Getting into the body mod industry

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Wednesday August 20th, 2008 @ 2:05 AM

Filed under: Piercing

Is it possible to make a decent living in the UK as a piercer without also being a tattoo artist? I’m not talking anything extravagant here, I just wouldn’t want to end up constantly broke! (although I do realise I probably would be when starting out). I’ve been interested in body mods since I was about 11 (I’m now 18) but I’ve only recently started to consider a career in this industry so I haven’t got the faintest idea how I would actually go about it. I’m starting to do some research into it now but I thought BME would be the best place to start. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

The discussion of how to get into the body modification industry has been discussed many times before. But simply put I always try to guide individuals in the direction of actually getting proper training (ie: Anatomy & Physiology Courses, Business Management Courses, Metalworking if possible,etc,etc). Because the more we get properly educated individuals in this industry who fully understand those area’s, the more our industry will flourish and grow.

As for financial status our industry has people who are well below the poverty line all the way up to rollin in their pimped out Escalades.

I will say though there are far more “broke” piercers and tattooists out there then the cashed up bling bling styled ones. Some are unhappy about being “broke” while others don’t care about the money because they are providing a solid service and helping people modify their bodies.

Personally, I’ve only recently been able to be in a position where I am capable of affording somewhat of a life. I can pay my bills with ease and even eat a better type of food, I’ve even managed to buy a laptop as well. However I’ve had the same pair of scratched up/warped glasses since I was 17 years old, I’m 28, but that’s my next major purchase.

But like I said for many years in my piercing career, I was simply too poor to afford certain necessities and luxuries. Which is the case for MANY piercers/tattooists out there. This is why so many artists actually have part-time jobs to supplement their bod mod careers. Some wait tables, others sling suds, others jiggle their jellies on stage, others paint/sculpt,etc.

But yeah if you’re expecting to be all cashed up bling bling rockstar style, think again, chances are it probably will never happen, unless you sell your soul or are very lucky. The chance of you even being able to comfortably live and be stable and own a car and buy a house, is a bit more feasible but again many artists are lucky to make it like that. Most artists tend to be more underpaid for the type of services they provide.

The thought process though is that a tattoo artist will make more money, not getting into the discussion on that argument(tattooing vs piercing,etc), because they are completely two different realms within the Bod Mod umbrella. I will say though that in the past there has been plenty of times where I’ve made more money then my past shops tattoo artists did,etc.

This reminds me, rent’s due this week hahaha!

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