McDonald's seems to be common everywhere. However, where I live (northeastern Massachusetts), Dunkin Donuts is more common than any other business, including McDonald's.
What is the most common business in your area? I have no idea if a non-restaurant could come out on top in any area (grocery store, gas station, etc.)
In Dalton, Georgia, I think the gas station of BP would have to win. Lately there have been a few new ones popping up - a few years ago I counted them up and it was around 8, 9, or 10 (extending into the greater Whitfield County as well). Now with a few new ones, I have no doubt that totaled up there is at least 10 BP gas stations in my area. With restaurants, it used to be a tie between Wendy's and Waffle House. A few years ago, both of them had exactly 5 locations in the Dalton area. Recently, the Wendy's on GA SR 52 (W. Walnut Avenue) near I-75's Exit 333 closed down (and was turned into a Krispy Kreme doughnut and coffee shop). So now there is 5 Waffle Houses and 4 Wendy's, so currently with restaurants, Waffle House wins. There are actually only 3 McDonald's in Dalton itself, but 5 if you count all in Whitfield County (including a McDonald's/Subway/Pilot truck stop off of I-75's Exit 326).
I have no idea why, but it's Sheetz. There's at least four in a ten mile radius.
Generically-speaking, probably gas stations. Brand-specific, 7-11.
Here in rural North Central Ohio I'd have to say Subway, followed closely by Dollar General.
Prostitutes.
If you're talking about businesses (as opposed to individual companies), in my area (northern suburbs of Boston), I'd say it's nearly a tie between drug stores and coffee/donut shops. Within a five mile radius of my house in Wakefield (MA) alone, there are five coffee/donut shops (three Dunkins, two Honey Dew) and five drug stores (two Walgreens, two CVS, and one independent store). By contrast, there are only two McDonalds in the same area.
Quote from: roadman on January 03, 2017, 04:08:33 PM
In my area (northern suburbs of Boston), I'd say it's nearly a tie between drug stores and coffee/donut shops. Within a five mile radius of my house in Wakefield (MA) alone, there are five coffee/donut shops (three Dunkins, two Honey Dew) and five drug stores (two Walgreens, two CVS, and one independent store). By contrast, there are only two McDonalds in the same area.
Each company counts separately. You can't combine Dunkin Donuts and Honey Dew Donuts, nor can you combine Walgreens and CVS.
Quote from: 1 on January 03, 2017, 04:33:53 PM
Quote from: roadman on January 03, 2017, 04:08:33 PM
In my area (northern suburbs of Boston), I'd say it's nearly a tie between drug stores and coffee/donut shops. Within a five mile radius of my house in Wakefield (MA) alone, there are five coffee/donut shops (three Dunkins, two Honey Dew) and five drug stores (two Walgreens, two CVS, and one independent store). By contrast, there are only two McDonalds in the same area.
Each company counts separately. You can't combine Dunkin Donuts and Honey Dew Donuts, nor can you combine Walgreens and CVS.
Thanks for the clarification. Although I consider 'business' to encompass more than one company. I've revised my original post to note this.
Since we're considering everything separately and not by industry, here's my town
1. Dunkin Donuts- 8
2. Subway- 6
3. Exxon/Mobil (same company)- 5
T-4. TD Bank, Sunoco, YUM! Brands (1 Taco Bell, 1 Taco Bell/Pizza Hut, 1 KFC)- 3 each
T-7: McDonald's, Burger King, Home Depot, Webster Bank, Cumberland Farms, CVS, Rite-Aid, Starbucks, Dollar Tree, Shell- 2 each
Subway with 4.
In a tourist area, Starbucks runs away with this. Within about a 2000-foot stretch of US 50 in South Lake Tahoe, CA and Stateline, NV there are four: one each inside the Harrah's and Harvey's hotels (which are across the street from each other), one in the Heavenly Village tourist trap and one in the Raley's shopping center.
