How the entourage of suppliers, partners are part of Apple's $1-trn journey

The iPhone maker's entourage of suppliers and partners has had mixed fortunes

Apple Inc.’s rise to become a $1 trillion company is a story of innovation, new possibilities and one iconic product. 

A posse of suppliers and partners has been part of the journey by selling key components, assembling the devices, or simply connecting iPhones to their networks. 

I took a selection of these companies and analyzed how they fared in comparison to the superstar they shadowed over the past 11 years – from the time Apple hit a $100 billion valuation in May 2007 to last week when it became what we might call a trunicorn. It’s not a complete list, merely a