Banana Republic Inc. · San Francisco, CA United States

Banana Republic has grown from a two-store wannabe safari outfitter to an empire in its own right, though no pith hats or fake palm trees can be found now at its stores. Instead, the well-known retailer of men's and women's mid-scale (not high-dollar, but far from discount) casual and tailored apparel has a sprawling territory of some 600 stores in North American, Europe, and Asia, and a Web site, through all of which it distributes its well-put-together look. A division of ailing retail giant Gap Inc. since 1983, at one point it was dangerously close to cannibalizing its parent's customers. In contrast to Gap, however, the company buys up historic landmarks and refurbishes them (as opposed to paving paradise). To read the full description, subscribe now.