By Alan Ashworth
Akron Beacon Journal
WWR Article Summary (tl;dr) Entrepreneur Wendy Wagner wants to know if and when she will be able to reopen her tattoo shop. Since the shutdown, Wagner has attempted to acquire a stimulus loan but hasn’t even received a response.
Akron
Just before the coronavirus crisis hit, business was good for Wendy Wagner.
It was tax season — perhaps the best time of the year for the tattoo business — and she had plenty of customers ready to be inked.
Wagner had just had the floor redone at Kustom Culture Tattoos & Piercings, the Tallmadge business she has owned and operated for more than 18 years.
But then, Friday the 13th hit.
On that fateful day, an order from Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine shut down her business. She and her five employees were suddenly, jarringly, out of work.
Nearly two months later, Wagner’s business remains closed and she has no idea when she’ll be allowed to reopen. She’d hoped the governor would announce on Thursday a schedule to allow her to start making a living again.
But DeWine didn’t, and she’s angry and frustrated — along with many in the business. The worst of it is the continued uncertainty and the apparent lack of concern from the man with the power to close, and possibly kill, her business.
“They haven’t even mentioned tattoo shops since the day we were shut down,” Wagner said Friday.
Since the shutdown, Wagner has attempted to acquire a stimulus loan but hasn’t received a response. She’s not sure when or if she’ll get a stimulus check, and her bills keep piling up.
“I have no idea when we can go back to work. I have a child, I have five employees,” Wagner said. “Five employees. They all have homes to take care of as well.”
Wagner said her business operated in a safe environment before the shutdown, with tattoo artists wearing gloves and constantly cleaning themselves and their surroundings. The only difference she expects when her business is allowed to open is the addition of masks.
And that’s what’s galling to her. Personal care services such as hair salons, barbershops, day spas, nail salons, and tanning facilities will be able to reopen on May 15. No mention of tattoo establishments.
Rich Griggs, owner of Assassin Tattoo Studio and Black Tooth Tattoo, both in Akron, has similar concerns.
Like Wagner, Griggs is flummoxed that the governor hasn’t mentioned tattoo establishments in his reopening plans.
“I understand why they’re doing things, but the stigma is it’s like a bunch of bikers, gang members and prisoners,” Griggs said. “We are like highly trained artists that put health above everything else.”
He shares the anxiety of Wagner at the uncertainty of when he’ll again be allowed to make a living. Between the two shops, he has 18 employees who have rent and utilities to pay and groceries to buy.
“The problem is we don’t have a date,” Griggs said. “We have to tell our landlords we don’t know.”
As the bills mount, Griggs has been selling off his collection of guitars and other personal items to stay afloat. Some of his employees have picked up other jobs, where they can.
“Most of them are working at Amazon,” Griggs said. “I’ve got a guy who’s been tattooing for 20 years delivering pizza.”
For a tattoo artist dedicated to his trade, not being able to practice it can be more than frustrating. For an entrepreneur who has established two thriving locations, it can be infuriating.
“It’s been hard building something up … and then you can’t go there and work,” Griggs said. “It’s kind of the opposite of the American Dream.”
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