Valentine's Day is a special time for couples looking for that perfect gift.
Inside the Fort Oglethorpe Flicko's store, customers can use computers, scanners and video editing equipment to create a personal DVD of lasting memories for their sweetheart. People can step into a sound booth to record their voice on the DVD as well.
Flicko's owner Mike Morell, of Ringgold, shows a unique Valentine's Day gift option. The Fort Oglethorpe store's staff can help customers create a special DVD with personal photos, words and music for their valentine."Candy melts, flowers wilt, but a video will last a lifetime," said Flicko's Franchise Corporation owner Mike Morell, of Ringgold. "It's easy to go get flowers and candy, but to me it's more meaningful to create a video because you put time and effort into it."
Customers can use their own photos and words and set the video to the tune of royalty-free music selections found in the store. The flick created can include 40 moving photos, music, special messages and comes in a full color DVD case for $50.
"We jazz up videos for Valentine's Day," Morell said. "At the beginning of the video it can say 'To my sweetheart' and at the end of the video it can say 'With all my love.'"
He said he created his own personal photo montage video titled "You are my Sunshine" for his wife one Valentine's Day.
Even though the Flicko's store opened in Fort Oglethorpe in 2004, Morell said many people do not know what the store offers.
"We are designed to where you can come in and create a video," he said. "We can specialize it and customize it to the customer's tastes and needs. You can come in as a customer and do video editing."
Morell said he strives to make his business community-oriented. He travels to local high school sporting events to create videos for students' parents. He said his most rewarding project was filming the "We are Ringgold" video of local people coming together to help one another in the aftermath of last year's tornado.
Flicko's staff can also convert old reel film, VHS and camcorder tapes into digital discs for customers.
Years ago, Morell worked as a DJ and dreamed of opening a business, he said. After owning the first franchise store for seven years, he purchased the entire Flicko's Franchise Corporation in May. More stores can be found in Kentucky, Minnesota, Arizona, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Missouri and Virginia.
Morell said he hopes to open a few more stores out West and in Florida.