Welcome to the Hotel Frisco: California couple rescues mountain inn.

• Author: Fulford, Martha
• Position: Attitude at Altitude - Hotel Frisco - Company Profile

FOR MARK AND MARY WALDMAN, OWNERS OF THE HOTEL FRISCO, IT WAS ALL ABOUT LOCATION. California's Bay Area was not quite right: Summit County in Colorado has turned out to be perfect.

"We didn't leave our careers because we did not like what we did," said Mark Waldman. "We love business. But we wanted mountain living."

So the Waldmans bought the Hotel Frisco out of bankruptcy in May 2002. Leaving marketing jobs in California at companies like Innoveda, National Semiconductors and Synopsys, they became innkeepers.

"We wanted a different sort of lifestyle," said Mary Waldman. "We figured we're young, if it doesn't work out we can always go back."

The couple looked at both the Lake Tahoe region and in Colorado, but preferred the Rocky Mountain region because they found it was more tourist-friendly. When the Waldmans took over, the hotel had a total of four reservations. These days, weekends are booked three weeks in advance.

But the couple hasn't left high tech behind.

They are bringing both business and technology to Frisco, offering a Web site and high-tech services for guests. Their business plan specifically targets business professionals and "soft adventurers," those who want a hot shower and a comfortable bed after a day of hiking, biking or skiing. So the hotel has wireless Internet available throughout, and a computer is available for guest use.

"It helps to have high-tech connections," Mark says, and he uses his own high-tech marketing and sales background to target customers on the Web. He says 90 percent of the hotel's new business that is not a result of referrals comes through its Web site.

And this July, Hotel Frisco opened a new meeting area for corporate retreats or off-site meetings. The location used to be a boarded-up storefront facing Frisco's Main Street, so the couple's improvements have community approval. Mary says.

[ILLUSTRATION OMITTED]

Yet moving...