Teeing Off

This picture was taken many years ago, in a different time in my life. For a lot of reasons, I thought those days were long gone, but as you will see, you never know what life will throw at you. If I've learned anything, it's that opportunities to do great things never come when, or in the form you would have ever expected.

I started my career in web development and online marketing in 1995, when the internet was just a place for geeks and adventurous businesspeople. Sure, there were whispers of things to come, and I witnessed how buzzworthy the internet can be, even back then, but it was largely unexplored by today's standards. The browser of the day was Netscape Navigator, and my toolkit included animated gifs, a couple of image utilities from my friends at BoxTop Software (I witnessed their founding in Starkville, MS in 1995), and some seriously sophomoric versions of Dreamweaver.

Ah, the days of yore...but enough nerdy stuff on to the juice.

In '95, I owned my first printing business. It was a shaky partnership with a guy who once told me regarding our sales; "If we can just get the scraps, we can have a good little business." Needless to say, I didn't share the same philosophy. One day after about a year of struggling, I got a call from James (Jim to me). He and I graduated from the same high school, but never really knew each other. He was a graphic designer looking for a job. After seeing his portfolio, I hired him immediately.

A few short months later, we were introduced to the web. Immediately James and I knew that this was where we needed to focus our efforts. My partner in the printing business did not agree. So, in 1996, after a little planning (very little, actutally), Nsomnis Interactive, Inc. was born.

While we continued to offer top-notch print and traditional media design services, we were the only agency in MS, southern TN, or western AL to offer web design. We were, quite literally, one of a kind.

Six good years passed and in that time we built hundreds of websites, many of them were first-ever sites for our Fortune 500 and medium-tier business clients. We expanded our offerings to include interactive CDROM's, web application development (before it was called that), and online marketing. We even got into the CD replication business by purchasing our first CD Burner, a 4X Yamaha external for a paltry $2500 bucks. What a steal!!

But, all good things must come to an end.

...And they did. In 2002, James and I parted ways to pursue other interests. He moved away from MS and continued to kick serious butt in the design world and I started a consulting business and, in '05, launched an e-commerce business that eventually became the largest online store in it's market. James and I, despite our best efforts, lost touch.

Or do they?

In 2008, we reconnected through, of all things, the internet. James was living in Austin, TX, we were both married, and after months of catching up, the old itch came back. Nsomnis had been at the top of it's class in the 90's and early 2000's and we had a synergy neither of us had found elsewhere. We figured, it was time for Nsomnis 2.0!

Enter Sundaram!

Coming on board with James again was like slipping into my favorite old coat. We know how to agree and to disagree. We work so well together it's like we are of the same mind, and we both have the same unrelenting determination to give our clients the best design, web, marketing, or whatever we're doing for them, their money can buy.

The story is far from over. We're just teeing off.

The picture above was taken around 1998, when Nsomnis (pronounced som'-nis) was at it's pinnacle (and yes, I AM wearing sandals with socks, what's it to ya). I knew back then that I'd be working in web and tech for the rest of my life. I truly love my career and I love the fact that, much like golf, you must stay on top of your game or get left behind. It's the most exciting business in the world.

And to you, our clients, thank goodness I'm better at my career than I am at golf. Man, that's a terrible looking stance :)

On behalf of the whole Sundaram team...we look forward to doing great things together.