$20 minimums next door!?!?!?!? wtf!

[Jennifer Stell]

He also added, it's a border town... Hard enough being a competitive business, but being a player in a border town game... Too many people cutting throats already, soon that shit will start to drift over the border...

I say stick close to the campus down there... I think venting is a good thing, blow steam off, and keep it from manifesting in a bad way... and then making a plan to move forward no matter what is the best bet.

And yeah the Punny Man likes to mix it up a bit in the word department.

[David Flores]

Wait there's a border town in Texas called Brownsville? Now that's funny.

[hawk]

It's not just border towns, it is everywhere that a "good drawer" with a 50 dollar kit get rent shop space. Just had ANOTHER one open a block and half up main st. from me, tattoos and tattoo supplies and piercing and these people are still working at WalMart, no kiddin, their website shows they've been tattooing for 10 years, etc., on THE DAY they received their business permit I got a little turd who popped in and asked "What do ya think of the new tattoo shop that just opened downtown?", WOW! probably an hour after they got the permit the trash talk begins, ha!

Jake has the answer, just keep the old nose to the grindstone and keep puttin smiles on peoples faces and your work will shine out, I have lost count of all the shops that have come and gone in the last 32 years tattooing but like it has been said here before, "Anyone can sell snake oil on a Sunday" no matter how small a town can be. This is history repeating itself and the only worry I have is what they will do that will be labeled to us, the one shop around the corner that came and went was so well known for it being a "front" that people would come in and naturally figure that we sold drugs too. The worst "feeling" that I have is that I came out of the old rep when I started and beat down the stereotypes and over came all of that and now I have tattooed long enough to see the match lit that will burn us. It's so closely related to the "Harley Rider"/"Biker" parallel, Harley wanted nothing to do with the "Biker" image until they figured out how to shrink wrap it and market it into billions of profit and now the guy lookin like an Alaman Bos. band member that paid their dues in the biker subculture gets laughed at by the checkbook biker. But make no mistake that tattooing will always carry on and survive.

[s33ktruth]

you should make or get one of those signs that says "Good tattoos ain't cheap and cheap tattoos ain't good" as well!!

I would do this, and also make a funny sign at your shop window and say we cover up bad tattoos, or some kind of witty motif to make them look bad.

That is a shame :(

[William Burgess]

you should make or get one of those signs that says "Good tattoos ain't cheap and cheap tattoos ain't good" as well!!

I am a little skeptical of this phrase. Its true, good work is never dirt cheap, but I have seen quite a few good pieces for a fairly reasonable price and quite a few total crap pieces for outrageous prices.

When I used to get tattooed by Rollo at China Sea, the prices were considerably lower than the shops in Waikiki. Can't really say his stuff was lesser quality because of that.

[Bill Blood]

A friend of mine opened his own shop after years of working for others. He put a lot of work into it and made a really nice little shop in an area that doesn't have much close competition (which is not easy to find in Brooklyn anymore). Within the first month, not 4 blocks away another shop opened. The owner was not a tattooer and the shop had a banner outside that read "Grand Opening - 50% off All Tattoos." I hit up my boy and said that they deserve a brick through the window. I said something very similar to you, to the effect of 'in the old days we would've set the place on fire.' My buddy was pissed off but didn't do anything. Since then the 50% off shop has closed.

[brimstonesix]

you should tell your landlord you're breaking your lease because he rented to a shop right next door to you,conflict of fucking interest. fuck that guy,any sane landlord would not have done such a thing.