NEED HELP with opening shop have some questions

I need some help my first question is,should i definatly need to be a tattoo artist to own my own shop.I have a lot of shop experiece from hanging out and helping friends with a pretty famous shop in N.Y. for years now.I moved out here to A.Z. and the area looks prime for a shop .I looking into putting together a team of 3-4 artist,but do need all the certs,osha,blood paths,etc as the shop owner also? I am new to this site ,my first time posting,also i am an x graffiti writer in ny ,it just seems to late in life to start this kind of art form know. Will it look bad for the shop if the boss(me) dont tat anyone that would come into the shop? just want to know if anyone can help with these questions,i would be much apppreciated. thanks,DIESAL-TAT

not at all, indeed the very person who owns this site is a non tattooist tattoo shop owner.

yes, but T-Dog, before I opened a studio I knew the answer to those questions, and indeed, I never had to go to a public forum to ask. So, the answer is, it can be managed, I own a studio and I do not tattoo. But I was immersed in the tattoo world for 12 years learning from some really amazing artists first. I also had powered 30 high traffic tattoo websites which created a very strong network of tattoo artists who wanted to help me out. I was able to promote the studio to over a half a million unique visitors a month, and still, after 2.5 years of being open I dont draw a paycheck from the studio, indeed the bank was very crash when they said the tattoo shop "well, it pays its bills every month" and not much more. So, sure, it is possible, but if I didnt have years learning the subtitles of tattooing, a lot of world class tattoo artist friends and clients, 500,000 unique eyeballs a month looking for tattoos to promote to, a very strong local network(lived here for 15 years), another source of income, and a desire to volunteer another 20-40 hours a week dealing with the freaking headaches of owning a studio, I wouldn't bother. Sometimes I wonder why I bother now, ha! Some answers to yer questions, You should *want* to be certified and educated about tattooing and tattooing health. Ive been certified every year since the studio opened. It will look bad if dont tattoo if you hire bad artists (and good artists are VERY VERY hard to find), Im very lucky that no one can question the tattoos that come from my studio. In short, you shouldnt be asking us, you should be asking your friends at the famous NYC studio... Who has tattooed you?

ya gabe i though the resoning for a forum is to ask questions and get aswers,and yes i spoke to friends back in nyc and they said just about the same thing you told me,is there a problem in askin it here? just trying to find some info from more than my nyc people,and you sound very astute in the indestry,and yes you have a great site here,but please dont try to put me down.We are all here because we have a love,facination for the tatoo art form.All i need is a little companionship and patience,for me the new guy here, that may not be as seasoned as you and some others.so please bare with me . thanks guys. for your answers.

Check the state and local health guidelines and laws. you can probably find them online with a quick google search. Regardless of what the law says though, you and everyone you employ there should be certified or have intricate knowledge of blood-born pathogents, cross contamination, and hazardous materials handling, for YOUR OWN safety, your costomers' safety, and the safety of the people you come into contact with outside of the shop.