We recently connected with Kaylie Wilson and have shared our conversation below.

Kaylie, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear how you think where to draw the line in terms of asking friends and family to support your business – what’s okay and what’s over the line?

I always commend the friends and family in my life for pushing me to where I am now as a co-owner of a female owned shop, which is empowering in the industry alone. In all, there are always a few people who stand out to me most; my mother, Savannah, Sharon, Andrew, and my partner Kenneth. My mother was an avid supporter since I started in the industry and has always shown the utmost support for not only my craft but also opening the shop. Savannah is my business partner and other artist at our place and she is truly a saint. I owe my success and even the fact that I kept trying, to her! Sharon is a close friend of mine who lended her time, her car, and her moral support to me in the hardest time of my life as a starving artist with nothing in my pockets, still sleeping on an air mattress- truly a gift. Andrew was an old coworker of mine but probably one of the most influential people to me in my career and someone I look up to. Not only did he teach me a lot when it comes to our industry and craft, but he became such a close friend of mine and holds a special place in my heart. And lastly, my partner Kenneth has been there through the highs and lows of my career. From when I started, to now being the top of the totem pole. He’s witnessed my hardest moments and my most proud, my failures and my successes. I am so grateful for him, and really everyone involved in this process. I wouldn’t be here without them.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

Sure! My name is Kaylie, I go by the Space Cowboy as a tattoo artist, and I reside in Colorado. I originally got into the tattooing industry by complaining to my own tattoo artist, oddly enough! I hated working in the service industry and had told her how I would love to do what she did for a living; I was a sophomore in college at this point. By the time I had booked another tattoo with her, she had pointed me in the direction of an apprenticeship about 45 minutes out of town and I took it. Now, years later, I own my own shop! Our shop is Madcap Ink Studios and we offer tattoos, piercings, and sell all kinds of artwork, jewelry and more! We provide more to our clients in the aspect of body image as well as self expression. What sets us aside from most tattoo shops is we are women owned, black owned, and a LGBTQ+ safe space. We try to provide a nontraditional experience and allow our clients to communicate at all times without feeling pressured or uncomfortable in their environment. Our health questionnaire even has a optional sensory section that way we can accommodate for anyone, at any time, within means. I am most proud of Savannah and I, my business partner, getting to where we are in a male dominated industry. We mainly want to stress that we are trying to provide a different service for this growing community where everyone feels welcomed and loved- regardless of their background!

We’d love to hear about you met your business partner.

I met Savannah working at the first shop I ever started out as an apprentice. I was always the more reserved and quiet out of our whole group, but eventually as the years passed Savannah and I grew extremely close. We had always joked about one day owning a tattoo shop, but never really thought it would become a reality- especially not as quickly as we got it done. She is truly the best person I could’ve gone in business with and is someone I consider a close friend.

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

The best thing that I think helps me build within my industry is actually word of mouth. As a tattoo artist I do a lot of online advertising as well as local advertisements, however nothing beats neighborly recommendations! It was awesome to see someone mention me, tag me, or even say “I know just the person who could do that tattoo”’ for the first time. Usually when people are able to show off their own tattoos that you’ve done, it’s a really proud feeling to know someone is not only trusting you with permanent artwork, but that they love it so much they want others to also know and support you- it’s an awesome feeling.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @spacecowboytattoos
• Facebook: Space Cowboy Tattoos
• Yelp: Madcap Ink Studios