At mid-year, Petit Cuisine was serving one- to two-dozen families per week. Rives declined to provide current sales figures.

Rives still practices law, “but I try to finish up by 2 or 3 in the afternoon, because I want to be able to be with the kids,” she said.

Rives is looking at starting an organic lunch delivery service for private and charter schools.

Advice: “Forget negativity and people who say it can’t be done, because you can,” Rives said.

Cloud 9 World

Frustrated with seeing too many kids growing up shallow and materialistic, Andrea Nachtigall, a Key Biscayne mom of two, decided to do something about it. In May 2010, she began brainstorming about making youth T-shirts with character-building messages.

“I saw a lot of poor kids growing up in Colombia. I have a different perspective,” she said. “Our kids today have no idea what the real world is.”

Nachtigall teamed up with two other moms, Lorenza Gonzalez of Coconut Grove and Maria Smith of Key Biscayne, to create Cloud 9 World, which markets products containing messages to enhance self-esteem and self-worth.

The big idea: Cloud 9 World matches animal illustrations with a positive character trait, such as integrity, compassion or courage, to help kids ages 4 to 11 feel good about themselves. The line markets T-shirts ($20), caps ($13), placemats ($7), journals ($16), books ($4.99) and other gift items.

Product development: Gonzalez came up with the idea of pairing animals with character virtues, and Smith’s husband, Norman, drew the illustrations for the initial products. Nachtigall found a copywriter in Atlanta to help develop inspirational messages for the products. They decided to market to the gift industry.

Research: The Cloud 9 team consulted a child psychologist to discuss what age groups to target, to learn parents’ biggest concerns, what virtues were the most important and what animals to incorporate into the design. After a test run of 2,500 shirts, (100 each of 25 virtues), Cloud 9 began conducting focus group studies. They met with parents and children separately to get feedback. They decided to do a line of several products, “so the child is constantly reminded of the virtues,” Nachtigall said.

Capital outlay: The initial capital investment was about $150,000 for the May to December 2010 research studies, product development, samples, illustrations, copy and packaging. It also included point-of-purchase displays, signage for showrooms, website development, photography, advertising and catalogs. The team has continued to invest in the company.

Distribution: Nachtigall relied on past experience marketing a handbag line to find distributors. She knew the secret was preparation. Distributors like to work with reliable companies that have a unique product.

In January 2011, Nachtigall and Gonzalez traveled to Atlanta for the largest spring gift market in the country. They now have 52 sales reps that visit retailers nationwide. Their merchandise is now in about 300 stores, locally at Fairchild Tropical Gardens and Books & Books, both in Coral Gables. Their website and online store, www.cloud9world.com, lists retailers by state.

In October, Cloud 9 World introduced softcover books ($4.99 each) that illustrate each of 12 character traits. They have sold about 30,000 books. The gift line sells about 15,000 to 20,000 pieces a month. The line is not yet profitable, and the partners do not yet draw a salary. They are working on lines for tweens and infants.

Advice: “Be persistent. We’re all full of such wonderful ideas, but one gives up so quickly," Smith said. “Keep going.”

Joon

Tameka Linnell of Fort Lauderdale had always been health-conscious, but it wasn’t until her son, Andros, was born in 2005 that she started to read labels.

It was that experience, seeking out natural products to put on her baby’s skin, that led Linnell and her husband, Gary, to launch an all-natural skin care line for tween girls called JOON.

The big idea: The JOON line includes natural bath and body products for girls ages 8 to 12, with lotions, body washes and lip balms.

“You see natural products for babies, but then those babies grow up and they don’t want to use baby products anymore,” Linnell said. “Tweens want something of their own.” Prices range from $5.99 to $8.99.

Product development: First the Linnells conducted focus group studies to explore the marketability. Then for 2 1/2 years, they worked with Prime Enterprises in Miami, a contract manufacturer, to develop a formula, prototypes and samples. Products were tested on potential customers.

“We went through five or six versions of each product before we found one we liked,” Linnell said.

Finally, clinical tests were conducted to determine safety and stability.

