Andy and Shari Misher Stenzler, founders of Kidville, NY, smile a lot.

Four years ago when their daughter Kylie was born, they began to confront the obstacles that Manhattan poses for families. They dragged their stroller up and down stairs, searched for places to park it, and ended up on waiting lists for baby music classes. Why, they wondered, does it have to be like this for parents in New York City?

Shari spotted an entrepreneurial opportunity in the situation, and both brainstormed and came up with a new business concept. The simple premise behind the Stenzlers’ idea, which became Kidville, is that parents would appreciate -- and pay for-- the convenience of centralizing their children’s activities under one roof.

At Kidville, children (from birth to 5) can take art, music, dance, sports and foreign language classes in a clean and safe environment. The facility also offers indoor and rooftop playgrounds, a café, a salon, and a boutique that sells toys and clothes for kids -- as well as convenient parking for strollers. Children who are 2 and 3 years old can attend Kidville University, a pre-school alternative. The outfit also hosts themed birthday parties and special events for young children.

Andy, 38, and Shari, 37, smile a lot because they have jointly created a thriving new business -- profitable and expanding – where they can work together and spend time with their own two children (their son Colby was born in 2004). They also smile because, as Andy said, “We really have made a mark on New York families’ lives for the better.”

The couple opened Kidville’s first four-story, 20,000-square-foot site location in January 2005 at East 84th Street between Lexington and Third Avenues. Two years later, about one-fifth of the 15,000 families with children ages 5 and under that live on the Upper East Side of Manhattan are members, according to Andy. Last May, the couple opened their second location at 466 Columbus Avenue, between 82nd and 83rd Streets. It already has 2,000 members, Andy said.

When a family enrolls a child in one of Kidville’s programs – an art, foreign language, or sports class, for example – the family immediately becomes enrolled as a member. Members receive discounts at Kidville’s café, boutique and salon. Andy pointed out that Kidville’s membership program is another factor that differentiates the program from other kids’ organizations where parents pay for the class and do not receive any other benefits.

The couple and their investors are preparing to expand Kidville further, based on its success to date. Investors in Kidville include Laurie Tisch, Liz and Emanuel Stern, and Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf. They will open a Kidville Annex in the Park Slope section of Brooklyn and another mini-Kidville in another New York City location shortly. They recently entered into a partnership with Little Maestros, which offers musical instruction for young children, and they are planning to launch Kidville’s Little Maestros on television soon. In 2008, they hope to begin franchising the business concept.

Andy, who was one of the original founders of Cosi, the sandwich shop chain, sold out his interest in Cosi four years ago to devote himself to Kidville. “It’s the most gratifying thing we’ve ever done,” he said. Raised in Larchmont, Andy attended the University of Michigan and then sold air conditioners in the New York metropolitan area. After he received his M.B.A. from New York University in 1994, he began his career as an entrepreneur.

Shari attended Syracuse University as an undergraduate and also received her master’s degree from New York University, where she studied film and media. She started her own public relations firm in 1997 with a partner and remains active in that business in addition to her management role in Kidville.

The couple, who live in East midtown, both appreciate the flexibility of owning their own business and the chance to work close to their kids, although Kylie is about to age out of Kidville’s activities and classes.

“We couldn’t do this if we didn’t have a passion for kids,” Andy said.