Apprenticeships.

A note about Apprenticeships.
We at Blue Star Tattoos Inc. get ask about apprenticeships every day we work. Obviously, that means we need to say “NO” to an awful lot of people. There are a lot of things that can make you a candidate for an apprenticeship, and a lot more that can kill your chances, so to make things easier on you. I want to be very clear about the criteria to be an apprentice at Blue Star Tattoos Inc.:
1. We need to have a place for you to work!
Why? Well. Let’s say we train you and you become a great competent piercer or tattooist. Won’t you be frustrated “mad” that you aren’t actually piercing or tattooing for a living? I know it would bother me that I could pierce or tattoo well and wasn’t actually making money doing it. If you find yourself working one shift a week, or just substituting for other piercers or tattooist, you are going to go stir crazy. Eventually, I’m going to lose you to another shop, and now I have trained someone who will now be my competitor. Keep in mind, taking on an apprentice is a lot of extra work for us, and now I’ve worked for months or years on someone who will be a competent competitor, I’m sorry but that’s just bad business.

2. I need to know that you are really motivated.
Being really motivated seems easy enough, right? I mean, you are already really motivated! Well, not necessarily. To work at Blue Star Tattoos Inc., as a body piercer you must attend the Fakir Musafar Basic Piercing Intensive if you are going to be a piercer. When I hear you say, ‘ I’m really passionate about body piercing, but I can’t afford the school or flight right “Now” it means to us that you aren’t really all that passionate. Essentially, you will need to save about $2500.00 to take the class and stay in San Francisco. If you can’t save that in a year, it means to us you are either too irresponsible to save money or you want instant gratification. That is just not enough to be in our apprenticeship program. After your apprenticeship you will be required to join the APP before you can start working for us. For tattooing go get a drawing book about 100 pages and fill it with your art work, then come and talk to us.

3. Getting an apprenticeship is a popularity contest.
Blue Star Tattoos inc. doesn’t need the brooding, quiet, introverted type. We need the body piercing or tattooist equivalent of a cheerleader. We need happy, friendly, outgoing, positive folks that can light up a room with their smile. Body piercers and tattooist need to be clean, smart, creative and passionate, but they also need to be likable, approachable, and able to command the center of attention for 30 minutes at a time. If you hate people, hate public speaking, and hate awkward social situations, why on Earth would you want to be a body piercer or tattooist? Make no bones about it: Body piercing or tattooing is a job for people who like people , and it’s a lot of hard work for no pay while you apprentice.

4. Blue Star Tattoos Inc. piercing department is not a stepping stone to a tattoo career.
Piercing is not the way to get into tattooing. That’s like becoming a Dentist so you can eventually be a Gynecologist. Please don’t waste either of our time. For tattooing go get a drawing book about 100 pages and fill it with your art work, then come and talk to us,
about an apprenticeship for tattooing.

5. When your apprenticeship is over, do you want to open your own shop?
That’s great! You’re an entrepreneur and I can relate to that! You will need to pay for you apprenticeship, though. No one wants to train another piercer or tattooist out of the goodness of their own heart, I’m sorry but that’s just bad business. We, the established piercers or tattooist, need to see a profit in the future, whether that is from your work as our employee or from actually being paid for the apprenticeship. I think you will save us both a lot of drama by being up front about this. By being forthcoming and being prepared to pay for your apprenticeship, you also nearly guarantee that you’ll actually get taken on as an apprentice. This also goes back to question number 2, and if you pony up a large chunk of money for an apprenticeship, I know you are serious about becoming a good piercer or tattooist.

Here are some final tips for making yourself into an attractive piercing or tattooing apprenticeship candidate not only for Blue Star Tattoos Inc., but to most good professional body piercing or tattooing shops:

• Wear good body jewelry; if you wear Hot Topic crap don’t ask for an apprenticeship, what you wear say it all.
• Don’t buy tattoo or piercing equipment, and prey of your friends. This is a big turn off to shop’s, now we have to break your bad habits.
• Have retail sales experience.
• Take a Bloodborne pathogens class from an OSHA approved instructor.
• Learn CPR/First Aid at the American Red Cross.
• Take anatomy and physiology classes at your local community college.
• Volunteer to promote Blue Star Tattoos Inc. by flyering.
• Volunteer at the APP convention. www.safepiercing.org
• Read a lot about piercing or tattooing. Learn its history.
• Work on your people skills.
• Help out at the shop.
• Go to Sky Renfro’s apprenticeship primer class from Professional Piercing Information System. www.propiercing.com
• Go to Fakir Intensives Basic Piercing Class. www.fakir.org
• The APP website www.safepiercing.org
• If you want to tattoo do not buy any tattoo equipment, and play. Bad move.