We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Joshua Cole a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Joshua thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea
Great question! Let’s dive in:
For roughly 13 years, I had an unconventional career trajectory involving frequent involuntary stays courtesy of the state prison system—let’s just say cell phones weren’t the only thing I couldn’t hold onto. During this “career hiatus,” I was painfully unaware of the collateral damage my actions caused to my loved ones.
Coming from a hardworking, lower-middle-class family, I had a father who practically bent over backward to clear my path toward success. Despite my missteps, he remained steadfast, his unwavering belief serving as a constant whisper of hope during those long years behind bars.
Through it all, tattooing became my closest companion. From San Quentin to Southern Desert, I was “the tattoo guy,” devouring art books, anatomy guides, and tattoo magazines to hone my craft. Gradually, I evolved as an artist, meticulously listing out my post-release goals. Four years into sobriety now, I’ve ticked nearly all those boxes.
Upon my final release, thanks to good behavior and successfully graduating from the MAT Court program, I unexpectedly received pandemic unemployment benefits—who knew a 2019 job could pay dividends in 2020? My instinct said, “Hold onto this cash,” and days later, opportunity literally called in the form of a real estate agent offering a licensed, yet equipment-free, tattoo shop.
I skeptically threw out an offer of $5,500—after all, the shop lacked machines, ink, needles, and clientele, though it did boast some rather lovely furniture. Initially, the owner responded colorfully (let’s just say it wasn’t exactly polite), but after another buyer backed out, he begrudgingly accepted, with the small caveat of three additional $1,000 monthly payments, totaling $8,500.
Spooked by the commitment, I immediately grabbed a second job to cover expenses. Remarkably, within ten days, I’d generated around $8,500 through a blend of cash and credit payments, swiftly clearing my debt. Ever since then, it’s been full steam ahead in the tattoo world—no more prison visits required.
Joshua, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?
I got into my line of work through, let’s just say, unconventional means. Picture this: I’m in San Quentin, minding my own business, doodling away, when someone shouts, “Hey, white kid, wanna be our resident tattoo artist?” Thus began my illustrious tattooing career, 14 years strong and counting.
Fast forward, and I’ve been the proud owner of Work of Art Tattoo and Piercing for four thriving years. Currently sitting pretty with 292 five-star Google reviews—only 8 or so left to hit my modest target.
One highlight I’m especially proud of is mentoring a talented 16-year-old art school kid named Quentin. Trading tattoo lessons for his drawing tips, I helped him dodge a rough path and carve out a successful tattoo career—honestly, he’s probably better than me now (see for yourself at Quenton_art).
Along the way, I was blessed to be allowed to apprentice under Chris “Church” Oppenheim @Tattoosbychurch in Interstate Ink in Woodland Hills , Caa. just outside of L.A. For about six months, I lived there and daily would sit at my station next to Chris, watching him work, setting up his station, video taping, and learning everything I could. Best lesson ever: go home and draw everything you plan to tattoo. It shows you how to tattoo it! Guy is a 4 foot tall Picasso, and he is funny as hell with great taste in shop music. One of the best experiences of my life.
My business is co-owned with my amazing partner Katie Morgan @stabislifee, who took an impressive leap from bud tender to professional piercer. After some basics from me to snag her state license, she’s now heading our piercing department, training two additional piercers along the way, and frankly, teaching me far more about piercing than I ever knew. Teamwork at its finest!
Let’s talk M&A – we’d love to hear your about your experience with buying businesses.
When I took over my current business, it was right at the end of COVID, and the previous owner had essentially thrown in the towel, covering everything with dust cloths and cheerfully predicting I’d never make a dime since he couldn’t. Joke was on him—within my first ten days, I’d raked in $8,500, all pure profit.
However, there was a catch: the shop was three months behind on rent and facing eviction. I quickly learned that despite our signed agreement, I couldn’t inherit his licenses. Instead, I had to rapidly earn every license and certification required, entirely from scratch. It was a frantic, stressful month, but I pulled it off within 30 days—talk about an initiation into entrepreneurship!
Can you tell us about what’s worked well for you in terms of growing your clientele?
Want to know the secret sauce for getting new clients beyond old-fashioned word-of-mouth? Facebook and Instagram ads—especially if the ad happens to feature a hot girl. Trust me, that’ll snag at least a thousand extra eyeballs every time. Once I’ve got their attention, I hit them with some substance to keep them around. It’s marketing magic, folks.
But long before my skills reached their current heights—way before oil painting school, art classes, and various artistic adventures—I understood one fundamental truth: treating customers better than anyone else is the golden ticket to repeat business. Judging by the steady stream of glowing Google reviews, I think it’s safe to say it worked.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.workofarttattoo.com
- Instagram: @workofarttattoo
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/workofarttattoo
Image Credits
I took all of these. The wall mural is one I was hired to do here in Las Vegas.