We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Leyna Grace a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Leyna, thanks for joining us today. Risking taking is a huge part of most people’s story but too often society overlooks those risks and only focuses on where you are today. Can you talk to us about a risk you’ve taken – it could be a big risk or a small one – but walk us through the backstory.

Around the time that I had been in the tattoo industry for about 7 years, I decided to fully pursue tattooing as a full time career (without any side hustles to fall back on). It was important for me to feel confident in my decision because I was also a single mom at the time. I understood that in tattooing, as well as so many other forms of art, there is not always consistency and long-term financial stability; however, the meaning that this decision gave my life was completely worth the risk. Since 2019, I have fully relied on tattooing as my only form of income to support myself and my family, which has at times been really terrifying (because of the COVID-19 pandemic, for instance). I am proud of where I am today and the risk that I took then, as well as the risks I have continued to take in starting my own business.

Leyna, 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?

My name is Leyna Grace (she/her pronouns). I was raised in Greeley, CO, which is part of the reason I feel so strongly about contributing to its progress. Art has been an aspect of my life where I have put in a lot of effort and found joy since childhood. The art classes I took in school were what kept me the most engaged and where I felt the most talented, but even then, I never thought that art would be something that I could turn into a lucrative career. By happenstance, I fell into tattooing in 2012 but knew almost immediately that it was what I wanted to do. I spent the next several years struggling to find my space in the industry and was met with challenges associated with poor management, harsh environments, and toxic masculinity. I have made a number of important connections with community members in Greeley that have contributed to building a really valuable, loyal clientele. Much of my energy has gone into fostering relationships that are holistic and go beyond tattooing. Because of the importance of those relationships, I have established values that I see as necessary for creating positive change in the tattoo industry. The dream that I had for a tattoo shop started to take shape in 2019 because of the poor management of shops that I had seen and the importance I placed on the safety and comfort of my clients. This idea remained at the forefront of my mind for about two years until the pieces fell into place and my dream started to become reality. From its foundation, the name “The Lavender Archive” acknowledges queer history and pays homage to the queer businesses that have come before mine and the activists who fought for my opportunity to be an “out” business owner. Since officially opening in March 2022, I have been deliberate in upholding the standards that I deem necessary in creating a safe space. The Lavender Archive operates with the goal of eliminating single-use waste wherever possible and creating a space that is safe and affirming for all of our clients by taking into account the unique needs of each individual. I firmly believe that the tattoo experience is about crafting permanent works of art with my clients and strive to do so in an environment that doesn’t feel like a traditional tattoo shop but is a comfortable space for all who enter.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

During the lockdown in 2020, like many others, I was unable to work. Once the lockdown was over, I had a lot of clients who had more free time than normal and had just received stimulus checks. Because the demand for tattoos was high at that time, I felt a need to overwork myself and schedule as many clients as possible every day that I was working. This ended up taking a toll quickly, both on my mental health and my physical wellbeing. From that point on, I had to find a way to balance work and life differently. I changed the ways that I schedule my clients, and while I try to remain flexible in my availability, I know that working 12 hour days is not sustainable.

Any thoughts, advice, or strategies you can share for fostering brand loyalty?

I keep a master list with the email addresses of all of the clients I have worked with, so I reach out to them first when I am running any kind of special or have any updates that may affect them. I try to be reachable by email as well as through the shop’s social media, so there are open lines of communication for clients to ask any questions they have throughout the process. I also try to make the booking process more streamlined for my existing clients, which makes it more convenient for them to make appointments.

Contact Info:

• Website: thelavenderarchive.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/thelavenderarchive
• Facebook: facebook.com/thelavenderarchive

Image Credits
Personal photo taken by Ana Carbajal Building photo taken by Shelby Perez Photo with client courtesy of The Greeley Tribune