Attitude of shop

Hi, I would just like to mention that the attitude of a shop and how they treat their clients is next only to the quality of the tattoo. When your average walk in client comes in off of the street, they need to feel comfortable and welcome. If your shop has pets peeing inside, uneaten food on the counters, and snobby metal heads to assist you, your street cred is going to go down the crapper. (keep in mind that i am a metal head, but there is a breed out there that you have all met before, the ones that believe their heavy metal dumps smell sweeter then your heavy metal dumps). For me, when i receive a tattoo, its not just the art that remains with me for life, but it is the experience of getting it that stays with me, too. So to those that are looking to open their own shops, please remember, it is your clientele that awards you street cred. Smiles And in case you are wondering, ya i walked into one of these today lol.

its lame but a smile goes a long way in business. the cliche big hairy angry biker tattoo artist needs to die. leave your baggage at the door and put out some great work.

Every one who comes through the doors of my shop are treated as family and that means they are treated well indeed....I detest going into a store and be treated as if I were some kind of disease or worse completely ignored...the people who come into my are my best friends...WHY?...because they are #1..my canvas...my avenue of expression in this ancient art...#2... They pay my bills! Nuff said!!!

You must have been in Buffalo today, Smiles. That's the majority of our shops. There's a few exceptions, but yea... Which is why I don't get my work done here. I'd rather travel halfway across the country to get what I want by who I want and be treated how I want than get shit from shit by shit.

TAz....................but aren't you a big, burley, badass biker lookin' dude? A biker with a smile.......................hmmmmm, I don't know if I like it. TCE

..........................I'm gonna give you my TAZ bandana just to use as an ice breaker...........................I'll wash it first.. TCE

Taz looks like my step-dad. Big and burly, but warm and cuddly at the same time... like you wouldn't be sure if he'd kick your ass or hug ya senseless... Then again, that's just me, and I'm a confused individual.

Well, he's just soooooooo good lookin', that I guess I'd prefer him to kick my ass........................I wouldn't want him to turn me gay!! TCE

Hahaha... Taz has magicalsensual changing-of-sexual-orientation powers...

Hi, Well im pleased my post provoked so many good responses. So thank you all. However, the shop i was referring to was not a Hells Angel's, biker type of shop. It was more of a skinny, overgrown teenager, burnt out, never-made-it-big-time musicians who were pissed at life because they were not the rock stars they were so convinced they were destined to be. Where they looked down on clients that did not fit their narrow definition of cool and expressed it well. And this puzzles me. Isn't body modification a way in which you purposely make yourself different from the rest? A form of self expression? A form of art?

Yup, last time I checked I thought it was... I can't draw to save my life, but I can recognize talent. Mine has always been the other side of the isle. Business, math, physics, chemistry, and computers... I'm the geek she's the artist and we both like it that way. I walk into a shop and don't get a smile, I walk out simple as that.

You know what makes Saiyges Sad? That the people who truly need to read this message ,will never take the time to read this post, and probably do not frequent this board in any capacity. I've said it before, and I'll say it again. I don't care how good you are. I don't care what celeb you have inked. I don't care how much you cost, or how much of a rockstar everyone thinks you are. If you have too much ego to be a genuinely nice guy, I don't have time to come into your shop. I'd rather travel three hours, save up for three years, to go to someone who not only has the talent, but is down to earth and humble about his or her skills. There are plenty of good artists out there who understand what customer service is.

Hear, hear. As a committed canvas (while my pelt holds out) i have to say i must feel something good from the person/company that's going to make me bleed and mark me permanently. I have one tatt from a person i didn't like... snooty and pretentious... French, in fact. Nothing's significantly wrong with his piece, but i think i'd like it removed/covered sometime. Elsewhere i look at my collection, i remember the person who made each piece, and, even if the tatt isn't 100%, the memory is pleasant. I won't again work with an unpleasant person... it just ain't worth it to remember them when i'm naked!

I would like to add that I PRIDE myself on "not" being that old school typical shop...(not trying to offend anyone...I mean the kind expressed in original post). No I don't have stainless this, and stainless that and look like a surgical unit but I take A LOT of pride in my shop!!! I built it from the ground up (literally) and want each and every customer to feel like family!! I joke with them, talk to them as if a family member (the ones I like) and try to make them feel as comfortable as possible!! Yes, even the ones that look scraggly, and the not so clean looking ones. I have inked doctors, cops, lawyers, and the works. Plus the some of the other end of the spectrum...I treat EVERYONE the same regardless of income..some have the cash to just spend...others save for months to get that "special" tattoo....this industry is about respect whether it be a client or another artist.....that is the way it SHOULD be..if not...you will not survive.. My two cents... Mike

