Get to know: 121 Captions

We caught up with new Chamber member Tina Lannin to find out more about her business, 121 Captions, the importance of accessibility and the most valuable lessons she's learnt as a business owner. 

Tell us a bit about the origins behind 121 Captions

I started the business by lip reading video clips for Independent Television News (ITN). I then did lip reading work for the newspapers and TV channels of celebrities and sports players at events such as Wimbledon, football matches, and royal weddings.

I am totally deaf. I use speech to text reporters to deliver live captions in my meetings and teleconference calls, so I have been a ‘client’ for decades. I use my knowledge in this field to deliver the best quality live captioning services to other deaf people. Live captioning services now constitute 90% of our business. I have had poor quality captioning services in the past and being deaf myself, I know what is needed to deliver high quality and almost-instant captions, and how to be truly accessible to deaf people; delivering genuine equality is the driving force of our business.

Why is it important for organisations to live caption their events?

There are 14 million deaf and hard of hearing people in the UK- that is 1 in 5 of the population. Hearing loss is an invisible disability, and a lot of people will not admit to needing captions or do not know how to ask for them - or some service providers refuse to pay for the service. It is a legal requirement for an event organiser to make their event accessible, should a deaf delegate require captioning. Live captions also help people whose first language isn’t English and helps native language speakers to understand complicated information more easily. Being inclusive and accessible brings a service provider more business and simply makes good business sense.

Live captioning isn’t just limited to events. Can you tell us a bit more about the other services your offer?

We offer closed captioning of videos, transcription of audio files, live captioning of teleconference calls, sign language interpreters, lipspeakers, and forensic lip readers.

I’m an ambassador for the Association of Lipspeakers. A lipspeaker repeats a speaker’s message (without voice) to a deaf person, so there is only one clear person to lipread. This is especially useful for deaf people at networking events.

A forensic lip reader can watch CCTV or TV and pick up some of the words that were spoken, this is a difficult skill honed over a lifetime of lipreading. I have been lipreading all my life and I can lip read people from behind or sideways- I can even lipread people in cars behind me!

What’s the most interesting thing you’ve done in your business?

Live captioning the RI World Congress in Edinburgh. We were running live captioning in 14 separate rooms at the venue, onsite and remotely, and our team managed this very successfully. Live captioning the Game of Thrones finale for VIP guests as well as events in New York, Doha, Cape Town, Beirut, Dakar, and Addis Ababa - we are truly international!

Also lipreading the royal wedding of Kate and William, for Sky. William and Charles were standing at the altar, William turned to Charles and quipped “This was supposed to be a small family affair”.

What’s one important takeaway you’ve learnt from running your business that you would want other business owners to know?

I would say there are two very important things!

Good relationships with people are essential. It’s very important to treat your suppliers well - good suppliers are like gold dust! Treat your customers well too, as regular customers will help to spread the word and grow your business. Not forgetting staff- the business wouldn’t be where it is today without a team that works well together.

Know your field inside out, be the go-to person for everyone and share your expertise. If you don’t have the expertise, get it. Otherwise, why be in your business? We have gained clients from competitors simply because they don’t know what they’re doing. Good clients will stay with you for years and there’s no better reward than a happy and loyal client.

Are there any Chamber events that have caught your eye recently?

The Bite-sized learning: Introduction to disability and diversity in the workplace on 23rd April by DnA (Diversity and Ability) - this was very relevant to 121 Captions and was a good source of networking. Katie is meeting with them in July at their office to discuss how we can work together.

Tell us something about yourself that has absolutely nothing to do with business!

I’m being trained by a cordon bleu chef in India and I can now make the most mouthwatering Indian cuisine. I’ve even surprised myself. My neighbours are lining up to form queues for dinner! 

Thanks to Tina for writing this blog.

If you want to contribute to the Chamber blog, contact us on hannah@brightonchamber.co.uk