Where to Find Credible Company Information for Your Retail Expert Portfolio
BSAD 295, Fall 2007 Trina Magi, Library Associate Professor and Library Liaison to the School of Business Administration trina.magi@uvm.edu, 656-5723 Can’t Think of a Retailer to Study? Check Ward’s Business Directory for lists of companies in various retail sectors. Your research will be much easier if you choose a public company. Ward’s identifies public companies with a “P” under “company type.” You’ll find Ward’s on the reference index shelf at call number HG4057 .A1 W373. Use volume 8, and look under any of the following retail industry codes for company names: 44131 Automotive parts and accessories and tire stores 44211 Furniture stores 442299 Other home furnishings stores 443112 Radio, television and other electronics stores 44419 Home building materials dealers 44511 Supermarkets and other grocery (except convenience) stores 44611 Pharmacies and drug stores 44811 Men’s clothing stores 44812 Women’s clothing stores 44813 Children’s and infant’s clothing stores 44814 Family clothing stores 44815 Clothing accessories stores 44821 Shoe stores 44831 Jewelry stores 45111 Sporting good stores 451211 Book stores 45122 Prerecorded tape, compact disc and record stores 452111 Department stores (except discount department stores) 45299 Other general merchandise stores 45321 Office supplies and stationery stores 454113 Mail-order houses
PRINT AND ONLINE REFERENCE SOURCES— For finding company facts, history, competitors, brands, mission statements 101 Mission statements from top companies st Where to Find It: Bailey/Howe Reference Stacks (1 Floor) Call Number: HD 30.285 .A267 2007 Description: Includes statements of mission, vision, values, purpose, or philosophy for 101 companies. Advertising red books: Advertisers, business classifications st Where to Find It: Bailey/Howe Reference Stacks (1 Floor) Call Number: HF5805 .S712 Description: Data on over 16,300 companies that spend at least $50,000 on national/regional advertising, providing advertising expenditures, media used, and agencies employed.
Business and company resource center Where to Find It: UVM Libraries Web site > “Find Articles & More” > “Subject List of Databases" > “Business” (Subscription Database--UVM affiliates only) Description: A large database of industry and company information. Click "Company" to find company history, financials, number of employees, brands/products, competitors, and market share. Business rankings annual Where to Find It: Bailey/Howe Reference Stacks (1st Floor) Call Number: HG4050 .B87 Description: Provides tables and statistical information that rank companies, markets, brands, etc. Use the index to locate entries by industry, product/service, or company name. Companies and their brands Where to Find It: Bailey/Howe Reference Stacks (1st Floor) Call Number: T223.V4 A222 Description: Alphabetical listing of 120,000 manufacturers and distributors with their brands and products. Includes current and defunct companies and brands. EDGAR database of corporate information Where to Find It: On the World Wide Web URL: http://www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml Description: An electronic archive of reports that large, publicly traded companies file with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Includes reports from May 1996 forward, with earlier reports for some companies. The annual report is called a "10K" and includes company history, products, competitors, mission, number of employees, financials, and more. Click "Search for Company Filings" > "Companies & Other Filers." Hoover’s Company Records Where to Find It: UVM Libraries Web site > “Find Articles & More” > “Subject List of Databases" > “Business” (Subscription Database--UVM affiliates only) Description: Covers 40,000 public and non-public companies, providing directory information, business description, history, competitors, executives/officers, number of employees, financials, and products/brands. Market share reporter Where to Find It: Bailey/Howe Reference Stacks (1st Floor) Call Number: HF5415.2 .M336 Description: An annual compilation of market share data on companies, products, and services. Data are gleaned from reports, journals, and newspapers, and are organized by SIC code. Has several indexes to allow look-up by product, service, company name, brand name, and place name. Mergent online Where to Find It: UVM Libraries Web site > “Find Articles & More” > “Subject List of Databases" > “Business” (Subscription Database--UVM affiliates only) Description: Offers access to company history, historical and current financial statements, annual reports and SEC filings (EDGAR search), stock information, peer group analysis, and company screening. NOTE: The search engine is inflexible, so try entering company name in different ways (e.g., “Walmart,” “wal-mart,” “wal mart” or “The Gap” instead of “Gap.”)
ONLINE DATABASES— For locating articles about your company (See “How to do a better online search” for search tips.) ABI Inform Where to Find It: UVM Libraries Web site > “Find Articles & More” > “Subject List of Databases" > “Business” (Subscription Database--UVM affiliates only) Business and Company Resource Center Where to Find It: UVM Libraries Web site > “Find Articles & More” > “Subject List of Databases" > “Business” (Subscription Database--UVM affiliates only)
Want to search library databases or use electronic journals from off campus? The library pays a lot of money for subscription databases and electronic journals, and we are not allowed to make them available to everyone free on the Web. But as a UVM student, you can access these resources off campus if you take the following simple steps: 1. Go to the library home page 2. Click “Connect from off campus” 3. Click “Ezproxy” 4. Enter your UVM netID and password and click “login” 5. You will be returned to the library home page, but will now be able to get into all our subscription resources. You’ll need to do this each time you begin a research session on your computer. Remember to properly cite your sources! For information about how to do this, along with examples of how to format various types of references (journal articles, Web sites, database reports, etc.): 1. Go to library home page 2. Click “Guides and Help” 3. Click “Subject Guides” 4. Click “Business Research Assistant” 5. At the bottom of the page, use the “How do I. . .” menu to select “Cite my sources”