Playing with computer opens doors for couple

It started as an interest of tinkering around with the computer and playing with its software.

They never thought that playing around with the equipment could actually open an opportunity to set up their videography company, which has now become a brand of trust among clients not only from Cebu but also from other provinces and countries as well.

Couple Joey and Catherine Rivera both used to be employees who aimed to work hard to gain corporate success.

However, they shifted their goals to become entrepreneurs running their own company and employers instead of just being employees when they found some success in their computer projects.

“In 2001, I was just playing around with the computer which we bought second hand at P15,000. That time being able to store files like video presentations on CDs (compact discs) was a novelty so I thought why not offer simple services like that to earn extra income for the family,” Joey Rivera said.

A personal computer was also a luxury at that time and the couples thought that if they’d buy one it should be able to pay and earn for itself.

“So we started by offering small projects like designing invitation cards. That time Hallmark Greeting Cards with clip art designs was in demand and we made the designs using only the Microsoft tools,” he said.

It was later that year when the couple got their first break.

They were introduced to a photographer whose client wanted their wedding video re-edited and saved in a CD from the then widely used Video Home System or VHS format.

“So we got that project which I have to do every after office hours because then I was still working as credit and financial analyst of BPI (Bank of the Philippine Islands),” he said.

The first job which they only charged P2,000 was well appreciated by their first client. This project started the couple’s shift to starting their own business.
Later on, projects just came pouring in as they partnered with the photographer in editing videos for weddings.

Catherine then decided to resign from her job at a Law firm because the projects were growing and there was a need for one of them to focus on the growing business.

Aside from editing videos, the couple later added taking the video themselves and editing them for their customers.

“We only borrowed a video camera from a friend which we used to take the videos then,” he said.

A year after, Joey also resigned from his job from the bank to help Catherine manage their growing business.

As the projects became bigger and more complicated, the couple later on found themselves requested by corporate organizations to also submit their proposal and work portfolio to be accredited and be tapped for corporate events in the future.

“Some were also starting to ask us if we have an official receipt. That was the time when we thought that we should already register our business,” he said.

In 2002, they then applied for a business permit and was registered in 2003 as Digital Minds Computer Services, which is the mother company of Digital Minds Videography.

Companies like Shangri-La’s Mactan Island Resort and Spa and many other companies including banks, hotels, resorts and malls later become clients and the couple had to increase their manpower.

From only the two of them, they employ eight people to help them during their shoots as well as during the editing process which usually take more time than the shoots.

The couples also set up their own website where they post pictures of some of their projects, which have won them clients not only from Cebu but also from provinces and in other countries such as Australia and Singapore.

According to Rivera, they are in a business that requires constant innovation and re-investments on the latest technologies both in the software and hardware aspects.

“We always see to it that we are updated when it comes to the latest editing softwares and we have powerful cameras that gives us the capacity to do more in terms of the video outputs and we continue to invest.”

Digital Minds Videography now offers services for wedding shoots, corporate events, birthdays and debuts and wedding anniversaries.