ITech startup of the month.

• Author: PETERSON, ERIC
• Position: Brief Article - Company Profile

REASON INC., AURORA

www.reasoninc.com

FOUNDED: NOVEMBER 1998

WEBSITE LAUNCHED: DECEMBER 1999

INITIAL LIGHTBULB: Co-founders Jeff Kohler and Chris Hotz, both working in wireless sales at AT&T, spotted a void as mobile communications boomed in the mid-1990s. "We saw a need in the market for some sort of Web-based applications to help (retailers) get up their own wireless Web sites," said Kohler. "But they cost literally about $1 million to build." Reason Inc. began with its own retail site, www.reasonware.com, as a model and projected revenue generator. Now, however, the 30-employee Reason has moved away from e-tailing, focusing solely on developing Web-based tools for retailers and businesses with large numbers of wireless devices.

IN A NUTSHELL: The company has two product lines: Reason For Retail and Reason For Wireless. Reason For Retail is the e-commerce product, marketed to wireless retailers who are looking for an affordable online sales channel. Web sites are customized to the client's needs, and provide end users with quick recommendations on billing plans, wireless devices, and relevant accessories.

Reason For Wireless, which debuted in November, is "something we sell to corporations to help them manage their wireless products and services," explained Kohler. Talk to any telco manager with any company: You've got 1,000 wireless products with your employees. You're working with three different carriers and there's 27 different rate plans to choose from. You can't figure out your bill, and you don't know if your employees are on the right rate plans. You wish you could get it under control, but you don't even know who has what." Reason For Wireless puts all that information in one place -- on the Web -- allowing a company to get a better grip on its wireless bills. It also generates a separate page for each employee, offering click-through answers to billing, technical, and functionality questions.

THE MARKET: The markets are massive and growing for both product lines. The indirect retailers targeted by Reason For Retail account for more than a third...