Wired for success: entrepreneurs reap the rewards of the technology revolution

Entrepreneur, May, 1997 by Heather Page

* 1 Compaq Proliant 1500 Dual P166 file server running Windows NT Server 4.0 software

* 7 NEC P100/P120 Workstations running Windows 95 and NT Workstation 4.0

* Jeep Expedition and Tours Software (customized reservation application)

* 7 ViewSonic P815 20-inch monitors

* 1 Lexmark Optra Rn laser printer with Ethernet card

* 1 NetWorth 16-port 10MBps HUB (workstation connector)

* 1 Cisco 16-port 100MBps HUB with fiber-optic up link

* 1 Cisco 2501 Router (transfers data to LANs)

* 1 NEC Neax 2000 PBX (phone system)

HOW THEY DID IT

Gotcha Covered Wholesale

A true road warrior, Courtney Young practically runs his entire Las Vegas flower business from his combination truck/tailer. When clients page Young, he returns the call via cellular phone, pulls up a custom-made template on his notebook computer, then faxes the order to a supplier. Clients are also impressed with how Young can furnish accurate (and legible) invoices on the spot. His equipment:

* 1 Toshiba 115CS notebook computer with Microsoft Office 97 and Floral Accounting System software (for invoicing)

* 1 Hewlett Packard portable DeskJet 340 printer

* 1 lomega Zip drive (100MB memory storage)

* 1 NEC pager

* 1 Motorola Ultra Classic II cellular phone

RELATED ARTICLE: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

Check It Out

Pete Kight Checkfree Corp.

THEN - 1993 sales: $30 million

A 50-square-foot basement in Worthington, Ohio, may not seem like the most auspicious location for an electronic payment processing service. Indeed, when former fitness club manager Pete Kight started Checkfree Corp. in January 1981, nobody-family, friends and industry experts included - thought the business would succeed.

But Kight proved them all wrong. By 1993, the business boasted 1,200 corporate clients and handled $3 billion in payments annually. Better yet, Checkfree was at the forefront of an emerging market - what's now called financial electronic commerce - and was fast becoming known as the industry leader. Kight's big dream: "to offer people the power to manage their personal finances electronically."

NOW - 1996 Sales: $120 million plus

Kight no longer has to dream. Today, finances are just one thing people are managing electronically - and Checkfree Corp. is the reason why. How did Kight's big dream come true? Going public in September 1995 enabled Checkfree to acquire its number-two competitor, Norcross, Georgia-based Servantis Systems Inc. (SSI), the banking industry's leading provider of electronic funds transfer software, in 1996. By the time electronic banking really took off and banks began seeking out electronic funds transfer software and hardware, Checkfree was the provider of choice.

Now Kight is cashing in. Checkfree's client roster has grown to 1.3 million customers, and the company, now in Norcross, Georgia, handles more than $25 billion in payments every year. And that's not all: Kight has a new dream - one that could forever eliminate the dreaded phrase "The check's in the mail."The company is working on a product to deliver bills and statements to customers via e-mail, enabling them to pay on screen and have the funds automatically deducted from their checking accounts. "There's no reason to write out paper checks anymore," contends Kight, 40.