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Contributed photo by Jessica Uttinger
Skin Addiction owner Jeff Davis tattoos Ace Ventura on the leg of Sam Gabriel at the Hamilton shop Sept. 25, 2009. Jeff and his wife, Tammy, are opening a second shop named Old Street Tattoo in Monroe on Halloween.
Tattoo shops making a mark locally, nationally
Shop owners urge customers to check artists’ work before getting inked.
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By Jessica Heffner,
Staff Writer
Updated 11:23 AM Sunday, October 11, 2009
Tattoos: they’re not just for young rebels anymore.
As the popularity of tattoos locally increases and more shops open to grab the new business, local tattoo parlor owners say they are just as likely to find a 60-year-old grandma in their chair as an 18-year-old freshly legal and looking to make their mark.
Matty Matlock, owner of Peptide Tattoo in Carlisle, said he has noticed more people from the 40-plus age group seeking their first tattoo.
“Some of the older people I have tattooed are people in their 70s and 80s and they typically get something close to their heart,” he said. “A lot of older ladies get a breast cancer ribbon or something like that.”
According to a study by U.S. News & World Report, tattooing has become one of America’s fastest growing categories of retail business, with nearly one tattoo shop opening each day.
That is a reflection of the growing number of people deciding to get inked. About 24 percent of Americans have at least one tattoo, according to a report titled “Tattoos and Body Piercings in the United States: A National Data Set.” It’s a steep contrast to the 6 percent of people who reported having a tattoo in a 1936 study by Life magazine.
While business has been slower in the down economy, Matlock, who just opened his Carlisle shop in June, said the diversity of clients has helped business as well as the value factor of a tattoo.
“People still like to splurge even in down economy,” he said. “They like to get something for themselves and tattoos are a compulsive item but they can’t be lost, they can’t be taken away and they can’t get broken.”
Competition drives tattoo artists
In the tattoo business, you have to learn to thrive off of the competition.
Tattoos are one of the most bargain-shopped purchases. Much like getting bids on windows or shopping for a home, customers will visit several shops looking for a good price on their tattoo.
It’s a practice that irritates most shop owners as one lamented, “would you shop around for a brain surgeon or would you just go to the best? Because this is just as permanent.” But the bargain hunters also help keep tattoo artists on their toes, constantly challenging them to do the best work at the best price they can offer.
Despite five new shops entering the area of Butler and Warren counties, Carter Moore of Immortal Canvas Tattoo in Hamilton said he’s still not overly worried about losing business.
“They come and go. Good competition, it’s a good thing because it can make you work harder. Bad places just give you more business,” he said, using a shop across the street from his that recently closed as an example.
“I’ve already fixed one of their tattoos just this week,” Moore said.
Staff and health
“Anyone with an account on eBay” can buy tattoo equipment and proclaim themselves an artist, said Matty Matlock, owner of Peptide Tattoo in Carlisle. But a real shop will have artists who have apprenticed under the owner before they can start inking people in the chair.
Customers should also look for a board of health certificate conspicuously framed somewhere in the shop certifying it has passed yearly health and cleanliness requirements following an inspection. The tattoo artist should also be certified in blood borne pathogens, CPR and first aid, Matlock said.
Cleanliness can also extend to what equipment gets reused. Adam Monroe, owner of Ink’d Up Custom Tattoo Design in Monroe, said his shop disposes of the needles as well as the ink tubes each time, rather than washing them.
“When it comes to health, you shouldn’t pinch pennies. A lot of supplies are used only once so there is never a worry of sterilization issues and if someone took the time to clean it properly,” he said.
Cost vs. profits
While shops charge different amounts for the same-sized tattoo, much of a quote is derived from the cost of supplies and overhead. Some shops provide artists their supplies for a fee. In almost all cases, the workers are subcontractors who pay a percentage of each tattoo they complete back to the shop.
About 50 percent of the tattoo price is in supplies and shop fees. That’s why most shops charge a minimum of $50. Matlock said just a simple tattoo averages $28 for the supplies, meaning the artists don’t get their normal 50 percent cut.
“For that small $50 butterfly you are talking everything that is busted out: the ink wrap, ink, tube, needles, rubber bands, gloves, paper towels, rubber grommets, all the other stuff people don’t even know about,” he said.
But it is still a lucrative business, Monroe said, especially if you are the shop owner and have a following of customers who request large, custom pieces, which can cost thousands of dollars.Typically, shops said rainy days and weekends are the most busy, with winter and the time when college students head back to school being some of the slowest.
Quality
Most any shop will say they are the best at custom tattoos. Price, high or low, does not always equate to quality, said Jeff Davis, owner of Skin Addiction in Hamilton and Old Street Tattoo in Monroe, which is set to open on Halloween.
“There is a saying that good tattoos ain’t cheap and cheap tattoos ain’t good,” he said. “So check their work.”
Most artists will have their own portfolios of recent work. Word of mouth — the biggest form of advertising in the business — is also a good way to find quality artists.
“Ask a lot of questions, do research, talk to friends, if you see someone at the grocery and you like their tattoo, ask them where they got it,” Matlock said. “If you are willing to spend $300 to $400 on car payments but that $20 difference for a tattoo is a deal breaker, just remember which one you are going to have for the rest of your life.”
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