We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Adyery Tlahuel a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Adyery , thanks for sharing your insights with our community today. Part of your success, no doubt, is due to your work ethic and so we’d love if you could open up about where you got your work ethic from?
No doubt, my hustle and work ethic come straight from my parents. They both immigrated to the U.S. when they were pretty much kids to go after the American dream. My mom was just 16, and my dad was 20, all in search of a shot at a better life. From my earliest childhood memories, I’ve always seen them hustling – working multiple jobs, trying out different side gigs, and even taking a swing at running their own businesses.
My mom used to run a jewelry spot in the heart of downtown LA’s jewelry district during the 90s. I was a little too young to fully grasp my mom’s hustle, but I do remember stumbling upon her old machines, tools, and molds in the garage after she moved on. It was like a reminder of her journey from scratch to something, a testament to true grit.
In 2006, my parents jointly ventured into opening a mechanic shop in Torrance, and while the initial years showed promise, the business did not turn out as planned. When the business was open and operating, I helped out as their office assistant, answering phone calls and inputting invoices after school or on weekends. I also remember cleaning carpets with my dad (another side hustle he had) and through my little kid charm, I was able to get us good tips lol. Regardless of the outcome, I was consistently inspired by my parents’ adventurous spirit and their commitment to trying new things.
Although their businesses did not achieve the success they envisioned, I’ve always viewed my parents as successful. They came to this country with nothing and their spirits were never broken and they still managed to buy a home. Now, they are in the middle of another venture – renovating my dad’s home in Puebla, Mexico.
My parents have always inspired me to work hard and go after my dreams.
Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
For as long as I can remember, I’ve always loved being behind the camera taking pictures of my family and friends. I’ve always been fascinated by photography and that it can evoke so much emotion, how we can reminisce on old memories or simply tell a story just through a photo so, naturally, adding a photo booth to my photography business just seemed like the perfect move.
We service a bunch of surrounding areas in Southern California, from LA and Orange County to Long Beach and even Temecula. Our vibe is all about bringing the fun to wherever you’re in SoCal. The coolest thing about running a photo booth business is also being able to do it alongside my fiancé, Frank Le.
Losing my job lit a fire within me to begin putting focus on my passion project to grow Barrio Photo Booth. Working a 9-to-5 job limited my time and I was only able to tend to my business on weekends. Getting laid off from my stable job in 2023 was like the universe saying, “Hey, here’s the time to really dive into your passion project,” and man, did it grow. I watched so many YouTube videos, joined Facebook photo booth groups, learned from the pros, and just went full-on experiment mode to try to give my clients the highest quality experience they deserve.
For me, Barrio Photo Booth is more than just a business; it’s about building a community and creating memories. Right now, we provide photo booth experiences which include digital and physical prints, but we’re rolling out some cool stuff this year and will soon be launching our 3D flower walls, audio guestbooks, and the creation of a studio. This studio will be a space where people can capture moments ranging from LinkedIn headshots to graduations, family portraits, Valentine’s Day, Christmas, or any special occasion. Clients will be able to choose to have their shots taken by me or opt for an independent shoot using our photo booth.
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
First and foremost, prioritizing a shift in a more positive mindset and embracing self-compassion is crucial. As an overthinker myself, I used to be my own worst critic. At the beginning of my entrepreneurial journey, I was like, “I gotta be perfect at everything!” But, It only ended up creating a lot of self-doubt which was honestly a waste of time, and time that could be used to being more creative and productive like working on growing your business. I’m not gonna lie, I still struggle with this today but I’m not where I used to be. Through the help of many self-help books and advice from my mentors, I’ve learned that it’s okay to fail as long as you’re trying your best. I’ve come to recognize that failure is a natural part of progress. Failing is the first step to success. Your skills will develop over time with practice and consistency but always remember to have fun along the way and not make it too serious. Secondly, become obsessed with your passion projects. The minute I became obsessed with finding different ways to grow and develop our setups, huge amounts of inquiries and requests began to come in every day. People wanting our photo booth services for their weddings, Quinceañeras, graduations, corporate events, you name it! My obsession to make this business successful was no joke! I was buying all the books, signing up for mentorship and finance classes, YouTubing, and signing up for hundreds of Facebook groups all related to photo booths, photography, printers, technology, finance, tax accounting, etc. all in the hopes that I’d be able to find answers whenever I was struggling to understand the business side or the technology. Lastly, find your community and mentors that you can go to for guidance whether you have to pay them or not. Diving into this entrepreneurship journey I didn’t realize all the many details that go into a business like understanding tax write-offs, how to use business credits to your advantage, LLCs, tax planning, bookkeeping, etc. and I had to learn to get right with money management and not mix it with my personal. Having a community and mentors who can guide me has been instrumental in helping my business grow.
Thanks so much for sharing all these insights with us today. Before we go, is there a book that’s played in important role in your development?
A book that, hands down, inspired me is Cristela Alonzo’s book, “Music to My Years.” It’s not your typical business read, focusing on photography or photo booths, but her story hit home for me. As a First-Gen American, she faces all sorts of challenges but pushes through to chase her dream of becoming a comedian. She even lands a spot with ABC, creating, producing, and starring in her own sitcom. In her book, she hits you with the reality check that “it takes ten years to become an overnight success,” and I couldn’t agree more. When you stumble upon something you can’t get out of your head, do yourself a favor and go all in despite what your family, friends or the world thinks you should do. Get obsessed with learning everything about your craft, and with time, you’ll start to see results.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://barriophotobooth.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/barrio.photobooth/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/barrio-photo-booth-llc/about/
Image Credits
All Photography by: Sarah Medina LLC
