Ward & Howell was a supplier of natural science materials. Henry Augustus Ward (1834-1906), a professor of geology at the University of Rochester, founded the Ward's Natural Science Establishment in 1862 (incorporated in 1878). It was a leading supplier of natural science materials, e.g., minerals, rocks, fossil casts and taxidermy services to museums and universities in North America and worldwide. It also published numerous catalogues of various collections. Edwin Eugene Howell (1845-1911), a geologist, cartographer, and Ward’s brother-in-law, joined the Ward's Natural Science Establishment in 1865. He became a partner in the business, staying with Ward & Howell till 1892. The Ward family donated the company to the University of Rochester in 1928, and it is still in operation today.

Walery was a series of photography studios run by Count Stanislaw Julian Ostrotog (1836-1890) and his son, Stanislaw Julian Ignacy Ostrorog (1863-1929). Born into Polish nobility, Ostroróg the father migrated to London in approximately 1856, and then Paris in 1857, after serving in the Ottoman army. He opened photography studios in Marseilles and Paris, and later one in Nice in 1879. He sold these in approximately 1884 to open a studio in London. The studios specialized in portraiture, especially of the upper classes, and the studio's customers included Queen Victoria. Upon his death in 1890, Ostroróg's son took over the business, having learned photography from his father. He eventually partnered with theatrical photographer Alfred Ellis (1854–1930) as "Ellis and Walery." In 1900, Ostroróg moved to Paris and opened a studio there, specializing in portraits and cabinet cards of theatre and cabaret stars.He died in 1929.

Wabasso Cotton Company Limited was incorporated in Canada in 1907. The company changed its name to Wabasso Limited in 1967. The company changed its name to Wabasso Inc. in 1979 and continued under the Canada Business Corporations Act in that same year. The company changed its name to Tratex Textile Inc. in 1985, following the sale of its major assets to Dominion Textile Inc. Dominion Textile continued the bedding and towel product lines under the Wabasso name, and made Wabasso Canada Inc. a wholly-owned subsidiary.