Abt Electronics

Abt has just one location -- a massive 37-acre megastore with a parking lot that accommodates 1,000 cars in suburban Chicago, where the natives tend to incorrectly call the store ''A-B-T.'' One of the country's largest independent retailers of electronics and appliances, the company carries mostly name brands and targets affluent Chicagoans with high-end products such as Bang & Olufsen audio systems and Sub-Zero refrigerators. It also markets products through its Web site and services everything sold. Founded in 1936 by David and Jewel Abt, the company is still family owned.