Harford County, Maryland has about 15 Royal Farms gas station/convenience stores, about 9 Wawa stores, 7 ShopRite grocery stores, and about 7 or 8 High's gas stations. And Dunkin' Donuts is also building lots of stores there lately, some of which are paired up with Baskin Robbins ice cream.
Walgreens seem to be like mushrooms a few years agoin suburban areas... They recently closed a bunch of underperforming stores
Around most Florida suburban areas... Publix grocery stores everywhere
LGMS428
Hmm, this may be tough to answer. What exactly is a "business"? I know you said individual companies, but let's take Starbucks for example. It would seem a likely candidate in midtown Manhattan sine they're everywhere, but then again not all Starbuces are operated by the same company–some might be franchises or operated under contract by other concessionaires. What about taxis? In general, a NYC-licensed taxi medallion might be considered a ubiquitous "business", but again, the medallions are owned by a hodgepodge of different holding companies, and a few lucky individuals.
Perhaps the most prevalent companies doing business in discrete locations around NYC are real estate holding and management companies. I'd bet that two of the most commonly-encountered business names you'll find around the city are Newmark Knight Frank and Vornado Realty Trust.
As for my actual home area of western Putnam County (and neighboring northern Westchester), and sticking only to visible brand names, I can actually think of more Shell stations in my immediate area than anything else. Interestingly, the closest gas station to my home is the one I never go to because it's 40¢ more expensive than anywhere else around, and it's a Shell–but so is the cheapest station in the area, which I go to regularly. But of course–again–these stations are different businesses, different ownership, different companies. I'd be hard pressed to come up with the actual company doing business in the most separate locations in my area.
Dollar Generals and Family Dollars (moreso the former) are expanding like crazy in a lot of the rural areas. Estill County, Ky., has two incorporated cities that border one another, Irvine (pronounced "Ervin," the county seat) and Ravenna. For years a single Dollar General was located across the Kentucky River from Irvine in unincorporated West Irvine. In recent years three more Dollar Generals have been built in Estill County. One in Ravenna and two in rural sections of the county.
Subways are also popular, with many small communities having one.
Wendy's, Hardee's and McDonald's have expanded into many smaller towns, but Dairy Queen is the most prevalent fast-food chain, because they bought out the old Druther's chain (which itself was former Burger Queen) that was the first and only fast-food restaurant in many Kentucky towns.
Pizza shops by far. There are what, 5? in my town of 18,000 alone.
Quote from: hbelkins on January 04, 2017, 11:51:45 AM
Dollar Generals and Family Dollars (moreso the former) are expanding like crazy in a lot of the rural areas.
They're doing the same in Oklahoma. Dollar General is the only retail presence in many smaller Oklahoma towns. Even the town of 1200 I grew up in has one now.
Dollar General is a sore subject for my wife, as she feels that their management policies and health care coverage were contributing factors toward the death of her mother, who was an employee at the time.
Quote from: Scott5114 on January 04, 2017, 06:32:40 PM
Quote from: hbelkins on January 04, 2017, 11:51:45 AM
Dollar Generals and Family Dollars (moreso the former) are expanding like crazy in a lot of the rural areas.
They're doing the same in Oklahoma. Dollar General is the only retail presence in many smaller Oklahoma towns. Even the town of 1200 I grew up in has one now.
Dollar General is a sore subject for my wife, as she feels that their management policies and health care coverage were contributing factors toward the death of her mother, who was an employee at the time.
The two major ways to keep costs low are to make profit through volume (the Wal-Mart model) or to cut costs (I guess the Dollar General model but I"ll admit I've never been inside or seen one). Generally the cost-cutting model really puts the squeeze on its employees.
In my area its hard to say as there are so many, but Wawa is taking a lead in convenience stores as every time I turn around one new one is being built.
Starbucks. Can't throw a rock in this city without hitting a Starbucks.
There are other coffee places too.
"Discount" stores (Dollar General, Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, Wal-Mart and Target).
