There are many, many manufacturers of model railroad supplies. Most are very small companies owned and operated by one or two people, a few are much larger and employ a fairly large staff.
Here's a link I found online that is much more comprehensive than anything I could have compiled on my own:
It lists dozens of different manufacturers, but isn't comprehensive, as new ones are added every year, and others go out of business or are absorbed by others.
One of the largest to be absorbed was Life-Like, which many will remember as a low-cost manufacturer; it was purchased a few years ago by Walthers as part of their desire to expand beyond simply distributing supplies from other companies, and begin manufacturing their own.
Walthers is the largest distributor of model railroad supplies, carrying a little bit of everything. This is most likely your local hobby shops supplier; if you don't have a local hobby shop, you can purchase directly from them as well.
I'm going to discuss a few select manufacturers, mostly the largest and most well-known.
Atlas: Great quality locomotives...which I believe have drive-trains made by Kato. Decent quality rolling-stock in N Scale (a good intro for those who can't afford Micro-Trains). Buildings and scenery tends to be cheap and not terribly realistic in appearance. They are best known for their track however, where in both HO and N scale they are considered the beginner's standard. It's not terribly realistic track - the rails and ties are oversized, but it's cheap compared to other brands, and is of good quality (the trains run well on it). It's short comings are easily dismissed once the track is ballasted, and if you choose to do so, painted!
Plus, while the rail may be oversized, you sometimes need an oversized rail in smaller guages such as N or Z, where flanges on rolling stock and locomotives may be excessively large, otherwise the wheels would ride on the ties and not the rail. This is less an issue over time, and generally only a problem on older models.
Atlas also provides free of charge a download of their Right Track Software, which you can use to design a layout on your computer before ever buying the track, so you know exactly how much room you will need, and what you will need to purchase for track.
Athearn: primarily HO Scale, a good, middle of the road manufacturer.
Con-Cor: I wasn't a big-fan of their quality in the 80's and 90's, but I've read that this has
improved over the last few years. I'd like a few of their newer models to compare.
Kato: High-end models, and a price to match. Primarily smaller scales, such as N and HO. If you want a great running N scale locomotive, you look for Kato.
LGB: large-scale manufacturer (G scale), above average quality, cost.
Micro-Trains: this is the manufacturer of choice for N-scale rolling stock (train cars). Highly coveted by collectors as well as model railroaders, they have a premium price tag. The quality however makes the price worthwhile, as smooth-running rolling stock is a necessity in a small scale such as N. I know from personal experience that well taken care of Micro-Trains rolling stock will last forever, I have a few that are close to 20 years old now.
MRC: Model Rectifier Corporation. Lesser known for their rolling stock, buildings, or engines, their forte' is that they make great power supplies. Throttles in other words. They're good, they're guaranteed, and I wouldn't use anything else.
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