January 2023 - Business Indiana - Indiana Gazette / The Blairsville Dispatch / Shopper’s Guide — 11
Local business preserves memories in digital age
By AMANDA DUNLOP adunlop@indianagazette.net
for start-up tech companies. We both already knew Erick, but didn’t really think of our- selves as a tech company. After a brief conversation, we knew the partnership with TEC would be a good fit.” TEC also provided them with office space at the Atri- um on Philadelphia Street. Now firmly established, the Flemings were able to focus on offering their digitization services. “Our most popular service is VHS to USB (thumb drive),” said Dan. “We can also trans- fer these memories to DVD or provide a digital download that you can share with any- one, anywhere in the world. We digitize all video cassette formats including Betamax, Hi8, Digital8, MiniDV and VHS-C. We also digitize 8 mm and Super 8 film, as well as 35 mm slides, album photos and photo negatives. Finally, we digitize audio cassettes.” Memory Lane Media also offers the option of custom video and photo slideshows for their customers, which in- clude families, business and nonprofit organizations.
erations of the business and meets with clients and part- ners. He also manages the media digitization and social media accounts for the busi- ness. Dr. Brittany Fleming is an associate professor of stra- tegic communication and media at Slippery Rock Uni- versity. Brittany is responsi- ble for creating custom slide- shows, web design and mar- keting materials for the busi- ness. The business got its offi- cial start on May 28, 2021, through the help of the IUP Small Business Develop- ment Center, which helped make their start-up “relatively seamless,” Dan said. “Richard Hoover and Tony Palamone, who ran the SBDC at the time, helped us get reg- istered with the proper agen- cies, put together our legal documentation and prepare for our launch,” Dan said. “We would not have been able to get off the ground without them. A year later Richard and Tony introduced us to Erick Lauber and The Technology and Entrepre- neurship Center, which offers incubator offices and support
The media landscape is constantly changing. Most, if not all of us, have memories of loved ones stored or saved on media that have long since become obsolete. Because of this, it can be difficult to watch old home movies, or view old photos or film reels. The same thing happened to Dan and Brittany Fleming, of Indiana, who, as they were preparing for their wedding in 2016, decided to have their home videos digitized to cre- ate a video montage of their loved ones who had passed on. “At that point it was VHS to DVD (conversion),” said Dan. “We couldn’t find anyone local who offered this service and were hesitant to ship our memories to a national ser- vice where it was unknown to us who would be handling and digitizing our memories. “So, we ordered a VHS-to- DVD converter and did the work ourselves. We had so much fun doing the work, and sharing these wonderful memories with our families, that we said we’d someday
Submitted photo Dan Fleming and his wife, Brittany, worked on a recent project at Memory Lane Media, located in the TEC offices at 665 Philadelphia St. in downtown Indiana.
has become much more pro- fessional, but everything is still family owned and operat- ed by the Flemings. Before starting Memory Lane Media, Dan had spent
12 years in capital equipment and commercial insurance sales. As of November 2022, he is a full-time employee of Memory Lane Media. He handles the day-to-day op-
like to start a business offer- ing this service.” Five years later, Memory Lane Media was born. Since buying their first converter, their process and equipment
See MEMORIES: A-12
Philly Street Candle Bar still burning bright CANDLE: From A-10
“The changes have not been as well received, but it is what it is,” she con- tinued. “During business hours we do not take res- ervations, but if it’s a large party, we do appreciate the heads up.” Neiderhiser has been told she should start sell- ing through the store’s website. “That’s missing the point of the business,” she said. “It’s an experience. It’s like trying to sell Disneyland online. I have no interest in selling online right now. “We just want to keep doing what we’re doing.” For more information about Philly Street Candle Bar, visit their website at phillystreetcandlebar.com or their Facebook page.
“This is a retail business,” Neiderhiser said, “but I think people are seeing it as more than that. It’s some- thing they enjoy doing. It’s an experience. They’re de- liberate. They make time to come do this.” Another cool feature of the business is that the space can be rented out for private events. Neiderhiser has recently updated some of her policies regarding this. She has set a 20-can- dle minimum for each party, as well as a down payment on the rental space. “The way we were doing it before is not as econom- ically feasible,” she said. “I was accepting any size of
Submitted photo Philly Street Candle Bar opened in the fall of 2021. Customers choose from more than 120 scents to blend their own scented, long-burning soy-based candle.
group or party, then bring- ing in my staff to work and
the group would cancel. I was losing money.”
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