Capital outlay: Linnell estimates the couple spent about $400,000 from their savings before the first product was out. That included research and development costs and brand imaging, including paying top dollar for a designer from tween fashion brand Limited II to design their label.

Marketing: The Linnells are relying on social media, such as Social Moms, Facebook and a blog to build brand imaging. They also participate in local events geared to moms.

The line is sold at Whole Foods Market and in the Chamberlins/Akin’s Natural Food Market, which has 16 stores in the Midwest and Central Florida. It also can be found on ItsJOON.com, MyPumpkinDoodle.com, a site for natural products, and OpenSky.com, an ecommerce site for bloggers.

“It’s a new consumer category for retailers, because for young girls, it’s only fashion and accessories, there’s not really a personal care items,” Linnell said. “We’re working with retailers to create the category.”

This summer, the Linnells launched www.JOONGirl.com, to interact with girls ages 6 to 13, who provide 90 percent of the site’s content.

The company is in the process of developing about 30 more products. Linnell declined to release current sales figures, but said it is not yet profitable and she doesn’t draw a salary.

Advice: “Talk to other people about your idea,” Linnell said. “Seek people who know more than you do.”

My Heritage Book

Deanna Bufo Novak’s daughter, Samantha, was a month old when a curious thing began happening. Novak’s, mom, Linda Bufo, suddenly was talking more about her Italian heritage, and Novak’s mother-in-law, Sharon Novak, was talking about her Polish ancestry.

Novak had an epiphany: Wouldn’t it be great if there were personalized kids’ books that taught about heritage? A year and a half later, Novak launched My Heritage Book.

The big idea: My Heritage Book, www.myheritagebook.com, offers personalized kids’ books that teach children about their heritage. The child’s name is woven into the stories, which can include information on up to four countries. A letter from the gift-giver and a family tree page are included in the book. Hardbound books are 31 to 65 pages and are geared to kids up to age 12. Cost: $39.95 plus shipping.

Research: After getting the initial idea in February 2004, Novak, a Plantation resident and attorney, began to research the field, looking for personalized books that taught heritage.

“I would see books on being Italian, but nothing on combined heritage,” Novak said. “Most people come from a combination of different heritages.”

She conducted focus groups of parents, kids, grandparents and educators. She researched countries, starting with 20, and began her own research library at home with atlases and children’s books. She interviewed people from different countries about their cultures and traditions.

A pattern began to emerge of what information she needed to collect for each country, starting with food and geography, and moving to topics such as folklore, dance and music, depending on the locale. Now Novak offers a choice of 72 countries.

Product development: Novak began writing the stories, compiling the pieces that would make up her books. She had a website built in the fall of 2005.

Novak found illustrator Alicia Bresee of Fort Lauderdale through friends. She recruited law school pal Heather Baxter to proofread and edit the books.

She searched seven months for a manufacturer before finding Docuvision in Davie, which had just purchased a digital printer and could print one personalized book at a time. She purchased binding equipment and book cover material herself and struck a deal with Docuvision to bind the books. Novak and family members handle packing and shipping.

Capital outlay: Novak’s initial investment came to about $25,000, for website development, an initial order of 1,000 book covers, binding equipment and an advance to the illustrator. This also included initial marketing materials, such as brochures, a launch party and the building of her research library.

Marketing: Novak kicked off school fundraisers to generate sales, visited schools to promote her books and started a commission-based sales consultant program. She uses Facebook to get feedback and interact with customers, and emails promotional codes to customers in her database. Novak also has garnered media attention through awards such as the 2011 Book of the Year by Creative Child magazine.

Aside from her website, Novak sells through online retailers such as www.BabyBox.com, and through upscale childrens’ boutiques such as Flora Ottimer in Fort Lauderdale and Red Wagon Toy Store in Coral Springs.

Her average monthly sales are 50 to 100 books. Novak is not yet profitable and does not draw a salary.

An ABC’s Around the World book that teaches children the alphabet using the names of countries will be introduced this year, Novak said.

Advice: “Surround yourself with other women who are doing it, such as NAWBO, the National Association of Women Business Owners,” Novak said.