Vogue Shots is a premier event entertainment company specializing in transforming weddings, corporate events, and private parties with a unique blend of photography and videography services. Established in April 2019, Vogue Shots has rapidly grown from a single photo booth setup to offering over ten distinctive instant photo and video op services by July 2024. With dedicated teams in Mumbai and Delhi, they ensure seamless accessibility and unforgettable experiences for events across northern India and destinations near Mumbai. Their innovative services, meticulously conceptualized and creatively executed, provide stylish and memorable mementos that elevate any event. At Vogue Shots, they are committed to merging technology with entertainment, delivering instant digital, print, or video outputs that captivate and delight guests.
In an exclusive interview with EVENTFAQS Media, Akshay Murali, Founder and CEO, Vogue Shots, discussed launching the company at 20 and its evolution, including innovations like AI photobooths and Glambot. He shared how remote management during the pandemic reshaped his leadership and how partnerships with top brands have fueled growth. Looking ahead, Akshay aims to expand Vogue Shots geographically and in service offerings, with a focus on leveraging technology in event photography and videography.
Can you share the inspiration behind starting Vogue Shots at the young age of 20 and how your vision has evolved over the years?
The inspiration for Vogue Shots came to me during my vacation in the UK in 2018. I had visited a nightclub with a friend of mine where I had seen a Photobooth. There was a big queue in front of it and after 20/25 minutes, we got in. The experience of the Photobooth was so much fun and enjoyable, something I had never seen in a nightclub here in India. As someone who used to go out partying a lot, not seeing something like this in Mumbai nightclubs was very surprising and I wanted to be the one to change that. After nearly 4 months of research on the market and how a Photobooth functions from the inside, Vogue Shots was officially launched in April 2019.
We started small with a setup at one nightclub in Chembur. And within a month, we set up a Bombay cocktail bar in Juhu as well. However, soon we realized that a better business model was to do multiple events at different pubs every week. For the first 6 months, we only did events in nightclubs, getting customer feedback on their experience, understanding if the technology works fine, and understanding how to negotiate with different clients. Soon after, in October 2019, we started getting wedding inquiries and we were introduced to the industry. In our first season itself, we covered more than 50 wedding events, including 5 destination weddings, with the biggest one in Bahrain.
Vogue Shots has introduced several innovative services like AI photobooths and Glambot. How do you identify trends and decide which new services to introduce to your clients?
While thinking of innovating, I believe in a very simple idea, ‘What is something, I as a founder would enjoy using’. While innovating and creating complex offerings that are very tech-driven, we often forget the guests just need something easy/fun to use and cool enough to be uploaded on their social media. We believe in doing the simple things right and being the company providing the best version of that service in the market.
About trends, it is very crucial to never stop researching and learning. In the world we live in, you will never be the first person to think of something new, most likely there is already someone out there in the world who has created the same. It is important to find and understand how they have achieved it if that is something worth working on and whether an Indian audience would like it.
Managing a business remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic must have posed unique challenges. How did this experience shape your leadership style and the direction of Vogue Shots?
In an industry such as ours, momentum is very important. Especially in 2020, we were a very small start-up, trying to make a name in the industry. We were having nearly 3/4 events a week and momentum was taking us along but covid the entire business came to a standstill. Once they opened things up after the first wave, it felt like starting from scratch and then the same again after the next 2 waves. Even during those times, we kept posting on Instagram, which was difficult since we had no new content to showcase but had to keep recycling our old content. It taught me that sometimes you just have to keep your head down and put in the work, work with whatever you have available to you, and make the best out of it. Times like those taught me patience, perseverance, and relentlessness to get things back to the level of what it was and never stop believing.
You’ve collaborated with prestigious brands and managed events for notable personalities. How do these partnerships contribute to the growth and reputation of Vogue Shots?
It has always been a privilege for us to work with top brands in the world as well as big personalities in our country. Working with prestigious brands always helps in building brand trust and goodwill. I believe the reason top brands and personalities work with us is that we have maintained a high standard of service execution and customer service over the years, while we keep innovating and adding new offerings. We get most of our traction from Instagram and anytime one visits our page, they can see our work with numerous luxury brands such as Christian Louboutin, Armani Exchange, Chandon, Emporio Armani, Nykaa, etc. So when a potential customer comes to our page, instantly they know that we are a brand they can trust, that delivers quality service and can be counted on to provide an enjoyable experience for their special occasion. Since we are associated with premium brands, we strive better to improve our offerings and explore newer avenues so that our clients get new and improved services from Vogue Shots. We believe in being a brand associated with quality and as we grow, we aim to keep the same promise.
Looking ahead, what are your plans for expanding Vogue Shots both geographically and in terms of service offerings? How do you see technology continuing to influence the event photography and videography industry?
Currently, we have 5 offerings which will increase to 12-14 within the next 2/3 months. The team has been extensively working on creating innovative and fun experiences for guests, catering to every kind of need for the client. The use of technology is key, innovation is an endless journey, we keep up to date with all the latest innovations in the field of events and try customizing an offering catering to the Indian guest.
In terms of Geography, in 2023, we extended our services to Delhi/NCR region, and being there, we could cater to destination wedding locations like Udaipur/Jaipur/Jodhpur. From Mumbai, we can cover West and Central India. Our goal is to reach the Middle East and are on the lookout for potential partners who can help us achieve that.
What are you most excited about in terms of networking and collaboration opportunities at WOW Awards Asia?
The wedding industry is so massive and incredible in India, the fact that most venues are booked all through the season is fascinating. Our goal as a company is to achieve the same, every machine being booked for all days of the month during season time. It is a very ambitious goal that we have set for ourselves, and we hope to achieve this through the networking opportunities at WOW Awards Asia. With several top event planners from all over the country in attendance, opportunities do not come better than this. To showcase our work requires a visual experience where potential clients can see what our various equipment do and familiarise themselves with its know-how to get an understanding. We have full confidence in our offerings and the quality with which we provide them. We believe if we can get a platform to showcase our work, potential event planners will love what we do, that is what WOW Awards Asia provides us with, which we are very excited about.
What inspired your company to participate in the WOW Awards?
Until a couple of years back, I did not have much idea about the WOW awards. Last year, I came across an Ad on Instagram promoting the WOW awards and when I had a look at all the companies participating, it got me inquisitive yet excited about it. I attended the exhibition as a guest and went through all the stalls and it was fascinating to observe all the innovative things that the participants had to offer. The networking opportunities, with all the event planners under one roof, and being able to showcase your work, it was incredible. On that day, I decided that I would be a part of your exhibition in the next 2 years and here we are.