Smiles....Lets be a bit more circumspect with the Hells Angels comments ok?...Thanks! Tce...Biker Badass?...Hell No!...I'm the pretty male model type baybee!! LOL!!! But now I think I better lock my bedroom door and sleep light when you are staying with me!!...Oh yeah...Ras will be there right next to ya and he IS pretty!!...WAHOO!!!!...RAS....you might think about gettin a chastity belt...unless of course you are into that sort of thing!!...Ya better watch TCE if you aren't!!! Ya know I do hear that a lot...that I just "LOOK" mean...well I'm not!! Anybody who really knows me will tell you so...I try to treat everyone nice...till its time to not be nice....but that rarely happens!! I am a cuddly wuddly wittle guy and BE CAREFUL!...I'm delicate and sensitive!

Awwww TAz, you're gonna lock your door!?! What a poop! Maybe I can find a playmate somewhere,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Maybe Ras can find us a few, he's got that suave Jamaican thing goin' on, (anyone see RAW?). Hey Mike, I read you post a few weeks ago about fixing up that guys fucked up tattoo for a cut rate,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,how'd it all go? I was off in the corner pouting that week...................so I wasn't speaking to anyone. Anyway, I'm where he's at right now; scarred, a shit load of dough in the holes, and when I read your post, I was blown away!!!!!!!! And then low and behold, last week, my own angel came to my aid.................. TCE

Not only am i pretty, i am also small, soft-spoken and polite... just to conceal my inner biker badass! TAz - the chastity belt is definitely in (or on). TCE - the combination is 19-63-11.

BTW TAz, i am having phone dramas at present, but stay tuned!

Eesh, you guys make me giggle. Stop it. -grin-

By the way Tim...I went out yesterday and bought you one of those blow up beds with the built in inflater thingies so you and Ras can be ...AHEM!...comfortable!...T

As long as it's firm enough yet soft enough... and same for the bed!

TAz, That wasn't necessary if Ras is gonna take the sofa.................I sleep on the floor dude, even at home. All the shit that would normally be piled on my floor, is piled on my bed!! Well, maybe if you end up with one more guest, you'll have it covered!!! Can we get a girl this time? Thanks Buddy!

Maybe we can fill it with helium.........................I did that with a water bed mattress once.........................it took a long time to fill, but seeing it take flight was well worth it! TCE

What, I'm not invited to the party? Well screw you guys. I'll just order pizza by myself then.

Well, this is my greatest post ever!! haha. For me, its no matter what your views are: from political views, music tastes, career (even delicate male models, haha jk.) For me, its RTCF: respect, talent, cleanliness, and friendliness. Smiles

Smiles ...dear I am not trying to be a smart ass but just don't lump all the "angels" into the steroetypical movie image of mean,dirty Psychos with an attitude...it just ain't so! Tim...Ummm well ya see I got that bed for US...emphasis on the US part!!! Hee Hee Hee!!!! And there will be room for you too Ras!!!...we can make a Jamaican cookie!!! Don't worry we will be gentle!! At first!!

By the way Mikey...You SHOULD be proud of your shop...looks like a fuggin doctors office!...The cleanest shop I've seen in a while including my own...the shop ol Ink Junkie works in is really clean and shiny too!!... Now my shop is clean don't get me wrong but when I tattoo I get real messy...I am focused on the work and not if I get a drop of ink on the floor ( or usually on ME...I still can't figure out how I sometimes end up with ink drops on the top of my HEAD!!!) Get carried away with it all I guess!!!...TAz

O the pictures in my head! Something like an anti-Oreo! ...covered in tattoos! O Lord, they are going to sack me for aggravated laughing in the 1st degree! O the tears in my eyes... i have in mind a picture of three funny fellows on a flying helium bed... oh... oh... make it stop... i can't even type straight... o the pain... Must... resist... O NO - here it comes again! Gasp... sputter! Chortle... well, at least i have my next tattoo design. I'm weak... need coffee...

O the pictures in my head! Something like an anti-Oreo! ...covered in tattoos! O Lord, they are going to sack me for aggravated laughing in the 1st degree! O the tears in my eyes... i have in mind a picture of three funny fellows on a flying helium bed... oh... oh... make it stop... i can't even type straight... o the pain... Must... resist... O NO - here it comes again! Gasp... sputter! Chortle... well, at least i have my next tattoo design. I'm weak... need coffee...

Well TAz, if it's for all of us, maybe we can still fill it with helium...................Then the three of us will all look like painted angels as we float off. TCE

I don't care what you do on the damn thing but I'm not cleaning up the mess afterwards!

