His 50th birthday one Tough Mudder

Sue Reid for The Solon Times It was a 50th birthday celebration that Solon resident Bill Frankel won’t soon forget. It involved plunging into freezing cold water, jumping through fire and running through electrical wires – and that was the fun part. Mr. Frankel, along with six of his close friends and colleagues at Be Well Solutions in Solon, took part in the Tough Mudder event recently in Mansfield. A 10 mile-plus, military-style obstacle course designed by the British Forces, Tough Mudder not only tests one’s physical strength, but also mental stamina. Drawing more than 700,000 participants worldwide, the event raises funds in support of the Wounded Warrior Project. “I’ve done marathons and triathlons and am a long-distance runner and cycler, so ‘been there, done that,’” Mr. Frankel, who turned 50 on May 2, explained of deciding how to mark [...]

Wellness big business for Solon firm

Timothy Magaw for Crain's Cleveland Keeping employees healthy is a good business plan these days as health care costs continue to inch upward, and a Solon-based company appears to be benefiting from helping employers do just that. Launched in 2005, BeWell Solutions positions itself as a business that can improve an employer’s bottom line by reducing employees’ health risks through educational seminars, biometric screenings, health coaching and other tactics. Revenues at BeWell, according to its top executives, are on the upswing, growing 100% in 2010 over the previous year and 60% on top of that in 2011. At present, BeWell is 40% ahead of where it was last year in terms of revenue, with “major opportunities in the pipeline,” said William Frankel, its executive vice president. Specific revenue figures were not disclosed. The company recently moved from a 3,500-square-foot space [...]