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People Making News: TSCB Communications
Ted Deveaux, President & CEO of TSCB Communications
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It began as a small start-up business recording and editing videos for various functions and events at a time when African Americans were not prevalent in the recording industry. Some 21 years later TSCB Communications, a company providing audio and full video services, continues to remain on the cutting edge of technology.
The company, owned and operated by Ted Deveaux and his wife, began after Deveaux taped a conference meeting at a church in North Carolina. It was then he realized that the small-scale business conducted on the weekend could turn into a lucrative opportunity.
“It started small then it snowballed into something we felt we could do and we could forecast what we would be doing next year,” he said.
Eventually, the business expanded, through word of mouth and self-promotion, and within four years Deveaux and his wife were able to leave their jobs and focus on building the company. With a desire to succeed, Deveaux set forth to create a company that would stand out from the rest.
“It’s been perseverance after I left my job. I felt I couldn’t afford the luxury of not succeeding,” said Deveaux. “I had to do what I needed to do in order to accomplish what I needed to accomplish because I couldn’t afford to fail.”
Yet the road to success was not paved overnight for the company. It has taken a lot of researching the industry and learning through experience to stay ahead in an industry that is forever changing.
“It was not a fly by night type thing,” said Deveaux. Their clients have included the NAACP, Urban League, PUSH headed by Rev. Jesse Jackson, National Council of Negro Women, Black Mayors and Congressional Black Caucus. On average, they cover 30-40 conferences per year.
“At that time all the black organizations were utilizing other people to do their recording.”
Convincing potential clientele of their capabilities wasn’t easy for the emerging company since African American recording companies were infrequently utilized for coverage of major events. “There were no African Americans doing it at that time, not on the scale we thought to do it,” said Deveaux.
While the industry is constantly changing, introducing new technology such as CD’s and DVDs, the company’s success has been its ability to transcend the advancements and meet the changes in technology. Deveaux, who runs the company from home, said he has purchased equipment that can withstand long-term advancements in technology. It is this foresight that has kept the company on the cutting edge of technology and providing quality service for its clientele. For example, the company is able to produce recorded DVD’s 30-40 minutes after an event and an audio tape three minutes after an event.
“We kept true to a technological core and when the technology turned in whatever way it did, we we’re able to also turn and to be on the forefront of that.” While the company has made great strides, Deveaux still feels that a glass ceiling exists, making it difficult to extend his business beyond African American clientele.
“ I don’t think I ever reached the epitome of what I can do. The business world is a segregated world,” he said. “My business is not to people of color but people of the world.”
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