INITIALLY MYSTERIOUS

Some companies use initials in their names. It creates mystery and intrigue, as millions ask, “What do those letters stand for?” Well, here’s what they stand for.

CVS. Consumer Value Stores.

H&M. The discount clothing chain started in 1940s Sweden as a women’s store called Hennes—Swedish for “hers.” The company then acquired a men’s clothing store called Mauritz Widforss, and rebranded as Hennes and Mauritz, which was then abbreviated to just H&M.

LG. The South Korean electronics giant was originally named Goldstar Co., but merged with Lak Hai (pronounced “lucky”) Chemical Co. in 1983, and became Lucky-Goldstar. In 1995 the company renamed itself LG.

TCBY. Frozen yogurt became a national sensation in the 1980s, when people thought it was healthier than ice cream. (It may have less fat, but it’s still loaded with sugar.) One of the first chains selling it was I Can’t Believe It’s Yogurt. In 1984 it sued upstart rival This Can’t Be Yogurt for attempting to mislead customers. The newer company rebranded itself (without changing its initials) as The Country’s Best Yogurt, and then just went down to TCBY.

F.A.O. Schwarz. The late high-end toy store was the creation of Frederick August Otto (F.A.O.) Schwartz.

FIAT. It’s actually an acronym, not somebody’s name. The letters in the car maker’s name stand for “Fabbrica Italiana di Automobil Torino,” or “Italian automobile factory of Turin.”

BVD. The names emblazoned on men’s underwear belong to businessmen Bradley, Voorhees, and Day, who started the company in 1876. Their original product: bustles for women.

H&R Block. The tax preparation service was the brainchild of brothers Henry and Richard Bloch…who changed the spelling to avoid mispronunciation.

DHL. The shipping company was founded in San Francisco as a courier service in the 1960s by Adrian Dalsey, Larry Hillblom, and Robert Lynn.

K-Mart. The “K” is for Kresge, after founder Sebastian Kresge.

BJ’s Wholesale Club. Founder Mervyn Weich named the company after his daughter Beverly Jean.

P.F. Chang. There’s no such person. “P.F.” comes from Paul Fleming, the guy who started the business, and “Chang” is a simplified version of the name of the original head chef, Philip Chiang.

After the military, what’s America’s largest buyer of explosives? Disneyland (for its nightly fireworks shows).