From passion to purpose: Innovating within the tattoo industry

Back in 2022 I started my bachelor studies in Innovation and Entrepreneurship and during this time I slowly realised what I wanted to work with.

With my experience as a tattoo artist, I had quite ok amount of knowledge of which kinds of issues the industry in Denmark dealt with. Yet - my experiences and knowledge was not enough, if I wanted to create value for the industry.

Using my experience as a tattoo artist and my current position as a student studying Innovation and Entrepreneurship, I created questionnaires for both the tattoo artist and the consumer, prepared interviews with artists, observed the government’s sites and news, drew out mindmaps and much more to collect as much data as possible. In short - I employed various research methods in order to gather comprehensive data.

Reaching out to my peers and lovely friends from the industry, I gradually gained more insight into what kind of pain points others saw within the field.

By collecting these datasets and perspectives from multiple stakeholders, I was able to define a clear focus for my project while starting to envision how this concept could evolve into a tangible solution. This process not only shaped my approach to problem-solving but also deepened my passion for creating meaningful change within industries close to me.

Most interviewees leaned towards the annoyance of the government and their supervision - and especially the registering fee that has to be paid every year of 6500 DKK. Non-negotiable.

But there were several who agreed on common desires, which spread into several segments, and yet I chose to focus on the following:

Easier guidance and faster assistance regarding regulations for tattoo artists and shops.

The legal language as well as the new measures and bans can be quite difficult to fully understand.
There was too much uncertainty amongst tattoo artists and consumers due to too little information available.
Too many misunderstandings arise between tattoo artists and authorities due to communication barriers.

The new ink regulation created chaos in the industry - why create a law that should stem from ‘thin air’?

A solution to counteract poor working conditions for tattoo artists and apprentices who are employed at “tattoo factories”.

Why did this specific segment catch my interest? I resonated with it - and I knew what driver that activated this particular pain point. Anxiety and uncertainty.

Since I remembered clearly the anxiety in my previous daily worklife, I knew this specific segment would be interesting to find a possible solution for. Unfortunately - it’s a longer proces to counter tattoo factories, so I had to put more energy into the other two options. The new ink regulation was a hot topic in Denmark, and I found several counteracting arguments and this led me to go into research mode for another time, since my project had a time limit for the studies.

How the findings defined the project

When defining the project based on the findings - it’s important to resonate with it, empathize with the focus group you’re interested in and take time into account.

The specific segment mentioned above created anxiety in many tattoo artists, who weren’t able to find any help they could use as solid guidelines regarding the governments supervision. Many found the supervisors to be quite inconsistent regarding different things and the same continuous questions appeared in the forums such as:

How do we estimate what could be deemed as acceptable in the eyes of the law?

What could be changed and into what?

Which ressources was available?

Why the specific changes are necessary?

If I don’t speak or read Danish - how can I find English guidelines to help me?

Regarding the focus on anxiety - more than 60% of the tattoo artists, who responded to my quest for knowledge, admitted they experienced anxiety-like thoughts and dread in fear of having misunderstood the law. 71% of these respondents also added it would give them more peace of mind, if a solution was found for this specific issue.

Before going further - I had to continue my research and include the view of the government, consumers and other stakeholders. Whilst collecting these datasets and information, I not only defined the focus on the project, but also began putting pieces together of how I wanted the overall concept to evolve over time.

Defining the key ressources, building the project and the ethics of the concept.

With the limited ressources at my disposal, it was important to estimate what type of ressources and how much of it I had. As a student with limited funds, I needed to figure out what ressources I could gather without bankrupting myself in the process.

Knowing my daily routine and curiosity for continuous knowledge, this became my greatest ressource, since it’s only limit is to whether or not choosing to learn. Therefore I could build my project for my studies and develop my concept further over the years.

Since time is the only cost of knowledge, I had to use my time properly. Search for more data, be curious, spot biases and fill gaps in my mindset library - I could go on.

The project began to soar with this realization. I was invited by one of my stakeholders to observe a supervision in their shop. This gave me a lot of extra information to how these supervisions were executed and what type they look for when visiting. Shortly after - I decided to contact the government to get to know their process better and what types of tools they use.

These interactions made sure that I could get the last few details in order before I could work on my minimum viable product (MVP). I could recreate the scenery of how the government supervise a shop and add extra value by being the pre-visit by researching the inquiries and questions - and provide estimations of how the individual shop could tackle these supervisions with less anxiety.

To validate my concept, I needed to simulate the anxiety tattoo artists face - but first, I had to test its impact in a controlled environment - with potential consumers.

Why was the testing phase necessary and how did it change the outcome?

Before I would be able to test a studio - I had to evoke a type of anxiety in my classmates (sorry!)

This test was conducted as a roleplay, where I needed 4 volunteers and the rest should observe and note, if they spotted anything wrong during the roleplay. I set up a stage and brought the following materials:

Gloves

Desinfection to clean the area

Hand sanitizer

Stencil with my own design

Stencil solution

Paper tovels

As I told them these materials are not in itself enough to make sure the roleplay would be close to the real deal. I instructed the 4 testsubjects in what they needed to do by demonstrating the following actions they needed to do. 2 of them should act like the artist and the other two as a client.

After the demonstration - I stepped back, observed with the audience and let the testsubjects recreate the scene - and secretly counted how many times cross contamination would occur - if this was the real deal.

After the roleplay was done - the real testing began. I asked them how many mistakes the audience counted and we debated about these. They did not pick up on multiple factors of cross contamination such as long sleeves, jewelery and much more. The fear kicked in when I explained the risks - how minor oversights could lead to serious and potential deadly infections.

This experiment made my classmates more aware of how a tattoo session can go wrong - and this can lead them to take better decisions, when choosing their tattoo artist in the future. Beyond theory, this experiment revealed a tangible pathway for change: empowering consumers to demandhigher standards could pressure studios to prioritize hygiene.

With this in mind - we technically promote the more professional tattoo studios for their in-depth work. It could also promote the need to ask for assistance in areas that aren’t currently filled - such as a pre-visit with focus on the well-being of the tattoo artists before, during and after the governments’ visits.

Looking back, this project was more than just a starting point for my studies - it was the spark that ignited my passion for building practical solutions and systems, not just in the tattoo industry, but where I see a need. Each new piece of data fueled my curiosity and drive to make a difference.

After passin my exam, I had the chance to test my concept in a local tattoo studio. Months later, when the government conducted their supervision, the tattoo artist told me they felt calm and confident - no anxiety, just clarity. That moment showed me the real impact thoughtful innovation can have on people’s lives.

Even though the project itself was a success, I had to put it on hold due to the limited amount of resources. Since it’s an assessment case in each shop, I’ll have to figure out how I can help studios out to the best of my capabilities, despite the studio being on the other end of the country - or in another.

This experience taught me that even with limited resources, curiosity and empathy can lead to meaningful change over time. It’s a lesson I carry with me as I continue to explore new challenges and industries, always searching for ways to turn uncertainty into opportunity.