Restoration Hardware puts vintage American fixtures and fittings into homes old and new. The company sells upscale home furnishings, hardware, bathware, garden products, and decorative items. It has about 125 stores in 30 states, the District of Columbia, and Canada; each store is modeled after the home and features distinct merchandise. The firm also sells through catalogs and its Web site and owns home and office furniture maker The Michaels Furniture Company, which makes almost all of its sales through Restoration Hardware stores. Founded in 1980 by former chairman Stephen Gordon, Restoration Hardware was acquired for $175 million by private equity firms Catterton Partners and Tower Three Partners in 2008.