company had 188 stores across northern, central, and western Illinois; eastern Iowa; and portions of northwest Indiana. Jewel-Osco has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Boise-based Albertsons since 1999. The company originally started as a door-to-door coffee delivery service before it expanded into delivering non-perishable groceries and later into grocery stores, and supermarkets. Prior to its 1984 acquisition by American Stores, Jewel evolved into a large multi-state holding company that operated several supermarket chains and other non-food retail chain stores located from coast to coast and had operated under several different brand names.
Hy-Vee, Inc. is an employee-owned chain of supermarkets in the Midwestern and Southern United States, with more than 280 locations in Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, Wisconsin, with stores planned in Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama. Hy-Vee was founded in 1930 by Charles Hyde and David Vredenburg in Beaconsfield, Iowa, in a small brick building known as the Beaconsfield Supply Store, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
BPS Direct, L.L.C, doing business as Bass Pro Shops, is an American privately held retailer which specializes in hunting, fishing, camping, and other related outdoor recreation merchandise. With headquarters in Springfield, Missouri, Bass Pro Shops has a workforce of about 40,000. Bass Pro also owns Cabela's, another retailer that specializes in similar categories.
Shopko was a chain of department stores based in Green Bay, Wisconsin. All locations closed on June 23, 2019, with the exception of the Shopko Optical locations, which continue to operate.
Cabela's Inc. is an American retailer that specializes in hunting, fishing, boating, camping, shooting and other outdoor recreation merchandise. The chain is based in Sidney, Nebraska. Cabela's was founded by Richard N. Cabela and Jim Cabela in 1961. Cabela's was acquired by Springfield, Missouri-based Bass Pro Shops in 2017 and has been a subsidiary since then.
L. S. Ayres and Company was a department store based in Indianapolis, Indiana, and founded in 1872 by Lyman S. Ayres. Over the years its Indianapolis flagship store, which opened in 1905 and was later enlarged, became known for its women's fashions, the Tea Room, holiday events and displays, and the basement budget store. As urban populations shifted to the suburbs, Ayres established branch stores in new shopping centers in several Indiana cities. Ayres also acquired retail subsidiaries in Springfield, Illinois; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and Louisville, Kentucky. Ayr-Way, the Ayres discount store subsidiary, became the first discount store launched by a full-line department store. By the end of the 1960s Ayres had become a diversified merchandising business with retail department stores, a chain of discount stores, specialty clothing stores, a home furnishings showroom, and a real estate holding company. A long-time Ayres slogan, "That Ayres Look", promoted the company as a fashion leader, and by 1972 it had become the oldest continuous retail slogan in the United States.
Big Y Foods, Inc. is an American, family-owned supermarket chain located in Massachusetts and Connecticut. It operates under the trade names "Big Y World Class Market" or "Big Y Supermarket".
Fred Bear was an American bow hunter and manufacturer. Although he did not start bow hunting until he was 29 and did not master the skill for many years, he is widely regarded as a pioneer in the bow hunting community. Bear was a world traveler, film producer, and the founder of Bear Archery. He died in Gainesville, Florida and is inducted in the Bowhunters Hall of Fame.
The Johnny Morris Wonders of Wildlife National Museum and Aquarium, also known as simply Wonders of Wildlife is a not-for-profit educational conservation-themed attraction in Springfield, Missouri. It is located adjacent to the Bass Pro Shops National headquarters, and is named for Johnny Morris, the Bass Pro Shops' founder. The 350,000 square foot facility consists of two major sections. The Wildlife Museum presents a series of immersive wildlife galleries containing taxidermied animals from around the world displayed in elaborate and detailed dioramas representing a variety of natural habitats, as well as historic artifacts, artwork, films, and special exhibits, including the Boone and Crockett Club's North American Heads and Horns Collection of big game mounts. The 1.5 million gallon Aquarium showcases 35,000 individual fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals in a series of themed areas including an ocean shipwreck, Louisiana swamp, Ozark forest, and the Amazon rainforest. In a press release accompanying the facility's grand opening announcement Morris was quoted as saying, “Wonders of Wildlife is an inspirational journey around the world that celebrates the role of hunters and anglers as America’s true conservation heroes.”
