Blockbuster Video is an American multimedia brand and former video rental store chain. It was founded by David Cook in 1985 as a stand-alone mom-and-pop home video rental shop, but later grew into a national store chain featuring video game rentals, DVD-by-mail, streaming, video on demand, and cinema theater. The company expanded internationally throughout the 1990s. At its peak in 2004, Blockbuster employed 84,300 people worldwide and operated 9,094 stores.
Publix Super Markets, Inc., commonly known as Publix, is an employee-owned American supermarket chain headquartered in Lakeland, Florida. Founded in 1930 by George W. Jenkins, Publix is a private corporation that is wholly owned by present and past employees and members of the Jenkins family. Publix operates throughout the Southeastern United States, with locations in Florida (865), Georgia (211), Alabama (90), South Carolina (69), Tennessee (57), North Carolina (54), Virginia (20), and Kentucky (1). Kentucky is the most recent addition to the Publix footprint, with the company's first store in that state having opened on January 10, 2024, in Louisville.
Harry Wayne Huizenga Sr. was an American businessman. He founded AutoNation and Waste Management Inc., and was the owner or co-owner of Blockbuster Video, the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL), the Florida Panthers of the National Hockey League (NHL), and the Florida Marlins of Major League Baseball (MLB).
The University of South Carolina Upstate is a public university in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Founded in 1967 and formerly known as University of South Carolina Spartanburg, the institution changed its name in the summer of 2004. It offers bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees for students in the Upstate and surrounding areas. It is part of the University of South Carolina System and home to approximately 5,200 students and 340 full-time faculty. It is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
Las Olas Boulevard is a major east-west thoroughfare in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States that runs from SW 1st Avenue in the Central Business District to Florida State Road A1A in Fort Lauderdale Beach. The name "Las Olas" means "The Waves" in Spanish. The road once carried the designations of State Road A1A Alt. and State Road 842.
Swisher Hygiene Inc. is a sanitation company in the United States which until 2015 traded on the NASDAQ. Originally a janitorial service company, two-thirds of its revenue are now generated by selling cleaning and sanitizing chemicals.
The Upstate, historically known as the Upcountry, is a region of the U.S. state of South Carolina, comprising the northwesternmost area of the state. Although loosely defined among locals, the general definition includes the 10 counties of the commerce-rich I-85 corridor in the northwest corner of South Carolina. This definition coincided with the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson, SC Combined Statistical Area, as first defined by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 2015. In 2023, the OMB issued its most updated definition of the CSA that coincides again with the 10-county region.
Ivey's, a former department store chain, was acquired by Dillard's, Inc. in 1990. Ivey's was based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and was founded in 1900 by Joseph Benjamin Ivey.
Donald L. Fowler was an American political scientist, professor, and political operative who served as National Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC) from 1995 to 1997, alongside Chris Dodd as General Chairman during this same period.
The UNC Kenan-Flagler Business School is the business school of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, a public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Founded in 1919, the school was renamed to its current name in 1991 in honor of Mary Lily Kenan and her husband, Henry Flagler.
Extended Stay America, Inc., headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, is the operator of an economy apartment hotel chain in the United States and Canada. As of December 31, 2019, the company owned and operated 557 hotel properties consisting of approximately 61,900 rooms and franchised or managed 73 hotel properties consisting of approximately 7,500 rooms. Prior to June 2021, when the company was acquired by Blackstone Real Estate and the Starwood Capital Group, it was publicly traded as a "paired share" with ESH Hospitality, Inc., a real estate investment trust and the owner of the hotels. As of 2022, there are 650+ Extended Stay America branded hotels.
Banta Corporation was a major printing, imaging, and supply chain management company of the United States, based in Menasha, Wisconsin, for all of its 105 years. Founded in 1901, it was acquired by Chicago-based RR Donnelley in late 2006.
Essential Utilities is an American utility company that has stakes in Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia The company provides drinking water and wastewater treatment infrastructure and services. Essential Utilities is the publicly traded ($WTRG) parent company that oversees the continued business of Aqua America and Peoples Natural Gas, who both continue to do business under their original names.
John Walker Chidsey is an American businessman and attorney who has been CEO of Subway since November 2019. He was formerly the executive chairman and CEO of Burger King Corporation. He is a director and member of the audit committee for HealthSouth Corporation. He previously was chairman and CEO for two corporate divisions of Cendant Corporation from January 1996 to March 2003.
NextEra Energy, Inc. is an American energy company with about 58 GW of generating capacity, revenues of over $18 billion in 2020, and about 14,900 employees throughout the US and Canada. It is the world's largest electric utility holding company by market capitalization, with a valuation of over $120 billion as of Nov 2023. Its subsidiaries include Florida Power & Light (FPL), NextEra Energy Resources (NEER), NextEra Energy Partners, Gulf Power Company, and NextEra Energy Services.
Halifax Media Group was an American newspaper company owning more than 30 newspapers in five Southeastern U.S. States. It was founded on March 31, 2010 when a group of investors purchased The Daytona Beach News-Journal from the Davidson family, who had owned it for 82 years. On December 27, 2011, The New York Times Company announced it was selling its Regional Media Group to Halifax Media Group. On June 1, 2012, Halifax announced it was acquiring the Florida and North Carolina papers of Freedom Communications. In 2013, Halifax acquired three newspapers from HarborPoint Media: the Daily Commercial of Leesburg, Florida, the South Lake Press in Clermont, Florida and News-Sun of Sebring, Florida. In 2014, Halifax acquired the Telegram & Gazette of Worcester, Massachusetts. In November 2014, New Media Investment Group announced its acquisition of Halifax. The company was created with the assistance of Stephens Inc.
Lonnie Poole Jr. is the founder of Waste Industries, one of the largest waste and recycling companies in the Southeast United States with approximately 2 million service points. Poole is also known as the largest contributor of all time to North Carolina State University.
