https://tonywalkerpost.com/root-philosophy/

Originally Posted: January 1, 2017
Last Updated:  April 3, 2022

From the very beginning in 1978, it has been my goal to provide the vision, resources, and confidence necessary for the development of the Advantage Co as a business experience for those willing to take the full measure of the challenge.  This approach has energized our Root Philosophy for over 40 years, and it has been our good fortune to build a number of world-class businesses.

Here is a short list of businesses we have started or helped to start over the years. [170 and counting].  The businesses in italics are partnerships. The businesses in bold are currently operational.  Each one has been visited by success and failure.  Some businesses never really got off the ground, while others have been thriving for decades.  One of these nights I’ll start filling in the stories.   The really good news is that over 50 of the businesses we have helped to launch are thriving enterprises.

All told, we estimate there have been over 8,000 participants in the building of these opportunities.  If you have a backstory for any of them, why not share it with us?  I’ll take the good with the bad [they all have their share].  It is never meant to be easy, but it is always meant to be rewarding.

A man who says he never had a chance is the man who never took one.  Be big, be a builder.

Advantage Co Businesses

1. Advantage Brands Group
2. Advantage Catalog
3. Advantage Computer Co.
4. Advantage Global Resources
5. Advantage Home Theater
6. Advantage Outlet
7. Advantage Properties
8. Advantage TI
9. Advantage Trade Group
10. Advacovery
11. Aussie T Co
12. Bogavia
13. Brinkley Builders
14. Chuggs
15. Computer Head Start
16. Giancarlo’s Sicilian Steakhouse & Pizzeria
17. Giancarlo’s Cafe & Patisserie
18. Gift Giving Registry
19. Grivani
20. Grivani Wine Cellar
21. Grivani Wine [Distributing]
22. House of Cotton
23. Forrestel Clothing Co
24. iFul
25. iSport
26. iWorldFundraising.org
27. iWorld Shopping Center
28. King Finley
29. Lab to Beauty
30. Leave It To Alison**
31. Lifetime Service Trust
32. Love Pink & Green
33. Luxuri Link
34. Merwin & Payne
35. Modern Luxuri
36. MyWarehouse.org
37. Nantucket Clothing
38. Naples Properties
39. Osaka Speakers
40. PALM Investments
41. Piece Apparel
42. Pioneer Home Theater
43. Pure + Fresh
44. Scotch Boots of Holland
45. Smart Car Store
46. Smart House Cafe**
47. Smart Squad Design
48. Smart Squad Install
49. SmartLinks
50. Sneaker Advantage
51. SONY Home Theater
52. Stereo Advantage
53. Stereo Advantage [Olean]
54. JVC Home Theater
55. Taplin Marketing
56. Tiny Walker
57. Touche’
58. TW Outlet [Niagara Falls]**
59. TW&Co
60. Walker Center
61. Walker Kids Trust
62. Walker Global Parts
63. Walker Global Solutions
64. Wehrle Properties
65. White Box Services

Advantage Co Partnerships

1. ABX Professionals
2. Advantage Business Exchange
3. Advantage Investment, Development & Oversight
4. Advantage Legal & Fiduciary
5. Advantage Marketing & Incentives
6. Advantage Systems Professionals [now iWorld Professionals]
7. Advantage Woodshop
8. American Wireless
9. AP Charlotte
10. AP Cincinnati
11. AP Cleveland
12. AP Denver
13. APHQ 
14. AP Metro**
15. AP Phoenix
16. AP Rochester
17. AP Solutions
18. AP Syracuse
19. AP Tampa
20. AP Washington DC
21. AP WNY
22. At Your Service
23. Aussie Outfitters
24. Autonomic Resources [sold to CSC]
25. Beacon Global Resources
26. Bellus Development
27. BizHop [support only]
28. Black Progress Matters
29. Black Progess Resources
30. BP Executive Staffing
31. BPM Minority-Owned Business Incubator
32. BP College Advisors
33. BP Executive Networking
34. Butler Chemical
35. Cascade Point**
36. c1 Advantage
37. c1 Secure
38. Carolina Clothing Co
39. Capax Alpha 
40. Capax Discovery [Zantaz EAS]
41. Capax Global [sold to Hitachi Data Systems]
42. Capax India
43. Capax Resource Management*
44. CARES Act ADVISORY
45. Chiampou Travis & Kershner*
46. Christeus
47. Cleary & Sullivan
48. Cleary Travel
49. Coco by CeCe
50. Consilium1 
51. Cross Pointe**
52. DACKS
53. Data Detect
54. Delta Road Properties
55. Duke Fund**
56. Fortified Law Data
57. Free Trade Consultants
58. Gauntlet Design
59. Greenview Landscaping*
60. GRW For Hair
61. Hudson Walker
62. Images & Graphics
63. Inspired Global Resources*
64. Irwin Lazarus
65. iWorld Professionals
66. JALMAR Graphics
67. JNorman & Co
68. KATINI Skin
69. King Finley
70. Kizer Data Solutions
71. LeCleanse Officiel
72. LD World Resources
73. Manzella Productions [support only]
74. My Personal Advisor
75. Mode
76. One Global Culture
77. Outback Paging [AdTel Worldwide]
78. Pacific Data Resources
79. Panther Data Solutions
80. Phroket
81. Pizza Shoppe
82. PremCloud Resources
83. Real Properties Services
84. Sceven
85. SmartLink [Bailey & Kensington]
86. SmartLink [Main Place Mall]
87. Sozae
88. State of Clean
89. Stereo Advantage [Phoenix]
90. Stereo Shops [3 Rochester stores]**
91. Strategic Finance
92. Taplin Design
93. Tony Walker Golf Club [4 locations nationally]
94. Total Health & Fitness
95. Trend Depot
96. TW Charter Stores [92 Aussie Outfitter stores nationally]
97. UnBiasIt
98. UnCarbonIt
99. UGA Capital Ventures
100. Walker Sports Audit
101. Wellingtin Resources
102. White & Co
103. Wynnovation Labs
104. Zantaz EAS
105. Zovy Cloud

Coming Sooner or Later or Never

1. Ana Blu Mediterranean Kitchen
2. Arcivium for Azure
3. 2 Girls 1 Deal
4. 2×4 Office Anywhere
5. ApothoClean
6. Bambini Beauty
7. Balance Bra
8. Beach to Beauty
9. Bedtime Monster SpraY
10. Christian Coop
11. Church of the Good
12. Clean Your Closets For Kids
13. College Rep Program
14. CopDrop
15. The Fantasy League
16. Fashion Resource Group
17. FedCloud Resources
18. FedDrop
19. FedSecure Data Centers
20. FedCloud Vault
21. Franjordalli Gift Giving Registry
22. Giancarlo’s Boutique Hotel
23. GoToCloud Express
24. Greenskeeper Coop
25. Grivani Golf
26. iTech Protect
27. iWorld Auto
28. iWorld Banking
29. iWolrd Accounting
30. Life Source Insurance
31. Merci 6
32. Meta Data Stack
33. OffShore Secure
34. Scrubs
35. Walker Global Mergers Acquisitions & Review

* No longer involved in this partnership.
**Ended successfully.

There are three worlds: the one we are given, the one we are stuck with, and the one we bend to our will.

Theodore Roosevelt’s famous Man in the Arena speech.  ‘It is not the critic who counts, not the one who points out how the strong man stumbled or how the doer of deeds might have done them better.  The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred with sweat and dust and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause and who, if he fails, at least fails while bearing greatly so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat.’