When Heather Lanzone and Melissa Brown met three years ago, they each had year-old sons, entrepreneurial spirits, and aspirations to keep their business skills fresh while remaining at home with their children. They became fast friends, kicking to

Aspen Way Enterprises Inc., of Billings, Mont., plans to open its third Aarons Sales & Lease Ownership store here this fall, one of five new stores the company has slated for the Inland Northwest, says Travis Higdon, its director of operations. a

Skyhawks Sports Academy Inc., a 30-year-old Spokane-based youth sports camp provider, has launched an affiliate venture, Skyhawks Franchise Group Inc., to operate as a nationwide franchiser of fitness programs for kids ages 4 to 14. The latter

The city of Spokane is implementing the first wave of recommendationswhich should yield an annual cost savings of about $500,000from the comprehensive efficiency study it ordered last year. The 500-page, $260,000 study, prepared by Matrix

A mixed-used building thats expected to get under way this fall south of Holy Family Hospital has grown substantially in scope in the two and a half years since plans for it first were disclosed by Franklin Park Medical Center II LLC, of to be at

Express Messenger Systems Inc., a Phoenix-based freight-delivery and courier service, has opened a hub in Spokane.The company, which specializes in same-day delivery, is leasing about 4,900 square feet of office and warehouse space at 6207 W. a

The unemployment rate in the Spokane metropolitan area fell in May to its lowest level in almost nine years.At 4 percent, the rate dipped to its lowest point since September 1998, when it came in at 3.6 percent.That is mighty low, Jeff

Liberty Lake-based Itron Inc., the No. 1 supplier of automatic meter-reading equipment in North America, is striving to compete in the next big meter-reading markettechnology that gives utilities and their customers two-way communication.The

Lydig Construction Inc., of Spokane, has begun work on a $50 million infrastructure project that will serve new housing developments planned at Schweitzer Mountain Resort, near Sandpoint, says the real estate broker whos marketing the work will a

With competition heating up as telecommunication companies seek to penetrate the small-business market, businesses here can expect telecom prices to fall further, and reliability to improve.Qwest Communications International Inc. and XO Inc., a