Carrefour SA history, profile and history video Carrefour SA engages in the operation of grocery stores. Its business activities are divided into the following store formats: Hypermarkets, Supermarkets, Cash and Carry, and Convenience Stores. The Hypermarket stores provide customers with a simple and compact space for a faster shopping experience. The Supermarket stores offer Carrefour brand products, as well as apparel, culture, leisure, and tableware. The Cash and Carry stores engage in the provision of self-serve wholesale catering and food industry services. The Convenience Stores provide express shopping, mobile phone top-up vouchers, and home delivery services. The company was founded on July 11, 1959…
Author: Darius
Darius
I've spent over a decade researching and documenting the stories behind the world's most influential companies. What started as a personal fascination with how businesses evolve from small startups to global giants turned into CompaniesHistory.com—a platform dedicated to making corporate history accessible to everyone.
BT Group Plc history, profile and corporate video BT Group Plc provides communication solutions and services. Its principal activities include networked IT services, local, national and international telecommunications services and higher value broadband and Internet products and services. The company has four customer-facing Iines of business: BT Global Services, BT Retail, BT Wholesale and Openreach. These are supported by two internal service units: BT Innovate & Design and BT Operate. The BT Global Services provides networked IT services to multinational corporations, domestic businesses, government departments and other communication service providers around the world. The BT Retail provides a range of innovative communications products…
Vedanta Resources Limited history, company profile (overview) and corporate video Vedanta Resources Limited is a globally diversified natural resources company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. Its major products are zinc-lead-silver, iron ore, steel, copper, aluminum, power, oil and gas. HISTORY Vedanta Resources was founded in 1976 as a scrap metal dealership by Anil Agarwal in Bombay (now Mumbai). In 1979, he acquired the Shamsher Sterling Corporation, a manufacturer of power and control cables. Shamsher Sterling Corporation was subsequently renamed Sterlite Industries. In 2001, the company acquired a majority stake in Balco, the Indian state aluminum business. …
Vinci SA profile and corporate video VINCI SA engages in the design, building, finance and management of facilities for transport systems, public and private buildings and urban development and water, energy and communication networks. The company operates its business through the following business segments: Concessions and Contracting. The Concessions segment develops and operates motorway, transport infrastructures, and public facilityconcessions. The Contracting segment includes electrical works and engineering, information and communication technology; heating ventilation and air conditioning engineering, insulation, building and maintenance of roads and motorways, production of road-building materials, urban infrastructure, environmental work and demolition and recycling. The company was founded by…
Key Stats Founded: February 10, 1998 Headquarters: Palo Alto, California Acquired by Broadcom: November 22, 2023 ($69 billion) Employees: Approximately 38,000 (at acquisition) Former NYSE Ticker: VMW VMware revolutionized enterprise computing by pioneering x86 virtualization technology. The company enables organizations to run multiple operating systems on a single physical server, transforming data center efficiency and laying the groundwork for modern cloud computing. The company operates through cloud infrastructure, networking, security, and digital workspace solutions. VMware Cloud Foundation serves as the flagship private cloud platform. Enterprises worldwide rely on VMware’s hypervisor technology to manage virtualized workloads. Broadcom acquired VMware in November…
Voestalpine AG history, profile and corporate video Voestalpine AG engages in the production, processing, and distribution of steel products. It operates through the following segments: Steel, Special Steel, Metal Engineering, Metal Forming and Other. The Steel segment focuses on the production and processing of flat steel products for the automotive, white goods, and construction industries. The Special Steel segment manufactures long steel products, medium-wide strip steel, open-die forgings, and drop forgings. The Metal Engineering segment manufactures rails and turnout products, rod wire, drawn wire, prestressing steel, seamless tubes, welding filler materials, and semi-finished products. The Metal Forming segment provides special tubes and sections,…
WM (formerly Waste Management, Inc.) history, company profile (overview) and corporate video WM, formally known as Waste Management, Inc., is a waste management company headquartered in Houston, Texas, United States. It offers services such as garbage collection, recycling pickup, and dumpster rental. HISTORY Waste Management, known now as WM, was founded in 1893 when a Dutch immigrant named Harm Huizenga began collecting trash in Chicago for a small fee. With little more than a modest wagon, he built up a reliable client base over the years by effectively managing the waste of the changing society. In 1968, Harm’s…
Bidvest Group Limited history, company profile (overview) and corporate video The Bidvest Group Limited is an international services, trading and distribution company headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa. The group operates in the areas of consumer, pharmaceutical and industrial products, outsourced hard and soft services, financial services, freight management, office and print solutions, travel services, and automotive retailing. HISTORY Bidvest was founded in 1988 by Brian Joffe. In 1988, the company made its first acquisition – Chipkins followed by Sea World, and food services started. In 1989, Afcom Group was acquired, marking the start of Bidvest Commercial…
Key Stats Founded: 1742 in London, England Market Cap: £4.23 billion (November 2025) Annual Revenue: £2.93 billion (FY 2024/25) Employees: Approximately 34,000 across the UK and Germany Premier Inn Hotels: Over 850 hotels with 86,000+ rooms in the UK Whitbread PLC stands as one of the oldest and most respected names in British business. The company traces its origins to a small London brewery established in the 18th century. Today, Whitbread operates as a multinational hospitality company headquartered in Houghton Regis, England. The company owns Premier Inn, the largest hotel brand in the United Kingdom. Premier Inn operates more than…
Key Stats Founded: 1980 in Austin, Texas Headquarters: 550 Bowie St., Austin, Texas Number of Stores: 528 locations across the US, Canada, and UK Employees: Over 90,000 team members worldwide Parent Company: Amazon.com, Inc. (acquired in 2017 for $13.7 billion) Whole Foods Market, Inc. operates as a multinational supermarket chain specializing in natural and organic foods. The company runs stores across the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom, offering products free from artificial preservatives, colors, flavors, sweeteners, and hydrogenated fats. As a subsidiary of Amazon.com, Whole Foods Market maintains its position as the only USDA-certified organic national grocer in…