by Reginald Andrew
As a young woman Teige La Borde always wanted to make it big in the creative arts and design industry. Along the way to achieving her dream she succeeded in gaining valuable skills and business experience, and in the process she opened her own event planning and design services company, Azuk Creative Services. It was established in 2012.
Azuk is Teige’s middle name. Her desire to distinguish her company and create a unique design experience reflects her determination to redefine the creative arts services with the emphasis on professionalism.
Teige La Borde, 24, is originally from Independence City, Entrepot. She attended the Ave Maria Primary and St. Joseph’s Convent and studied business administration at the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College (SALCC).
On leaving school she did an internship at Landmark Events as a junior production assistant. Eight months later she landed a job at LUCELEC as a corporate communications assistant. There she gained a good grasp of marketing and customer-service relations. She later worked for Awesome Caribbean Weddings and also did a few projects on her own, including organising parties.
Teige was happy to chat one-on-one with Dazzle magazineabout her creative goals and ideals and to share her views on the exciting world of creative arts and design.
Dazzle: How did you come up with this business idea?
Teige: I think that my journey through school and through life helped me to define the angle and approach from which I should channel my creative thoughts and emotions. I enjoyed watching design-related programs on TV and doing research, and from that I became convinced that I should enter the field of event design. I wanted to be a part of the artistic process of creating special moments, so I said to myself, ‘Yeah! I want to open my own business and do events planning and design.’
Dazzle: Did you gain enough confidence in yourself at that time to take the risk of opening your own business?
Teige: I had enough confidence and thought about what it would be like to take the risk, and I had no doubts. Taking the risk itself was a scary experience when I decided to leave a good paying job to start my own business. But deep within me there was a strong desire to explore my talent, not just simply start a business. I really didn’t want to merely fit into the box of any creative realm, but to do my own thing and feel free to create.
Dazzle: Can you briefly explain the services that you offer?
Teige: Mycompany offers event planning, coordination, management and design services. This includes corporate events, weddings, parties and also an extended portfolio of home and office decor. We touch on various aspects of design. Something new that we are exploring is visual merchandising. Visual merchandising is really big internationally, where you get elaborate displays of your product, including window displays. We are looking at this as the next step to launch and show Saint Lucians that they can do a lot with the products that they have.
I believe Saint Lucia is ready for the marketing aspect of events. However, locally when people think of events they usually think of a wedding planner; and when they think of a designer, they think of a decorator. The reality is there is that balance where we have to work in correlation with the marketing departments of various companies to help them achieve their ultimate goal. In the same way that they are looking to enhance their company’s image at an event, so are we. Our focus is not just on executing a well-planned event. We try to embrace your brand and its identity, and anything that we do is a representation of not just us but is in sync with the brand expectation. Ultimately, we get so invested in the story of the brand, that the design is the easy part. We find ourselves acting more so as ambassadors of your image..
Dazzle: How many employees do you have on your team?
Teige: Currently, I am the sole owner and managing director of AZUK Creative Services but I employ some part-time staff. My team includes five people with the skill set and portfolio background of event coordination, carpentry, textile, tailoring and design.
Dazzle: What are some of the challenges you face as a young entrepreneur?
Teige: One of the key challenges that I face specifically in this industry is convincing clients that there is a corporate side to design. It’s a bit difficult because there are not many people operating in the industry who are taking that groundbreaking step. There are one or two well-known individuals doing so, but with an extensive background in other fields. We all have our preferred skill set within the industry and identify our targets with our company vision but I think there’s an opportunity that exists for us to come together and show what the industry has to offer. One of the challenges for me is to get a matched value for my work; gain value for the commitment that I put into it. The efforts put towards brand research, artistic compilation of the design concept, the costing analysis and the ultimate production where we make strategic managerial decisions, add tremendous value to our work that can hardly be quantified in just monetary terms.
Dazzle: What has been your biggest accomplishment to date?
Teige: I must say that every day when I think about all the potential clients and events that I can pursue, feels like a big accomplishment in itself. The opportunity to make decisions that take me further along my career path as an entrepreneur and in turn affect other people’s lives in a positive way, that itself is an accomplishment for me. My biggest personal accomplishment, however, is watching myself grow in the business, having started off as a decorator and now being able to redesign a club or plan an entire conference by creating, organising and supervising every element of the process to meet the event goals and objectives. I think that the progress I’ve made from initially doing this on a side as a hustle, to developing it as a full-fledged business is a big accomplishment for me.
We have done work for the British High Commission to Saint Lucia, the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in St. Lucia and the Venezuelan Embassy in St. Lucia. We have also done work for Digicel, specifically the Digicel corporate booth at the St. Lucia Jazz & Arts Festival, two years in a row. We have also done work for the St Lucia Chamber of Commerce in connection with the Junior Achievement program. We have worked with LIME on enhancing their promotional events and Bank of Saint Lucia (BOSL). BOSL has been there with me from the start and has supported and motivated me to grow my business and excel.
Dazzle: Who and what motivates you and how do you improve your skills?
Teige: If you notice, every day you turn on your TV there is something new in technology, business and education. In order for your business to grow and succeed, I believe it’s important to expand your horizons and explore new avenues of opportunity. If it was simply about money I don’t think many entrepreneurs would be where they are today. Regardless of the economic situation, it is the challenge that really keeps me going; the challenge to continue growing and to do things differently. My passion and drive for event planning and providing a satisfying experience also keeps me motivated.
I make it my business to do research and keep up-to-date with the latest trends. There are special events magazines and key people that I focus on like Preston Bailey and Martha Stewart who is quite talented. There’s also the prospect of me furthering my education and expanding my knowledge in the industry.
Dazzle: Where do you envision your business heading in the next five years?
Teige: I see me making giant leaps towards further enhancing the growth and development of my business and adopting even more creative approaches to event design and planning by including corporate marketing and communications in the whole process. I see my business expertise and the skills and experience of my team, as well as my financial resources, growing to the extent where I can take on even larger projects – not just locally but regionally and beyond. I see St.Lucia giving a chance to a young female entrepreneurwith a dream and a fighting spirit and encouraging her to reach for the stars. In five years, I see me achieving greater success.
Dazzle Magazine would like to wish Teige success in her quest to become a world-class creative arts and event designer. Keep reaching for the stars and best of luck with your pursuits!
