Cintas

Cincinnati's Farmer family, the founders of Cintas Corp., launched their business during the Great Depression. Out-of-work circus performers Doc and Amelia Farmer collected rags, cleaned and resold them through their Acme Industrial Laundry Company. Their grandson Dick grew the business in size and offerings. Under his leadership, it was renamed Cintas and expanded to include uniform rentals and commercial cleaning supplies. Dick's son Scott served as CEO for 18 years, but retired in 2021. The Mason-headquartered company is worth $8.8 billion, according to 2023 fiscal revenue. Cintas still has some family ownership; almost 40 Farmers own 14% of the company.