Self-employment

"Visual eulogy" service helps celebrate people's lives

Business captures client memories

It's a great feeling to know your small business helps customers feel better. "We help grieving families to remember and honour their loved ones," entrepreneur Carla Wagar says.

ROGER PIERCE -- www.bizlaunch.ca
[ 2007-10-17 ]

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Chris Wagar's company Touching Tributes creates visual eulogies.

Based in Kingston, Ont., Wagar's company is called Touching Tributes (www. touchingtributes.ca). It creates visual eulogies by combining photographs, text and selected music on DVDs for grieving families to play at a funeral service.

TRIBUTE

"The presentations also become cherished family items because we've captured important memories," Wagar says.

When producing a tribute, Wagar's team focuses on high levels of customer service. "We meet with family members and listen very carefully to what they want," she says. "We incorporate their personal choice in music and provide them with unlimited copies, so all family members can play the disc later."


With a background in the human services sector, including some crisis intervention work, Wagar is passionate about helping people through tough times. When she learned that most funeral service providers do not offer to produce tribute videos, she knew what type of business to start.

Driven by a desire to turn her idea into reality, Wagar ventured into entrepreneurship earlier this year equipped with some money from a family member and her own personal savings.

"There is a lot of satisfaction derived from creating something from nothing," she says. "I feel excited and proud of my accomplishments."

Wagar admits to many challenges as her own boss. "I'm always looking for ways to increase my productivity while minimizing costs," she says. "It's tough because there are so many things to do when launching a new business, yet little money to get them done."

Although her main product is visual eulogies, Wagar says her company also produces videos for weddings, retirements or living tributes. "We plan to expand our services in these areas and open for business in other communities," she says.

Meanwhile, her advice for other new entrepreneurs includes, "Keeping the faith in your idea. If you truly believe in it, you'll make it happen."



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