We were lucky to catch up with Evan Burke recently and have shared our conversation below.

Evan, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you open up about a risk you’ve taken – what it was like taking that risk, why you took the risk and how it turned out?

Jumping into being a shop owner has been one of the biggest risks i’ve taken. It’s been a dream of mine since I was a kid. To own my own business, do something I love, and be able to give back in some way. I started piercing back in 2007, and had no idea where this career would take me!! After working in a handful of different studios in my city, I never quite found my home. My visions often did not line up with the studios I was in, or my ideas were always too big. I created an idea for an environment I wanted to find myself in and one id want to cultivate for my coworkers and clients to thrive in. I’ve been fortunate enough travel the country, and work in many amazing piercing studios. Continuing to grow as a piercer, further my knowledge on this craft, and make friends along the way. It’s hard to believe i’m still doing this after all these years! So with my knowledge i’ve gained throughout the years, I set forth on opening my studio in the middle of 2023. I had been collecting items along the way, supplies, display cases, furniture, and most importantly the courage to jump into the unknown.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

My Name is Evan Burke. I own Rose Body Piercing in San Diego California. I began my piercing career in 2007 in Riverside California. I was introduced to tattoos and piercings at a young age through skateboarding and punk rock music, but had no idea id find myself in the industry. All these cool people i looked up to had awesome tattoos, crazy colored hair and piercings and I knew that what I was into and wanted to look like. I was around 10 or 11 years old when I entered my first piercing studio and I was blown away! My cousin looked up in the phonebook where he could get his nostril pierced and brought me along. The entire experience was legitimacy life changing. I had never met such eccentric people in my life as the two that worked in that studio, and the rush of adrenaline i got was insane! I could not wait to get my first piercing. I started to get piercings and hang around the shop at the age of 15. Soon after me being just there hanging out I started to really collect piercings and do anything I could around the shop to make myself helpful. This eventually led to an offer for an apprenticeship and I jumped at it.

Since then I’ve been fortunate enough to learn from, work for and beside some of the best piercers in the industry. Still I look forward to continuing my growth and knowledge as a piercer, I strive to continually learn and advance my craft and spread knowledge with my peers and clients.

As a professional body piercer and studio owner, providing a safe, inclusive, and encouraging space for not only myself and my co-workers but my clients is of the most importance for me. That is my intention with Rose Piercing Studio. Providing expert services and the highest quality implant grade body jewelry is the sole focus here at Rose Body Piercing. I pride myself in the utilization of the industries most trusted and well know jewelry manufactures, up to date knowledge and expertise for all of our services offered, and state of the art sterilization practices. I strive for a goal to create a wonderful and lasting experience for all who enter my studio and trust me with their piercing and jewelry needs and wants.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

Loving what you do, taking pride in your work, and caring about your clients has been paramount in me succeeding in my field. It’s really easy to become jaded, burnt out, or often only view clients as a monetary gain, some studios i’ve worked in was more centered around money over client care and that didn’t sit well with me. People love personality, being genuine, and friendly is important.

Another huge helpful mindset is to not compare yourself to your peers in an unhealthy way. It’s hard to see peers “flourishing” on social media and not want that and get jealous. Just do you! It’s great to find inspiration, but don’t create an unhealthy competition in your head.

Do you think you’d choose a different profession or specialty if you were starting now?

Without a doubt!! In a heartbeat! I love Body Piercing. It’s taken me to places I didn’t know i’d be able to go, and allowed me to meet tons of amazing people. One of my favorite aspects of what I do is the interactions I get to have with my clients. Learning about them, their lives, their cultures and travels, It’s so fun. I get to help achieve great milestones for some, overcome great anxieties for others, and help reclaim parts of themselves. Transformation is powerful, and I’m eternally grateful people trust me to help them along the way.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rosepiercing.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rosebodypiercing/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Rosebodypiercing
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@RoseBodyPiercing/
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/rose-body-piercing-san-diego-2?osq=piercing

Image Credits
Portrait of me is by Allix Johnson. All other photos I made.