Computer geeks repair

DRIVES RIGHT TO YOUR DOOR, READY TO FIX YOUR COMPUTER ... BUT WE CAN'T GUARANTEE A POCKET PROTECTOR.

THE WORD GEEK CONJURES UP MANY images: Dungeons & Dragons clubs, Star Wars debates, Anthony Michael Hall in John Hughes' movies . . . and tech-savvy, "A+"-getting people.

Richard Cole, 48, is betting on those associations to garner customers for Geeks on Call, the franchise he founded to provide on-site IT services to small and midsized businesses.

A former division president with media conglomerate Landmark Communications, Cole grew frustrated having to take his computer to a repair center when it broke down, often getting it back in no better shape. He wondered why the technician couldn't just come to his office or home, see the problem and fix it on the spot.

After two years of testing, Cole put those thoughts into action when he started Norfolk, Virginia-based Geeks on Call in 1999. The company began franchising this year and already has 10 franchisees up and running.

Geeks on Call franchisees don't need a tech background unless they plan to service computers. The actual service, which includes maintenance, training and networking, can be handled by technicians hired by the franchisee.

The business also works for those who have lots of tech experience but need the back-room support, because the franchisor answers phones and does the advertising and dispatching. In that case, says Cole, "a franchisee does what they really enjoy doing, which is fixing computers." Sounds like geek nirvana.

Cold Comfort

SELLING ICE CREAM TO ALASKANS ISN'T AS HARD AS YOU MIGHT THINK.

AN ICE CREAM SHOP IN ALASKA? KIND of tough to picture, but Brenda Bigalke had no trouble imagining a Cold Stone Creamery opening its doors in her native Anchorage when she and her husband, Larry, stepped inside a Phoenix location of the premium ice-cream and yogurt company about five years ago. "I was born and raised in Alaska, so I know what people like. We just knew it would be a hit," Brenda says.

Brenda, 38, and her father, Dan, approached Cold Stone Creamery about franchising. When the company was a little apprehensive, Brenda pointed out an interesting fact: Alaskans are the largest per capita consumers of ice cream in the United States. "I don't think they really believed it," Brenda says. "They looked it up on the Internet and found out that, sure enough, it was true."

The Bigalkes' shop opened in Anchorage in 1997 to big success. Her husband joined Brenda and her father soon after. "Business was unbelievable that first summer," Brenda says. The long hours paid off, and the Bigalkes' store was voted best ice cream of Anchorage by readers of a local newspaper.

That press got the attention of cable TV channel FoodTV, which came to the store to tape an episode of "The Best Of". The show's host, Jill Cordes, even got behind the counter to mix items like candy and fresh fruit into the shop's ice cream.

Being able to get attention for the Anchorage location as well as Cold Stone Creamery overall makes Brenda, now also an area developer for Alaska and Oregon, quite happy. "My favorite part," she says, "is just being a part of this company and helping to develop it."