HELM is in control of steering its own ship. A marketer and distributor of chemicals, the company's products include fertilizers, insecticides, additives, pharmaceuticals, animal and human nutrients, and plastics. Based in Germany -- with 61% of its sales coming from Europe, 24% from North America, 14% from Asia, and 1% from Africa  -- HELM has operations in more than 30 countries in Asia, Europe, the Middle East, and North America. HELM began establishing its first foreign subsidiaries in the early 1960s. It operates in the US through HELM U.S.