Smart Ideas 04/05 Getting kids cooking, non-violent computer games and more

What: Online and retail "brokerage house" forused cardboard boxes and plastic bins
Who: Marty Metro, founder of BoomerangBoxes.com
Where: Los Angeles
When: Started in 2003

When Marty Metro and his wife added up the number of times eachof them had moved over the years, it came out to an astounding 29times. Metro, 34, knew they weren't alone in using massiveamounts of cardboard boxes and was convinced he could help movers,businesses and the environment by creating a solution to thecardboard quandary. Says Metro, "I'm a systems guy; mylife revolves around using technology to enable businessprocesses."

With a decade of experience working and consulting onlarge-scale business technology, Metro made it his goal to build anonline marketplace that would allow big companies to get rid oftheir used boxes and scraps in an earth-friendly way, as well asoffer companies and individuals the opportunity to buy usedcardboard boxes at roughly half the price of new ones. Leaving thelucrative corporate life he had known, Metro traded in his BMW fora delivery truck and developed the web-based infrastructure thatwould help him fulfill his earth-friendly goals.

BoomerangBoxes.com, a U-Haul authorized dealer, has also nettedcontracts with large booksellers, clothing importers, manufacturersand even some real estate firms to pick up unwanted cardboard.Local deliveries are made to those who purchase cardboard boxes(the company also sells moving supplies), and when the move isdone, BoomerangBoxes.com will pick up the used boxes.

Currently covering the area between Los Angeles and San Diego,the company plans to expand by franchising in the top 50 cities inthe United States in the next three to five years. For now,BoomerangBoxes.com offers an online exchange for those outside thedelivery area to link up and exchange boxes with others for anomi-nal fee. With 2005 sales projections exceeding $750,000, thecompany boasts 75 percent-plus gross margins. "It makes mefeel great," says Metro. "We have created a win-winenvironment."
--April Y. Pennington

Healthy Returns

What: A service that acts as an advocate between patientsand their insurance companies and doctors
Who: Michael J. Cardillo, Dr. Abbie Leibowitz, Tom Masci,David Rocchino and Martin Rosen, co-founders of Health AdvocateInc.
Where: Blue Bell, Pennsylvania
When: Started in 2001

Navigating through myriad health claims, insurance companies anddoctors' offices can truly make people crazy. Knowing that thetypical employee usually doesn't have the extensive medical orinsurance know-how to get the services they need, these fiveentrepreneurs created Health Advocate Inc. The company provides awide range of services, from recommending doctors and negotiatingclaims to coordinating medical administrative tasks and findingsecond opinions.

The company's founders--five former Aetna U.S. Healthcareemployees, including Cardillo, 61; Leibowitz, 58; Masci, 59;Rocchino, 46; and Rosen, 58--knew that a service offering impartialinformation to ensure top-quality health care was needed. SaysRosen, "The issue wasn't, Does this make sense? It was,Can you make any money at it?" To find out, they did a betatest in the summer of 2001.

The overwhelming response from their research was yes, peopleabsolutely needed their services, and yes, they'd find a way topay for them. So the team started selling the service, which costsbetween $1.25 and $3.95 per month, per employee, to employers as atime- and money-saving health benefit for their employees andcovered dependents. Health Advocate's services save employeesthe headaches of dealing with health-care snafus, which oftendistract them during work hours. In turn, employers are providedwith a more focused crew.

Today, having contracted with companies all over the UnitedStates, Health Advocate supports more than 3 million people and sawsales exceed $4.5 million in 2004.
--Nichole L. Torres

Now They're Cooking

What: Business offering hands-on cooking parties, classesand after-school programs for children ages 4 to 14
Who: Helane Cohen of Le Petit Cookery Inc.
Where: Irvine, California
When: Started in 2001

After Helane Cohen lost her mother in 2000, the time she spentalone helped her identify the two things she loved most: childrenand cooking. It was then that this tech executive decided to leavebehind a six-figure salary and launch Le Petit Cookery, a cookingschool for children. Three months later, Cohen, 40, brought in goodfriend Steven Soto, 42, as her chief advisor--having worked withhim in the past, she knew he could offer invaluable small-businessskills.

