As the Renault-made cars running on the Better Place electricity network hit the road this year and the company laid out money to build up a chain of stations to swap out depleted batteries, the future became increasingly daunting.

WSJ: CEO of Electric-Car Network Better Place Steps Down

His father owned a chain of petrol stations, and much else.

ECONOMIST: Pierre Trudeau

His dad owned a cigar factory and had bought a small and inexpensive chain of TV stations to see if broadcast advertising might be any good at selling his product.

FORBES: Is Social Media Becoming a Vast Wasteland?

In the early days of FORBES magazine, which was founded 90 years ago, "network" referred to a chain of radio stations hooked up by wire--and, long before that, to intersecting roads, canals, railways and telegraph lines.

FORBES: Networks

Rather than trying to build its own retail chain, Gibbs cut a deal to sell much of Frontier's gasoline to Shell and Texaco stations.

FORBES: Magazine Article