We're about to experience a glut in Asian-style restaurants
Having just moved to Mason City, Iowa, I am not sure how "my area" is defined. If it's just Mason City, then the Yesway convenience stores are it, with 6. (Yesway, FYI, came into existence essentially to buy up the Kum'n'Go's that didn't fit the current Kum'n'Go template.) Casey's only has 5, but if you expand beyond Mason City, I believe every city over 1,000 population within a 30 mile radius, with the exception of Rockwell, has a Casey's and some, like Clear Lake and Forest City, get two. OTOH, if you stick to just Mason City, it could be the #1 business is Mercy Med Center North Iowa, which seems to have something in every part of Mason City, unlike Casey's, which completely misses everything east of Federal Avenue (aka US 65 except through downtown). But not every branch of the local medical system serves the same purpose at every location.
Air conditioning, land/lawnscaping and swimming pool contractors, great job opportunities in the desert resort cities in CA (Palm Springs area). There's money to be made in cooling, grass and water. Hotel resort, retail, agriculture and construction, but most of all tourism are the biggest local economic bases. In 1990, the Southern Pacific (now Union Pacific) railroad closed their depot in Indio after 115 years in business. Now they have a bus/transportation station where it used to be, bringing back downtown.
Quote from: US71 on January 04, 2017, 07:48:45 PM
"Discount" stores (Dollar General, Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, Wal-Mart and Target).
We're about to experience a glut in Asian-style restaurants
However, there is soon to be a shortfall, nationwide, in 'authentic Mexican' restaurants... You know to thank! :bigass: :spin: :rofl:
In Newport News, we have an inexplicably-multiplying number of 7-Elevens. A quick GMaps search shows nearly 20 within a 2-mile radius of my parents' house.
I'm not gonna try to count Boise, but in Meridian, here's what I come up with:
1. Jackson's (convenience store, attached to either Shell or Chevron gas stations) - 9 Locations
2. Starbucks - 7 Locations* (if you also count the ones inside Fred Meyer and Albertsons grocery stores, the number is 4 if those don't count)
3. Subway - 6 Locations
3.1. McDonald's - 6 Locations*
4. Maverik (gas station and convenience store) - 4 Locations
*One of them is on the border of Meridian and Eagle, might be unincorporated Ada County if Google Maps is to be believed; but the street address is in Meridian so I count it, even though the Subway in the same shopping center/parking lot has an Eagle address. I rank Subway above McD's for that reason (Subway would have 7 if you counted the one next to the 6th McD's).
Not going to try to count anything past that, hopefully I didn't miss anything with 4+ locations.
So yeah, even what I thought would be an easy city to count, is confusing due to ambiguous borders, but oh well. You could argue Starbucks and Subway should be tied, they are literally in the same building, even though the Starbucks has a Meridian street address and Subway has an Eagle address, because that makes sense!
I'm going to use Clark and Floyd counties as "my area"
Subway - 15
Marathon - 13
Dollar General - 11
McDonald's - 9
As a general category (I realize the OP seems to want brand names as opposed to general categories–but...), here in Tampa, it often seems that the most common type of business is the strip club. On a per capita basis, Tampa has to be off the charts.
Back on topic–in my hometown, my first guess was Sunoco stations, and a quick Google Maps search seems to confirm that. Sunoco already had a strong presence in the area going back decades, and with the company's acquisition of Coastal's retail outlets several years ago, it quickly became the ubiquitous gasoline brand in the area. Using Lycoming County as Williamsport's "metro area" , the roughly 12 Sunoco stations easily beat the 9 Subways, 4 McDonald's locations, 4 Sheetz stores, and 4 Dunkin' Donuts shops.
I'd imagine that in many smaller cities–at least in areas with a dominant gasoline retailer–a gasoline station brand would be the most common.
Quote from: TravelingBethelite on January 05, 2017, 08:38:25 AM
Quote from: US71 on January 04, 2017, 07:48:45 PM
"Discount" stores (Dollar General, Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, Wal-Mart and Target).
