Companiesfor Consumer Research / Cincinnati

While Brian Hock trained for the Louisville Ironman in 2010, he had an idea for a way to stay hydrated along the way. That idea evolved into Simple Hydration, a start-up company with an innovative product that is being manufactured in the US.

Five months ago, David Johnson and his wife Estelle McNair started a branding company together. Today, Johnson-McNair is beginning to gain traction and serve clients all over the country.

Brian Burke started IBuyCells in 2006. Alone, he was buying and selling used Verizon phones out of his house in Loveland. In 2008, he saw much more potential in selling Apple computers and iPhones. In October of 2009, he founded sellyourmac.com and generated $1 million of revenue in the first year.

Though Kaleidoscope has been around for 22 years, in its last decade, its focus has shifted to four distinct areas of product development. By keeping a clear eye on consumer goods, electronics, healthcare and transportation, Kaleidoscope takes the process from research to ideation.

Cincinnati-based dunnhumbyUSA has raised consumer research to a science by finding out exactly what consumers want. It's information that major retailers are very interested in and it's why dunnhumbyUSA has grown so rapidly with offices in Cincinnati, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Minneapolis, New York and Portland, Oregon.