We recently connected with Carlee & Britt and have shared our conversation below.

Carlee & Britt, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today If you’re open to it, can you talk to us about the best (or worst) investment you’ve made. What’s the backstory and the relevant context behind why you made the investment

Worst Investment: Doing Too Much, Too Fast
Looking back, one of the worst decisions we made was going all in on party and event rentals. We thought we were being smart offering everything from a full movie night setup with an inflatable TV and popcorn machine to a 10×30 tent, a cash grab machine, and even an audio guestbook phone.
We had big dreams and figured the more we had to offer, the more people would book us. But it didn’t really go that way. Hardly anyone ever booked those items. And when they did? We were already booked or unavailable. So we ended up with a bunch of stuff taking up space, draining our energy, and not bringing in much income.
Eventually, we realized what people actually wanted: our photo booths. So we sold off the things that didn’t make sense and focused on what did. Now, if someone books a photo booth, they can add on the guestbook, the tent, or the cash grab machine, but that’s it. No more trying to be a one-stop party shop.
The lesson? It’s okay to try things and learn from them. We don’t regret taking the chance, it helped us figure out what works. But if we could go back, we’d skip all the extras and go straight for the booths.

Carlee, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

We’re the owners of Higher Elevation Events, a small but passionate business based in Utah that specializes in interactive photo experiences designed to elevate any celebration. We’re also a couple who built this brand from the ground up, learning as we went, adjusting when things didn’t work out, and staying committed to bringing joy, fun, and unforgettable memories to every event we touch.
We originally started out thinking we needed to offer everything, movie night rentals, inflatable TVs, tents, popcorn machines, you name it. We invested a lot of time and money into party rentals, thinking that the more we offered, the more bookings we’d get. But reality looked different. Most of those items didn’t get booked, or when they did, we weren’t available. That experience was a hard but important lesson. We realized we needed to focus on what people actually wanted and what we were best at.
That’s when we shifted fully into photo booths, and it changed everything.
Now we specialize in two main services: our 360° Video Photo Booths and our AI-Enhanced Selfie Booth. We recently expanded and now have two 360 platforms: a large one that can fit 2–6 guests at once (great for parties and weddings), and a smaller one for 1–3 people (ideal for more intimate or space-limited events). Our AI booth offers glam filters, boomerangs, face swaps, green screen backgrounds, and other engaging features that guests absolutely love.
We also offer fun add-ons like a cash grab machine and audio guestbook phone, but only when booked alongside one of our booths. This helps us stay focused, deliver high quality, and avoid spreading ourselves too thin like we did in the beginning.
What sets us apart is how deeply personal this is for us. We’re not a big company sending out random attendants. When you book with us, you’re getting us. We’re hands-on, we care about every detail, and we take pride in delivering a seamless, fun, and elevated experience. We don’t just show up with a booth, we show up with energy, creativity, and a desire to help you make lasting memories.
We’re most proud of our growth, not just the business itself, but how much we’ve learned and how far we’ve come. We’ve poured everything into this brand while raising kids, juggling jobs, and navigating life. It hasn’t been easy, but it’s been worth it.
If there’s one thing we want people to know about Higher Elevation Events, it’s that we’re not just in the business of taking pictures we’re in the business of creating experiences that people will talk about long after the event ends.

How’d you meet your business partner?

Britt and I met on Facebook Dating in June 2020 and had our first date with a group of friends. He made it clear right away that he wasn’t staying in the friend zone. We started dating that month, made it official in July, and by September, he had moved in. Our first kiss? Total Hotel Transylvania we “zinged.”

Since then, we’ve built a strong, blended family with four kids (three live with us full time) and launched Higher Elevation Events in February 2022. I run the business day-to-day, and Britt handles setup and support at events. We’re a team in life and business, and it just works.

Can you talk to us about how you funded your business?

This one is easy. We used a credit card. And then every time we would get booked, we would just invest more into the business. We do have credit card debt. And that’s only due to the high interest rate on our american express business account, not because we haven’t been able to make the money to pay it off. It’s significantly less than most people and were not too worried about it.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Www.higherelevationevents.com
• Instagram: https://Www.instagram.com/Higherelevationevent
• Facebook: https://Facebook.com/Higherelevationevents
• Yelp: Higherelevationevents