By your loyal loon-loving Canadian bookkeeper at Beyond the Ink – crunching numbers so you can keep crunching dermals.
Alright, fellow needle-wielding entrepreneurs, let’s talk
turkey. (Or tofu, if you’re plant-based. We’re inclusive here at Beyond the
Ink.)
You’ve got a studio full of artists, piercers, tooth gem
wizards, and one guy who insists on only doing black-and-grey Viking-themed leg
sleeves. Your books? A kaleidoscope of styles, supplies, and service charges.
But do you know which of these glorious body mods are actually making you
money?
Because here’s the truth: just like tattoos, not all
services are created equal. Some are beautiful and profitable. Others are
just... beautiful. And some are about as financially rewarding as a freehand
finger tattoo on your buddy named Kyle.
Let’s dive into the ink-stained truth of service
profitability—because knowing your most lucrative offerings means less
guesswork, more paycheques, and fewer 3am "Where did the money go?!"
crises.
🧮 The Not-So-Sexy
Math Behind the Sexy Art
Before you roll your eyes and reach for your machine, let me
make it simple: profit = what you make – what it costs you to do the thing.
So when we say “What are your most profitable services?” we
mean:
- Which
services bring in the most revenue
- With
the least amount of cost
- In
the least amount of time
- Using
the least amount of materials
- While
still keeping your artist’s sanity intact (bonus!)
TL;DR: Time is money. Ink is money. Gloves are money.
Know where the money is going.
💉 Tattoos: Big Time,
Big Bucks… Right?
Well… maybe.
Let’s break it down:
- Hourly
tattoos can be super profitable if your artist is quick and
skilled.
- But
if a “4-hour piece” turns into a 9-hour saga with seven snack breaks, your
margins might look like a sad stick-and-poke.
- Also:
full-day sessions = higher profit per client, but fewer clients per
day.
Want to boost profitability? Track time per piece. Price
accordingly. Don’t get caught charging $300 for a $500 effort.
✨ Piercings: Small
Stabs, Big Gains
Piercings are the unsung heroes of studio cash flow. Fast,
relatively low-supply, and steady demand (especially from birthday teens and
bachelorette parties).
BUT:
- Are
you charging enough?
- Are
you upselling quality jewelry?
- Are
you factoring in sterilization time, setup, aftercare kits?
A 10-minute $60 nostril piercing with a $15 jewelry upgrade
is chef’s kiss for margins—unless you're giving away free titanium like
it’s Halloween.
🦷 Tooth Gems,
Branding, Scarification & Other Niche Wonders
Some of y’all are doing truly magical, niche work. And I
salute you. But ask yourself:
- Is
the demand steady?
- Are
the supplies specialized (read: expensive)?
- Is
your pricing compensating for the expertise and risk?
If you’re gluing Swarovski to molars for $40 a pop but using
$30 worth of materials and a full sterilization setup... Houston, we have a
math problem.
📊 How to Actually
Figure This Out Without Crying
Here’s the simple formula you should be using:
(Revenue per service – cost of materials – time x hourly
overhead) = profit per service
Yes, that means:
- Tracking
supplies used
- Estimating
time per service
- Assigning
value to your time (spoiler alert: your time is worth more than zero)
Use a spreadsheet, an app, or a good old-fashioned
napkin—but track it. Over a month, you’ll spot patterns:
- “Wow,
micro tattoos are eating up two hours and barely covering gloves.”
- “Holy
septum! Piercings pay for my rent every Saturday.”
- “I
could live off blackout sleeves if I didn’t need my wrists to function.”
🏆 The Profitability
Power Move
Once you know what services are printing cash and which are
just pretty portfolio fillers, you can:
- Adjust
your marketing (more promo for high-margin work!)
- Adjust
your pricing (bye-bye undercharging)
- Adjust
your scheduling (stack fast-money services on slow days)
- Adjust
artist focus (give your Viking leg guy a nudge toward cash cows)
This isn’t about selling out. It’s about sustainability—so
your art can thrive, your team gets paid, and you’re not crying into a pile of
disposable aprons during tax season.
TL;DR for the Busy Studio Boss:
💸 Track what each
service earns vs costs
📈
Identify your most profitable services (fast, low-supply, steady demand =
gold)
🔧
Fix what’s draining your cash (too slow, underpriced, supply-heavy)
🎯
Shift focus to what works best for your bottom line
😎
Profit like a boss while still slingin’ killer art
Signed, Your Profit-Loving, HST-Haunted Bookkeeper
At Beyond the Ink, we believe your art deserves to
pay you well. Want help setting up those tracking sheets? Need someone to
gently explain that $15 eyebrow piercing isn’t covering rent? I’m here for you.
Because nothing says "professional studio
owner" like knowing which services are paying the bills—and which ones
are just stealing your nitrile.
🧾💰📌
— Beyond the Ink, where financial clarity meets creative badassery.
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