New Lease on Life When he wanted out of his car lease, this entrepreneur didn't take no for an answer--he started a business instead.

What: Online business that matches car lease buyers with others wanting out of their Vehicle leases
Who: Sergio Stiberman of LeaseTrader.com
Where: Miami
When: Started in 1999
Startup costs: More than $1 million

When Sergio Stiberman, 40, wanted to get out of his car lease in 1998, he did what most people would do--he went to his dealership. But he wasn't entirely satisfied with what he found out. "It was going to cost me [the same amount as] all my remaining payments" to get out of the lease early, Stiberman says.

What Stiberman wanted was a way to end his car lease early without excessive fees and payments. As the former owner of a consumer electronics business, he was also looking for a new venture, and with his car problems came a business solution: Create an exchange program for consumers to trade car leases. "I realized there was a need from a consumer standpoint, and there was no one in the market doing it," he says.