what's the best business you've ever seen?
patio11: I think Google probably has created more value for more people than any technology firm in the last decade.I also really admire Wal-Mart.  An example: I pay $50 to ship money between Japan and the US, which is fairly competitive for international wire transfers from first world financial institutions.  Wal-Mart wanted to offer financial services to Mexican immigrants to let them ship money between the US and Mexico.  They said "Screw it: this is going to cost $2.99.  Until we find a way to lower the price."  They impress me with their relentless, all-consuming, borglike quest for improved efficiency, which I think does wonderful things for poor people.  I wish all businesses I deal with had Wal-Mart forever nipping at their heels.  (For example, I wish they could bring that pricing pressure to bear on my behalf for financial services.)  I know, I know, I'm supposed to feel class-based superiority to their customers and pretend that their $12 China-made shirts are grossly inferior to my $100 China-made shirts... but I've never been good with that sort of mental gymnastics.Oh, and one from the home team: I love Toyota.  I don't even care for cars -- I just love their much-vaunted management style.  They got to "you can apply statistics to a business and roflstomp over your competitors with it" decades before us web folks showed up at the analytics party.