How I Made It: PR and Marketing Whiz Devin James
At what point did you know you were ready to begin your own venture?
Describe the beginning of your business?
One of my mentors, who was like a grandfather to me, asked if I wanted to share his office to get my business started. I agreed and was so diligent I practically lived in the office until I developed the business model that complimented my lifestyle. After a few months, the business grew exponentially and I took the entire space. At that point , I knew and the Devin James Group was officially launched.
Can you provide more detail into who your mentor/grandfather-like figure was? What made him choose to give you office space?
My mentor/grandfather figure is an entrepreneur from Cleveland, Ohio. He was not the type of guy that likes all the hype and began his career as an insurance agent who worked his way up, organically built his clientele then sold the franchise to open his own agency.
After we met he took interest in some of the things I was working on and asked if I could help him with a few ideas to market and grow his business. He was impressed with what I came up with and he instantaneously made the offer for the office space. To be honest I think he was my first client, but either way I’m certain that God used him to help me grow.
Did you begin working on the foundation of the company during your undergraduate career or was it all post grad?
I attended the University of Memphis and majored in Psychology and Biomedical Engineering. As a senior with a 3.8 GPA on track to graduate in the spring semester of 2004 I was shot in my left chest/shoulder area just inches away from my heart during a robbery at my job. As a result of the shooting I lost everything and was forced to withdraw from school and spend the next 6 months getting reconstructive surgeries to repair my humerus and various nerve/muscle tissue damage while simultaneously being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder.
Ultimately my maximum medical improvement rating was consistent with a permanent disability to my shoulder and arm which altered my plans and changed my perspective on life. Recovering from the shooting was the rebirth of Devin James. Far from being idle during the 6 months of recovery I began developing business models that would allow me to provide for my family using my creativity and intellectual property instead of using my hands or physical labor since I could no longer perform simple tasks that most of us take for granted. Later that year I taught myself how to write with the opposite hand, began my physical therapy and launched Native Graphix, a graphic design firm which is now wholly owned by the Devin James Group. Local media caught on when the Memphis Business Journal published the article titled, “From the heart – Traumatic event paves way for new graphic design firm”. http://memphis.bizjournals.com/memphis/stories/2005/06/27/smallb1.html
What are those qualities that you possess that you extend into your ventures [you talked about your business being a presentation of you]
My most important qualities are integrity and creativity which I made the foundation of my business.
What personal life lessons have you learned that have been applicable to being an entrepreneur? You don’t have to learn everything from trial and error. There have been enough people that stumbled before you that you can learn from. Become diligent, read everything, study your craft, analyze yourself, set realistic goals and have someone in business other than yourself to bounce things off of. Failure is a part of business so redefine your perception of it and learn from others so you can turn your flaws into attributes.
