How a Colorado bride's rash decision to skimp on a costly wedding service exploded into a $2million business venture

A Colorado bride who found herself unable to cough up thousands of dollars on a videographer for her big day has revealed how she invested $1,000 into a simple idea – and turned it into a thriving $2million business.

When Anne Marie Carroll and her soon-to-be husband, Bryan, began diving into wedding planning last year, they quickly realized services like videography and photography for their Denver nuptials were going to set them back a small fortune.

Since the options available were too expensive – roughly more than $4,000 - and the video styles didn’t feel like them, they settled on hiring a student friend of theirs to capture the special day instead.

But the whole pricey saga sparked a nostalgic idea.

With just $1,000 from her savings, Carroll, 29, decided to snap up a Sony 4K Handycam camcorder and went about setting up her own website.

Now, just over a year later, she has already turned over an impressive $2million renting out digital cameras and camcorders.

‘I remember jumping around the kitchen with my husband as the initial orders came through,’ she said.

‘I realized this isn’t just a good business idea – it’s truly solving something couples have been wanting.’

Carroll, who at the time was working in creative advertising, opted to take the risk in May last year.

‘I was juggling applying to jobs and freelance work, fully thinking I would need to stay in my advertising career when launching,’ she said. ‘But, after two months, I quit to focus on the business.

‘It was so gratifying [taking that leap] and going for it.’

She piqued interest using TikTok and Instagram; of which a few of her initial posts went viral – and led to a popular boost in sales.

Within one month, her business - Wedding Weekender - had raked in $70,000. After one year, the figure sat at an eye-watering $2million.

‘Reflecting back, I think I always had an entrepreneur spirit, but never imagined the type of success [I’ve now seen],’ she said.

‘When launching, I was most nervous that this wasn’t going to reach enough people and it would be something I’d have to eventually give up and go back to working full-time.

‘So, after I took the leap, I was readying to do everything in my power to make this idea work and avoid needing to find another full-time job.’

Now, during peak wedding season, her business services 100 couples per week – and she has since expanded to Canada, Australia and the UK.

‘I feel incredibly fortunate that this business has been able to grow so fast,’ she said. ‘And reach so many people who have been looking for a way to be able to capture their wedding on video – without the whopping cost.’

While the hours are long, Carroll said she knows it takes sacrifice in order to see results.

‘The hardest thing for us right now has been scaling our operations to meet demand, which is a good problem to have,’ she said.

‘We want to be able to bring our service to as many couples as possible who are debating having to give up videography in their budgets.

‘I think it’s incredibly rewarding to be able to build something of your own and choose how you manage investing your time into it.’