When automobiles proliferated during the 1930s, dirt roads were common — and so were relentless dust clouds that made driving hazardous. Alfred Stepan Jr. developed a chemical to curb that dust and, today, Chicago-based Stepan Co. makes chemicals used in industries ranging from laundries to oil exploration. Family-run and employing 2,000 workers worldwide, Stepan’s 2013 revenues were $1.88 billion.
LEGAL TEAM
General Counsel H. Edward Wynn leads an eight-member team with outposts in Brazil, Europe and China. Most of the workload during the past year involved transactions; the company bought Bayer MaterialScience A.G.’s North American polyester resin business for $68.2 million.
