We were lucky to catch up with Devounte Ho-Hing recently and have shared our conversation below.
Devounte, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s the best or worst investment you’ve made?
The best investment I have made as a business owner was investing in myself. Growing up in a single-parent household I learned firsthand what It takes to become a successful business owner. My mother ran her cosmetology practice along with a nonprofit organization called Talented Teen Club and at an early age, I witnessed the struggles my mother went through to provide for us. She would take us everywhere and one thing that always stuck with me was the power of education and paving a way for yourself no matter the obstacle. Later in life, once I graduated high school, I used all the money I had made from my graduation party and Invested in starting my business where I purchased equipment and educated myself on how to work my business without relying on others to complete tasks. For example, hiring videographers, photographers, and graphic designers at the time was very expensive based on the number of projects I wanted to complete at the time. I knew that to scale, I needed to invest in learning 3D design, photography, videography, graphic design, etc. to counter the costs It would take to hire a team of creatives early on to bring my vision a life. It was this one move that enabled me to save and hound in on my skills as an artist. So in conclusion, equipment and learning how to do things for yourself are some of the most powerful things I invested in as a business owner.
Devounte, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
My name is Devounte Ho-Hing from West Palm Beach, Florida and I am a creative director who focuses on
ChocolateBamboo productions is a certified small minority trademarked art production company that helps companies gain optimal exposure through branding in the manner of photography, video production, UI/UX, graphic, and motion design.
It is a brand working to both represent and promote an artist collective. This collective of diverse, hard-working creators funnel their specialized talents into innovative work, influence their local communities, and actively work to cultivate an open-minded culture.
I identified that individuals that are aspiring first-time/seasoned entrepreneurs have a difficult time finding a one-stop shop for all their branding needs within their business. In many cases, business owners do not know where to first look for their creative endeavors and oftentimes spend a significant amount of time searching for individual creators that best fit their vision. This tedious process prolongs the project and oftentimes discourages business owners from taking that first step in to make their vision a reality.
Chocolatebamboo productions work alongside entrepreneurs and leaders within the community who strive to further inspire others to walk their own individual paths. We bridge the gap in helping future leaders best communicate their vision through branding and ultimately help them best communicate why they do what they do. It is important to document and share a person’s “why” and strive to assist the aims and purposes of the individuals and businesses we collaborate with. We impact our community by helping individuals take that first step and help guide them into making their dreams a reality. Working alongside figures such as the Vice-Chairman of Miami-Dade Board of County Commissioner Oliver Gilbert on providing marketing content to best showcase current events within the community and working alongside Bethune-Cookman University as their lead Web and Graphics developer has given us the opportunity to understand how to effectively provide visually informative content that best helps individuals understand the overall vision.
Can you talk to us about manufacturing? How’d you figure it all out? We’d love to hear the story.
Yes, we do manufacture our products as well. Along with our art production company, we provide our very own chocolatebamboo apparel, highlighting pieces such as our classic CB Crew neck/hoodies, our signature CB satin lined hoodies, and our abstract series collection. Originally as a graphic designer, in my senior year of high school, I decided to screen print my original designs on garments to showcase my work in physical form. As time progressed, I ventured off into manaufacturing our custom satin-lined hoodies to protect all-natural hair types and styles. At the time for about 6 months, we researched different vendors and manufacturers and couldn’t find one specific vendor that would fit all our needs for creating our satin-lined hoodies. Satin Lined hoodies were relatively a new concept for most vendors and It was a challenge to find a vendor that could produce all our needs at an affordable price. We ended up utilizing our relationships with the people we knew to make test pieces out to see if the product was a success. Thankfully we received good feedback from our audience and continued manufacturing our garments from there.
The lessons I have learned along the way is to start small and gradually grow. Having a steady incline toward success was more important to me than investing everything in just one big project not knowing how my audience will receive it, especially a brand that does not have a consistent audience that engages with its content. Building brand awareness and a relationship with your audience is what truly sets a business up for success in the end and understanding what your audience gravitates to, will help gain a deeper understanding of how to pivot into your next season. Also, consistency plays a key role in building brand awareness within your business. Oftentimes, start-up clothing brands get caught into the idea that they need to invest in the most flashy designs or quality of the garment that they lose sight of building brand consistency amongst their audience. Brands need to consistently plant the idea of what sets themselves apart from the rest.
Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?
What helped us build a reputation within our market was the quality and care we provide for each one of our customers. Building trust and having a deeper understanding of each project gave us the ability to create pieces that best represent the stories of our clients and provide an overall seamless experience when working with us. Our goal is to not only create stunning images but to also create an atmosphere of an experience of a lifetime. We ensure that we make each piece an opportunity to create a moment that our clients will hold onto forever. A major role within the creative process is the passion aspect of the project and we help bridge the gap between creating astonishing pieces and an overall memorable experience.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://chocolatebambooproductions.com/work
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chocolatebamboo/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Chocolatebambooproductions
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/devounte-ho-hing-chocolatebamboo/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/cbamboopro
- Youtube: chocolatebambooproductions