Winner:
Small Dog Electronics

Runner-Up:
Circuit City

BYTING BACK

Big-box stores have squeezed out a lot of local computer sellers over the last 20 years. And that’s exactly what makes the ongoing success of Small Dog Electronics so extraordinary. Now in its 12th year in Waitsfield and second in South Burlington, the third-largest Apple Authorized retailer in the country continues to pull in customers with a combination of hands-on, “try it out” staff friendliness, a satisfying array of both new and discontinued and discounted iPods, laptops, desktops and paraphernalia. Not bad for a business that started with owner Don Mayer selling Macs out of his garage.

-Matt Scanlon