Hallmark Cards, Inc. · Kansas City, MO United States

As the #1 producer of warm fuzzies, Hallmark Cards is the Goliath of greeting cards. The company's cards are sold under brand names such as Hallmark, Shoebox, and Ambassador and can be found in more than 43,000 US retail stores. (About 3,500 stores bear the Hallmark Gold Crown name; the majority of these stores are independently owned.) Hallmark also offers electronic greeting cards, gifts, and flowers through its Web site. In addition to greeting cards, the company owns crayon manufacturer Crayola (formerly Binney & Smith), a controlling stake in cable broadcaster Crown Media, and Kansas City's Crown Center real estate development firm. Members of the founding Hall family own two-thirds of Hallmark. To read the full description, subscribe now.