Scheels is an American privately held, employee-owned and operated sporting goods and entertainment chain store headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota. Scheels operates thirty-three store locations in fifteen U.S. states. Its slogan is "Gear. Passion. Sports."
The William H. Block Company was a department store chain in Indianapolis and other cities in Indiana. It was founded in 1874 by Herman Wilhelm Bloch, an immigrant from Austria-Hungary who had Americanized his name to William H. Block. The main store was located at 9 East Washington Street in Indianapolis in 1896. The company also identified itself as The Wm. H. Block Co., and Block's.
Dunham's Sports is an American sporting goods retail chain owned by Dunham's Athleisure Corporation, with stores located in the Midwestern to Southeastern United States. The chain specializes in athletic equipment, clothing, firearms, and other sports-related items. The chain has over 240 locations in 24 states, including Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
Gurnee Mills is a shopping mall and outlet mall in Gurnee, Illinois, within the Chicago metropolitan area and it is one of the tourist destinations in Chicago, Illinois. Like the nearby Six Flags Great America and Great Wolf Lodge, the mall's placement in Gurnee is intended to bring customers from Chicago, Illinois. With 1,936,699 square feet (179,925 m2) of gross leasable area and ten major anchor stores in its Z-shaped single-story building, it is the third largest mall in Illinois, and the largest of the four enclosed shopping centers in Lake County. Owned and operated by the Simon Property Group, it was an early part of the "Landmark Mills" chain of shopping malls built by the Mills Corporation. The mall features Hobby Lobby, Macy's, Kohl's, Marshalls/HomeGoods, Value City Furniture, Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World, Off Broadway Shoe Warehouse, Forever 21, H&M, Dick's Sporting Goods, Marcus Theatres, Rainforest Cafe, Top Shelf Ice Arena, The RoomPlace, Lee Wrangler Clearance Center, Burlington Coat Factory, and Floor & Decor as its anchor tenants.
George Leonard Herter of Waseca, Minnesota was the founder of the Herter's outdoor goods business and an author. His best known books are the Bull Cook and Authentic Historical Recipes and Practices series, which have a cult following today.
John A. Brown was an Oklahoma department store chain. It operated under that name from 1932, when its founder bought out its predecessor and renamed the chain for himself. After Mr. Brown died in 1940, his widow took over management until her own death in 1967, forcing a change in ownership. Dayton-Hudson, another retail company, continued operating the chain under the Brown name, until 1984, when Dayton-Hudson sold the Brown chain to Dillard's, another national chain, which combined all of the Brown stores under its own name. The flagship store on West Main Street was closed in 1974 and was subsequently razed as part of an urban renewal project. The project was supposed to result in a new shopping center known as the Galleria. However, the project was never completed, so the Brown chain never returned to downtown.
Oshman's Sporting Goods Inc. was a sporting goods retailer in the United States. Their headquarters were in East End, Houston, Texas. It operated traditional sporting goods stores and Oshman's Supersports USA megastores.
Wahlburgers, is a casual dining burger restaurant and bar chain. It is owned by chef Paul Wahlberg and his brothers, actors Donnie and Mark. As of March 2023, there are 90+ Wahlburgers locations in the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. The company previously had a restaurant in London. The company also operates a few food trucks in the US.
John L. Morris is an American billionaire businessman, and the founder, majority owner, and CEO of Bass Pro Shops, a hunting and fishing retail chain in the US and Canada. As of February 2023, his net worth was estimated at US$8.3 billion.
Gander Mountain, later known as Gander Outdoors and Gander RV, headquartered in St. Paul, Minnesota, was a retail network of stores for hunting, fishing, camping, and other outdoor recreation products and services.
