Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sasha Blue. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Sasha, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Risk taking is something we’re really interested in and we’d love to hear the story of a risk you’ve taken.

In the middle of a world wide pandemic when so many businesses where closing… my husband and I opened a piercing and tattoo studio in San Francisco. Personal services were locked down from Mid March till the last week of September.
With plenty of time on my hands I just kept looking at vacant store fronts in the areas I wanted the shop and one day…it was a Monday…we saw a location listed on Craigslist. I called and spoke to the leasing agent (who was such a great person) and we decided to go view it later that day. At first I wasn’t sure…then my husband and I kept talking about how to do the layout… before you knew it… we had agreed to take the gamble and by Friday we signed the lease, this was the beginning of July. Everything happened so quickly and the timing was perfect. I tell people I cashed in all my good karma points because how easy things went, which in San Francisco is a miracle hahhaha. We had no date to reopen by the city so we just kept setting up the shop. By the time we had the shop how we wanted it and got all the city inspections we got word Personal Services were ready to open …ofcourse with alot of restrictions. But it was perfect timing!
We waited a week to open so we could officially open on the 1st of October. What a perfect month for us to open. And from day 1… things have been growing and growing.
Without taking that risk at that time… I wouldn’t be where I am now.
I’m proud to say the girl raised in a family of Mexican construction and field workers is now a proud San Francisco business owner. Si Se Puede.

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?

As a teenager I was mesmerized by all the pictures I’d see of Punk Rockers from the 70’s and 80’s with safety pins in their cheeks, nose and ears. When I was alil older I found out you could piercer people for a living! And so that is when I bugged my local piercing shop until I wore him down and gave me a apprenticeship. So in 1997 I started the beginning of my long career as Professional Piercer.
I have been so lucky to be in the body piercing industry for so long and to this day I still adore what I do.
As a Chicana girl from a small farm town just outside of San Francisco to owning a Body Piercing and Tattoo studio in San Francisco doing what I love to do… I feel like the luckiest girl in this universe.
The shop is called 13 Bats Piercing and Tattoo Studio. I opened the shop with my partner in the mist of a world-wide pandemic. I’m not a gambling person but we took this long shot and it’s been winning.
The shop is focused on offering the highest quality body jewelry and piercing services in a safe space with a light-hearted, ego-free halloween themed environment. I want my clients to walk in feeling excited and leave feeling even more excited with a pep in their step.

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

I like to think how I treat my clients and keeping up to date on new techniques is how I grow my reputation in my market.
My clients are my world. Without them there is no me. I completely enjoy giving my clients something that will make them feel sooo good about themselves.
If your client feels like you are listening to them and give them a fun and chill experience they will tell a friend and so on.

Do you have any insights you can share related to maintaining high team morale?

I think its important to remember how you were and wanted to be treated. Your team is just as important as your clients. Happy employee is a loyal employee.
You want to make sure you offer a safe environment and listen to your employee when they have any concerns and suggestions.
Employees that feel like part of a team and feel inspired will always want to do what is best for the company.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.Thirteenbats.com
• Instagram: @13batstattooandpiercing
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ThirteenBats/?locale=es_ES
• Twitter: 13Batstattoo
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/13-bats-tattoo-and-piercing-studio-san-francisco

Image Credits

my partners name is Andrew Ireland