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All you need is love to start a business. Well, that and a substantial savings account. Rudy and Maria Pesqueira drew on both of those to open Package Express.

The packing and shipping store is in a shopping center on the southeast corner of West Ina and North Thornydale roads. Opening day was Feb. 16.

The business is the culmination of five years of research by the Pesqueiras, who looked into several options and even went to Denver to check out a printing franchise. After that experience, the couple decided the franchise model was not the type of business they wanted.

The couple bought a turnkey package offered by The Mailbox Stores Inc. The package includes equipment, training, location help, lease negotiations, setup and supplies.

Rudy was pleasantly surprised by the attention and support that he and his wife received.

"As we got closer and closer to opening the business, the corporation was there every step of the way," he said. "The most attractive thing to us is it's not a franchise. There are no royalty fees."

On a recent afternoon, Katherina Speer came in to get a mailbox for her home-based business. Speer had her daughters, ages 6 months and 3 years, in tow. The girls attend the day-care center across the parking lot.

"I can come here and take care of shipping, postal needs, picking up packages for my business and then go pick up my daughters," said Speer, 31. "It's really convenient."

The Pesqueiras met at Raytheon Missile Systems and have been married 14 years.

"We worked together for many years," said Rudy, 49. "I enjoy having her by my side. I love to work with her."

Rudy left Raytheon to work for United Food and Commercial Workers Union Local 99, where he was a union organizer for 18 months. Maria, 55, still works full time at Raytheon.

"I want to retire. This is something I would like to have," Maria said. "We want to work together."

After Rudy and Maria signed the lease, the challenge to transform a former massage place into Package Express loomed large. Fortunately for the native Tucsonans, help came from extended-family members who live in the area. Maria's niece, Leticia Castillo, is the only employee. She works part time.

"It's something different," said Castillo, 31. "I look forward to coming in here."

The store's offerings include mailbox rentals, stamps, a U.S. Postal Service mail drop-off, photocopying, Western Union services and eBay listings. Customers can ship their packages through the Postal Service, Federal Express or DHL.

"This is our dream," Rudy said. "For me, it's still a bit scary. It's a thing where you put a lot of your savings into it. It's one thing to dream about it, but it's another thing to do it."

Read more about Southern Arizona's small businesses at the Small Business Resource page.