By your favourite sarcastic Canadian bookkeeper from Beyond the Ink – because your profits shouldn't disappear faster than your last box of nitrile gloves.
Hey there, ink-and-needle wizards!
Let’s talk about something way less sexy than your latest
sleeve design but way more important than you think: inventory and
supplies.
Now, I get it. No one opened a tattoo or piercing studio
thinking, “Wow, I can’t wait to count boxes of gloves and calculate the
cost-per-dot of ink.” But here we are—because if you want to keep your business
alive (and afford the fancy needles and oat milk lattes), you’ve got to
get your supply game in check.
So grab a clipboard—or at least a strong coffee and an eye
twitch—because we’re going Beyond the Ink and deep into the land of cost
control. And I promise to make it funny so you don’t cry.
🧴 Tattoo Supplies:
Where Your Profits Go to Die (If You're Not Careful)
Let’s face it: supplies are sneaky. One minute you’re fully
stocked, and the next, your apprentice is using your best grip tape to build a
miniature duct-tape throne.
We’re talking:
- Ink
(some bottles cost more than your childhood bicycle)
- Needles
and cartridges
- Gloves,
wraps, razors, ointments, paper towels, clip cords, bibs, rinse cups,
aftercare packs, cleaning supplies...
- Snacks
for clients who “forgot to eat before their 6-hour session” (seriously?!)
All those little things add up faster than a client changing
their mind mid-backpiece.
📦 Inventory Control:
Not Just for Control Freaks (But It Helps)
If you’re still managing inventory with a sticky note on the
fridge that says “buy more stuff,” we need to talk.
Here’s the move:
- Track
what’s coming in: When you get a shipment, note quantities and costs.
- Track
what’s going out: Yes, even if it’s “just a few gloves.” THEY ADD UP.
- Audit
regularly: Aka, count what’s actually on the shelf vs. what should be
there. Bonus: You’ll finally know if someone’s been hoarding green soap.
💡 Pro tip: Use a
spreadsheet or, better yet, inventory software. And no, I don’t mean an Excel
file named “stuff_2020_FINAL_FINAL(2).xlsx”.
🧾 Pricing for
Profit: Ink Ain’t Free, Friend
You need to build your supply costs into your
pricing. Period.
Tattoo artists, listen up: If you’re charging $120/hour but
burning through $40/hour in ink and supplies, you’re basically just donating
tattoos with a bonus hand cramp.
Same goes for piercers: That $60 nose piercing sounds great
until you realize your cost was $42 and you forgot to charge for aftercare.
Whoopsie.
📊 Do the math:
- Know
your average cost per service
- Set
your pricing to cover supplies, time, overhead, and leave a margin
- Adjust
when prices go up (yes, again—thanks inflation and shipping delays)
🤷 “But I’m Just an
Artist, Not an Accountant!”
I get it. You didn’t sign up for this. You signed up to make
beautiful things and stab people legally.
But your business is like a sleeve: you need a good
foundation or it turns into a blurry mess.
And guess what? Once you get a handle on this stuff:
- You’ll
stop over-ordering ink you never use
- You’ll
actually know when you’re running out before you panic-order from
five different suppliers at midnight
- You’ll
have more money. Yes, actual money. That you can keep. And spend. On
non-work things. Imagine!
TL;DR for the Artist in a Rush:
🧴 Supplies matter.
Track what you buy and use.
📦
Don’t guess. Use inventory software or spreadsheets.
💸
Price properly. Your costs should not eat your profits.
📈
Audit and adjust. Know where the money’s going—or watch it disappear.
Final Words from Your Favourite Bookkeeping Nerd
Look, I’m not here to kill your vibe. I love a clean ledger
almost as much as you love a clean line. But if you’re not managing your supply
costs, you’re working harder than you need to for less than you deserve.
At Beyond the Ink, we’re all about helping body mod
businesses thrive—not just survive. That means looking beyond the ink
(see what I did there?) and getting real about the backend of your badass
studio.
Need help building a tracking sheet? Want someone to
actually make sense of your receipts from six different suppliers and one guy
named "Dave Ink Guy"? Hit me up. I won’t judge. (But I will
definitely sort your stuff out.)
💉📦💵
— Beyond the Ink, where art meets accountability—and your supplies stop
eating your success.
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