Le Petit Cookery teaches children everything from how to usecutlery to healthy eating and proper etiquette. Today, the businessconsists of three branches: after-school programs forelementary-school children; private cooking parties, special eventsand classes at requested locations; and a website thatsells cooking products for children. While the programs teachchildren how to cook, they also encourage safety, fun, teamwork andhealthy nutrition. Le Petit Cookery's "Around the Globe WeGo" after-school program, for example, highlightsinternational foods and ingredients, such as Polish pirogis,dumplings filled with cheese or meat that the kids make bythemselves--with some help from assistants, of course.

Le Petit Cookery now serves more than 18 public schools in theOrange County, California, area and five to six private schools persemester, with multiple classes at some schools. Thanks toword-of-mouth, presence at community events and advertising inlocal children-focused publications as well as on search engines,Le Petit Cookery has experienced 75 percent growth over the pastyear.

As Cohen settles comfortably into growing her business, sheshares one of the sweeter sides of success: "The kids willmake the exact same thing and follow the exact same recipe.What's hysterical is that each batch will always lookcompletely different."
--Esther Nguonly

Game of Life

What: Nonviolent computer games that challenge kids withreal-life obstacles rather than shootings and explosions
Who: Victoria Gatling of MVG Christian EntertainmentInc.
Where: Chicago
When: Started in 2003

Victoria Gatling, 36, started to notice a disturbing trend inher family's funeral-home business: "They were buryingmore and more young people, [victims] of so many violent, senselesscrimes." Believing there was a connection between thoseviolent crimes and today's video games, this mother ofgame-loving children decided to take matters into her ownhands.

Starting with $50,000 from friends, family and personal savings,Gatling, a former marketing representative, developed softwarewithout high-octane explosions, vulgarity or murder. Her pioneergame, Obstacles of Life, features David, a character facing moralstumbling blocks. The deceptive characters wear street clothes"because I want the kids to know that the devil is not a manin a red suit with horns," says Gatling, who's sinceauthored more than 35 games.

When high programmer fees broke her budget, Gatling and herdaughter Latrece, 18, took on the task, learning to program fromhome. Help also came from Kameakea Longmire, a friend who assistedwith the programming. Pregnant with twins at the time, Gatlingrelied on her husband, Marcus, 35, and Latrece for support.

Gatling persuaded pastors to let her present the games to theircongregations. Many parents, unaware of the violent content ofgames prior to her presentations, jumped to try the $14.99alternatives, which are currently sold nationwide via phone andonline orders, as well as regionally at church conventions.Year-end 2005 sales are expected to range between $500,000 and$600,000--Gatling is in talks with Wal-Mart stores and plans topitch electronics boutiques and game shops later this year.
--Jessica Hong

Garden State

What: Online retailer of environmentally friendlylawn-care and gardening products
Who: Lars Hundley, founder of CleanAirGardening.com
Where: Dallas
When: Started in 1998
How much: Approximately $700

While caring for his own garden, Lars Hundley had a vision ofprotecting the world's gardens as well. So this formerfreelance writer put down his pen, bought six push lawn mowers for$100 each and began CleanAirGardening.com, which sellsenvironmentally friendly gardening products, such as gas-free pushmowers, organic fertilizers and electric trimmers/weed-eaters.

To cut costs, Hundley used his cell phone as a business line,built his own website and sold mowers from his apartment. He madehis share of mistakes along the way, from overspending onineffective advertising to stocking too many mowers in hisapartment. When CleanAirGardening.com began to take off, thebusiness initially suffered because it wasn't set up to acceptcredit cards. Hundley solved that problem by hosting his sitethrough Yahoo! Stores and letting them handle the secure creditcard transactions.

Hundley, who now works from an office in his three-bedroom home,expects 2005 sales to hit $1 million. Yet his focus is less onprofits and more on finding new environmentally safe products andeducating customers about the importance of conservation. Inaddition to promoting eco-friendly products such as rain barrelsand reel mowers, his site offers a comprehensive list of websitesthat teach people about healthy gardening practices.

"I don't know how many of my customers I am convertingto an environmentally friendly lifestyle," says Hundley, 35."But judging by how many questions I answer from people whohave never composted, collected rainwater or used a reel mowerbefore, I think I am certainly making a difference."
--E.N.