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| HVS Studio Owner Chis Unger |
Chris Unger is a living example of the adage: "Love what you do and the money will follow." Each morning she steps into her Northside Dallas home-based studio, begins her projects for the day, answers the many phone calls from her clients and prospects, and answers to doorbell as customers come by to pick up their completed orders. Recently she had a $10,000 week. Not bad for walking the few steps to her studio and applying the knowledge she's learned as a Home Video Studio owner.
In her sixth year of business Chris does not hesitate to claim what motivates her daily: "I love the human aspect of my profession most of all," says Unger. "This is a technical business, and I got into video from a technical side, but owning a studio puts me in daily contact with my customers. I love seeing the effect I have on their lives."
The source of Unger's drive to pursue what she loves is easily traceable. First of all she looks to her father, who still comes into work every day as the head of internal medicine at Southwest Medical School at the University of Texas. By the way, he's ninety years old! "Can you believe it?" asks Chris. "He's made such an impact and his drive to want to make people's lives better keeps him going."
Chris' mother had the entrepreneurial bug and owned a popular bookstore in Dallas. "It was more than a bookstore. It was a neighborhood gathering place for many people." says Chris. Like many independent stores it couldn't compete against the mega-bookstores that came along, to the disappointment of Chris' mother and her many loyal customers. "Maybe that's why I like my small, independent business where I am hands-on with everything," says Chris.
Chris has always had a passion for the visual arts. "I dreamed of being a fashion designer as a girl," laughs Unger, "with a fallback career as an artist. Needless to say my parents balked a bit at my childhood dreams." Nevertheless Chris studied film at Colorado Women's College and video production at the Art Institute of Dallas. She also attended The Film School of France in Paris. Though she ultimately graduated from college with a degree in Women's Studies she began her video and film career as a freelance producer and editor.
"I did it all," says Chris, "from shooting documentaries to production assistant to editing...and that's when cut and paste really meant cut and paste." Unger kept up with her trade by taking classes and learning computer editing as well. But, like many video professionals who find Home Video Studio, Chris spent time navigating the rapids of freelancing and never quite being able to get in control of her total business. "For instance," says Unger, "I knew I needed to advertise and market myself but knew I didn't have the means to do it the way it must be done. I knew I had to keep up with the latest trends and technology but was too busy working." The Tenacious Texan pressed on.
One day Chris saw an ad for Home Video Studio in Videomaker magazine. Soon she was at the HVS Annual Getaway in Florida just to see what it was like. She liked what she saw and came on board. Nearly six years later Chris routinely posts great weekly earnings. She has also won the Most Improved Award at the annual Hanley Awards and was nominated for a Hanley as well
"Getting involved with HVS is the best thing I could have done," says Chris. "I didn't have to reinvent the wheel. And I love the support, both technical and marketing. For instance, we are given a step-by-step guide to marketing on how to add marketing activities in layers rather than just look at one big overwhelming thing that felt like a duty."
We are proud to have Chris Unger aboard, in her sixth year, and representing strong, independent women in the Home Video Studio family.
"My mother always told me that old saying 'Where there's a will there's a way' and that's my simple philosophy," says Chris. "I love meeting people and hearing their stories and then helping them tell that story. That's why I've always loved this business and why I always try to get better at it."
Want to join the Home Video Studio Family? Call Robert Hanley at 317-358-5932.
