Nobody talks much about tattoo artists struggling to make ends meet. So this one's for you, if you can't pull a minimum wage from tattooing.
Right now, the cost of living (electricity, gas, all that) is going up, but tattoo prices are going down. If I were an economist, I'd say the market is self-regulating. But since I'm a tattoo artist, I'll just say it's fucked.
Post-covid, a whole wave of hungry new people jumped into the trade. That's cool and all, but if you know anything about supply and demand, you need more buyers than sellers. That's just math.
Also, let's not forget: tattoos are a luxury. Rarely under 100€ an hour. And I think the country has other things to do than get tattooed right now. (But please come anyway, we need the work.)
Yes, there will always be Jean-Michel doing 30€ tattoos on his couch, reusing needles, using his own spit instead of vaseline. Your call. Plenty of options out there.
And don't get me started on shop owners who exploit tattoo artists — sometimes without any hygiene training — just to max out their profit. I'm speaking from experience. I own my own studio. I'm writing this from my yacht in the middle of the ocean (lie 😶🌫️).
So if you're thinking of starting in 2024, don't quit your stable job too fast. Even with years of tattooing under my belt, I know colleagues who live on pasta, have 2, 3, or 13 different side gigs. Not to mention all the hats you have to wear in the tattoo game.
If you've been tattooing for more than two years and you already feel worn out — that's normal.
It's not easy.
Keep being you.
Don't lose heart.
And if it gets too hard, you're allowed to stop.
That doesn't mean you failed. Knowing when to walk away might take more courage than pushing through when you don't belong.
I'll end with a quote from tattooer Olivier Poinsignon, who wrote on Threads the other day about people dropping their prices: "Discounts are a short-term solution to get by individually, without caring that they're killing the craft in the medium term."
And honestly, he's not entirely wrong.
