Andreas Roell, a former pro soccer player from Germany, takes great pride in his green card. As the president and co-founder of Geary Interactive, Roell says he is living the American dream. “I feel I can do anything I want, accomplish anything I want,” he says.

This ambitious 29-year-old entrepreneur has shown he can achieve great things in a short amount of time. Roell started Geary Interactive in 2000 with his business partner, John McKusick. A spin-off from an advertising company in Las Vegas, Geary Interactive is completely independent and handles online marketing campaigns as well as Web site design and development.

Although many dot coms became dot bombs a couple of years ago, Roell remained undaunted. “I always believed that this media would be an important aspect of advertising,” he says. “We’re big advocates of having people integrate online advertising with the traditional advertising mix.”

Several companies and organizations, such as the University of Phoenix, Paramount Pictures and the San Diego Public Relations Society of America, have sought Geary Interactive’s expertise in Web design, online marketing campaigns, and e-newsletters.

“We thrive because we hold ourselves very accountable for the campaign,” Roell says. “We have hard data. We look at the return the client can get out of the investment.”

Keeping clients happy rewards Geary Interactive’s employees with steady salaries and secure jobs. “We’re hiring, not laying off,” Roell says. “Now the economy is moving upwards again. Our entire team can be proud of what we’ve done.”

Roell, who holds a bachelor’s degree in international business from the University of Nevada and an MBA as well, first visited the United States with his soccer team in 1989. After returning to Germany for a year, he decided to come back and pursue his dream of starting a business from scratch. “I was always an entrepreneur at heart,” he says.

— Bonnie A. Nicholls