We're about to experience a glut in Asian-style restaurants
However, there is soon to be a shortfall, nationwide, in 'authentic Mexican' restaurants... You know to thank! :bigass: :spin: :rofl:
Interestingly, up here in San Jose there's a bit of a glut of Dollar Tree stores (2 on Almaden Expressway alone, within 2 miles of one another) -- and you can't go too many blocks without encountering a taqueria (most of them quite good!). My preference is for Al Pastor on Meridian near Hamilton (close to my home) -- they even have a burrito with a chile relleno inside! :sombrero: I regularly stock the bathroom at work with Dollar Tree stuff (TP, air freshener, hand soap, etc.); gets the job done for not too many $$.
Other than chains like Starbucks, there's a lot of teriyaki and pho joints around here. Especially in the suburban strip malls. And most are pretty cheap and good.
In my small town, mom and pop burrito shops. We have three.
After eating at these places, I'm surprised taco bell is still in business.
I have 3 Walmarts under 5 miles from my house (including 2 in the same town); 4 if you include one across the river in Philly.
Within 4 miles: Dunkin Donuts (9 locations), Heritages (a local chain of convenience stores) (7 locations), Wawa (6), and McDonalds (4).
Stewart's (an eastern New York convenience store chain). I don't think it's even a contest there. To give you an idea, Saratoga County alone has 50 as of tomorrow. Troy, where I live, has 8 inside the city limits, or one for every 6,300 city residents, and 11 more within a couple miles of the border. Within 5 miles of my apartment are at least 15. Three are within walking distance.
I figured it would be Stewarts for the Capital District. Just didn't feel like counting every business.
Tim Hortons
Quote from: vdeane on January 11, 2017, 06:07:59 PM
I figured it would be Stewarts for the Capital District. Just didn't feel like counting every business.
^This. Glad someone else went through that.
Although there has to be fewer Dunkin Donuts in the area than Stewart's, wonder how many of them there are around.
Quote from: Rothman on January 12, 2017, 08:21:52 AM
Quote from: vdeane on January 11, 2017, 06:07:59 PM
I figured it would be Stewarts for the Capital District. Just didn't feel like counting every business.
^This. Glad someone else went through that.
Although there has to be fewer Dunkin Donuts in the area than Stewart's, wonder how many of them there are around.
I didn't count. Stewart's posted that their 50th Saratoga County store opens today on their website and I know that at least 3/4 of their 330+ stores are in the 11-county extended Capital District. In the inner portion of the Albany metro, Dunkin Donuts are nearly as common as Stewart's (but not as common). Within 5 miles of my ZIP code are 12 locations, compared to 15+ Stewart's locations, and only 1 DD is within walking distance of my apartment. Frequency drops off dramatically once you get past Malta, though.
In my area, it's probably Subway - since they have free-standing locations plus seem to be in every BP Station and Wal-Mart.
In Waikiki, it's a tie between Starbucks and ABC stores. There is at least one of each on every corner, it seems.
Quote from: TravelingBethelite on January 05, 2017, 08:38:25 AM
Quote from: US71 on January 04, 2017, 07:48:45 PM
"Discount" stores (Dollar General, Family Dollar, Dollar Tree, Wal-Mart and Target).
We're about to experience a glut in Asian-style restaurants
However, there is soon to be a shortfall, nationwide, in 'authentic Mexican' restaurants... You know to thank! :bigass: :spin: :rofl:
Not in Grand Junction, CO. I think there are more Mexican restaurants than any other cuisine in town -- and most are local or regional restaurants. It seems like a 3-to-1 ratio, or at least when a new restaurant opens in town, there is a 75% chance it will be Mexican.
Just yesterday, I noticed we are getting TWO American-fare Restaurants!!! Looks like Freddy's Steakburger & Frozen Custard is moving to town in a big way -- they even put up the main signs before the foundations were poured at both locations! We have also heard that we were to get a Cici's, Fazolis and Joe's Crab Shack -- but those have never panned out.