Hey=ive been watching you guys talk on this forum and i have to say that ive learned alot just being a spectator. Im an up and coming artist myself searching for my first teacher. I really like the comments on this thread because i see alot of this attitude out here in southern california. You guys seem like my type of artists, and if more artists had that attitude out here, I would definately want to be their canvas, or even better, their student.

Hey taz, did you just call me "dear"? im a man, a man who feels dirty. Smiles-No-More

I have no idea why I called you "dear"!!!!! I guess that damn TCE and his cohort Ras had me rattled! That is unless you are into the big biker badass bald guy type Then lets talk!...Smoochies!!! JUST KIDDIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

hahaha. Since I have run out of worth wild things to say, I would like to take the opportunity to say that I recently came across this website and since then I find myself on here more and more. It offers a wide range of resources for design ideas, as well as artists for me to check out on my search for the next perfect piece. And let's not forget the forum, which offers real advice from real people, both clients and professional artists, you would not find anywhere else. Thanks. Until next time, :):):)

Welcome Smiles!!! Always like to see new blood!!!...TAz PS...especially if they have a sense of humor!

Thanks smiles, we're just getting the party started too, much more in the future. And hey, its an hour and a half drive but we're having an Off the Map/TattooNOW open house party in Easthampton MA this sunday 4-7. Food, beer, magical conversation. All in a super pleasant kid friendly atmosphere and you can see the place this site comes from!

Hey J-werk, whassup there boy!?! How are the vampire melons coming along? TCE

You should really go to the Off the Map shindig Smiles!!! If I were that close I know I'd be there ...if for nothing elde to irritate the bird geek (GABE)

TAz, can you resend that pic? DAAAAMMMIITT!! FN MSN!!! It wouldn't let me retrieve the file.............. TCE

Oh and Red.....Of course you are invited!! But it will be hard to be nice!!...I'm a sucker for a redhead especially hot ones...so you will have to lock yourself in the closet or something seein as how you are married and all...cause I AM a gentleman but I can't speak for Ras an TCE!!...They are PERVERTS of the worst sort!!! But seriously (yeah THATS gonna last!) you did know about our TAzfest on helloween right?...Not a tattoo convention just 2 and 1/2 days of booze,broads,bands food and fun!!...If you and yer hubby and the baby can make it we would love to have ya!!...Gonna be THE party of the year...the 27th and 28th of october ...thats the weekend before Helloween...if ya come I'll let ya ride in my hearse Angelique!!! hell I'll even let ya ride in the coffin....damn shame you are taken or you could be TAzette # 6!!...Oh well such is life *heavy sigh*....* sounds of large TAz tears hitting the cold concrete cell floor* Ok see ya!!!!!!!

I completely agree with this topic. The first tattoo I got was good quality and I really liked it, but I felt awkward and uncomfortable the entire time I was in the shop. I didn't get a very good vibe, and although their work was quality, the service wasn't and it's prompted me to take my business elsewhere. Customer Service is Key! peace n' loves. :)

I can say that I went to several shops in the Dallas area, and walked out of a couple just because thier attitude, I don't expect someone to be like my best friend the first time we meet, but I do expect a professional, and good attitude towards me, I can understand a bad day here and there, but you will have a return customer if the attitude is good, My artist and I hit it off well, and I plan on another one on payday by him, not only that I have recommended him to others I have talked with. Blacktri

I talked to Hubster about Tazfest... if we can make it, we're goin for it. It's been a while since we had a roadtrip anyway. He says it sounds like fun, and the babester can rock it up (she's already a metalhead... just like her parents)... We decided we're gonna deck her out in temp tattoos if we go *wink* Anyhow, yea, we're definitely in if it meshes with work schedules! Seein if the BIL/SIL/niece wanna go too!

Well Red I hope you can make it kiddo and the hubby& babester too we are havin parties for the kiddies too at the TAz lair just for them with the TAz mommy as hostess ..You are more than welcome to join the Tattoonow family site too just e-mail a pic of ya and you will get to have the "special" dinner just for the "family"!!! Anyway hope all you guys can make it!!!...T.

Well I come to a decision.... being October 27th is my birthday if I'm off me and my wife will be there for the party.

Hi, Thanks for the invite Gabe. Its much appreciated. However, Sunday some friends and are heading to...... sing it if you know it: "When the sun is blazing and the summer is hot, come down to a very cool spot,...yadayada.....Water Country! Water Country! Come Have Some Fun!!" haha No worries though, once i get my whip on the road (im looking at z28's on craigslist right now...we're sweating 1980's cool haha), i plan to drive out to Off the Map Tattoo and see where it all started. Have a fun and safe shindig. Make a Splash!! :):):)