Dave Stephenson has been a DJ for over 30 years. In addition to running his DJ company, A Time for Music & Memories, he’s transitioned into a full-service photo-booth provider with Ismile Pod Photo Booths.
The Douglassville, Pa.-based DJ knows more about photo booths than most people, which is why he’ll be delivering a seminar at this August’s DJ Expo on the subject. We asked him about the state of the photo-booth industry, whether it’s “old news” or still relevant, and how much money one can make.
Do you have any stats on the size of the photo booth market? How many machines are out there?
Dave Stephenson: I have been studying the industry since I started and there are over 20,000 systems around the world. They range from the arcade style – old-fashioned type – to multi-camera array systems and beyond.
Is it mostly DJs using the machines as add-ons?
There a lot of DJs that have added photo booths to expand their service offerings. This has been a nice add-on to what they can do and it has taken them from being just a DJ to an entertainment company. There are a lot of DJs that, by adding a photo booth, have changed their companies and staff. It is a nice one stop add-on for events.
Is the market saturated?
It’s becoming saturated with companies that are buying photo booths and not knowing how to run a business. You need to understand your market and have a business plan. People think photo booths are free money and they don’t charge their true worth. They almost give it away and complain they can’t book it. The industry has really grown and there are several training groups out there that have helped new photo-booth owners open their minds and grow their offerings.
