How many times have you walked into a tattoo shop and felt comfortable? Has any of the employees ever greeted you when you came through the door? How did the staff address your concerns or help answer any question you might have? Working in the tattoo industry has been a dream come true for most people who are lucky enough to work in the shop full-time or even on a part-time basis. Most tattoo studios or as I still call them because old dogs are often hard to teach new things- Tattoo Parlors.
Usually the studio is a very fun place to work. We do tattoos and piercings so we are already living outside the norm. You find all different types of people in the industry. They often express themselves through the art in which they live. The industry is not a job or career. It's a lifestyle in which people express their differences rather then what they have in common. It's funny that most of the time we get bunched in by our own people into a street shop or the custom shop categories. Someone working in either one just wants to be able to live the lifestyle but of course when money is thrown into the mix the real human beings come out.
So to get back to some of the questions I posed at the beginning of the blog. Tattoo shops have been slow to embrace customer service as part of their business plan. I knew of an owner that would be nice as day to get the clients into the door. But during the procedure was just an absolute bitch to them and employees as well. She was in an area that was mostly black urban customers and would target towards them. She thought since they were black it didn't matter how she treated them. Another instance is a big shop in Chicago. Brand name and very well known through numerous advertising media's. A customer walks in the door and is treated like a number instead of someone who is looking for something permanent. They become cattle that needs to get processed and moved out the door.
I once worked for a major automotive store who based everything they did on customer satisfaction. I'm not ashamed to say that AutoZone was a big influence on how Aberration Pro Custom Tattoo treats their customers. When someone walks through the door they are greeted and asked if we could help them with anything. The employees are free to express themselves and make it a very fun environment for the customer. Customers like to know they are part of the crew when they come into a shop. Most of the time our artist make good friends with people that are customers.
I believe it's the environment that makes a tattoo shop. People come in for either a tattoo or piercing to express views or emotions that they have. They expect to find those who are doing the piece to be fun and outgoing just because the field they are in. Aberration Pro Custom Tattoo prides itself in having the environment that customers expect. Hopefully many more shops will start understanding the environment in their stores and make it where people feel welcome. It only makes our industry better in the public light.