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

Hi Tom, thanks for joining us today. Folks often look at a successful business and imagine it was an overnight success, but from what we’ve seen this is often far from the truth. We’d love to hear your scaling up story – walk us through how you grew over time – what were some of the big things you had to do to grow and what was that scaling up journey like?

Well it’s definitely been an interesting road since the beginning of The Vintage Tattoo Shoppe. The Covid lockdown put a damper on everyone. However the last time we spoke, we talked about how I decided maybe this was a good time for me to open my own little shop. We weren’t able to work or be around people so I figured this was a great time to build something small to begin my journey as a business owner. The shop began very small. It was my good friend Rick and myself in a tiny little room that sat in the back corner of an office plaza. I can only imagine what some new clients might have thought. “Ok, so I have to meet you down this dark hallway in the back of another business? Hmm.”
It was interesting to say the least but we made it work, everyone loved the “coziness” of the room and were always super happy with their new artwork on their bodies.
So now fast forward a bit. Since we spoke last we became extremely busy and I figured it’s time for us to expand. We took over an old bank in the corner of the plaza which was an absolute disaster. It looked as though it had been empty for years and everything from the old bank was left there.
I wanted to create a fun atmosphere that would correlate much better with our name and create a brand. My thought was to create a feel of somewhere in between the haunted mansion and grandmas house with maybe a little bit of a modern feel. So we went to work! We tore everything out of that place and started fresh. It took months to achieve and having to overcome many obstacles but with the help of my girlfriend Bre, my parents, my friends Sam, Brad, Michelle, Gabriel and his team, Rick and his family, we made it happen. It took about 4 months of 16 hour days. We did everything from demolition to wallpaper, electrical to plumbing.
Today The Vintage Tattoo Shoppe is busier than ever! We now have five tattoo artists, an apprentice and esthetician in our 2,000 square foot space. Not only do we do custom tattoos but we also offer laser tattoo removal, facials and waxing. We are consistently pushing the shop to improve, expand and be better in every way. We strive to push our artwork to the best of our ability and to learn and grow each day.

Tom, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My tattoo career began in June of 2016. I was an apprentice at a shop in downtown Orlando where I worked for a couple years. I moved to another shop after two years before deciding to open my own. I pushed myself extremely hard to learn the craft and build a clientele base where I felt comfortable to start a business knowing I could sustain with the amazing clients I had. I knew that starting my own business in a fairly new industry was a gamble, however I have owned businesses in the past, I’ve been an artist my whole life and I’m always eager to constantly learn. This made me feel confident enough to take the risk. Today The Vintage Tattoo Shoppe is home to not only fantastically talented artists who collectively can tattoo virtually any style, but we also have laser tattoo removal and esthetics. With laser tattoo removal we are capable of making coverups easier, attainable and more cost effective by being able to lighten up older tattoos. We can also completely remove unwanted tattoos. Our licensed laser technician is also a licensed esthetician which also specializes in facials and waxing.
I feel so lucky to have such an award winning team. Combining the immense talent and our customer service together you’ll be able to see immediately why The Vintage is a sought after destination. Clients also love the exclusivity of the shop being by appointment only.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

This isn’t a lesson to unlearn but more-so a lesson to learn. The lesson is – Don’t talk about what you plan on doing. Show what you’ve already done.

It’s sad to say but many times in life people want to tear down your ideas. They will tell you that your ideas are bad, or you’ll never be able to achieve that. But then if you accomplish your goals, those same people who told you that you couldn’t do it will be the first ones to say that they are proud of you and they believed in you. Then they will ask for something for free because “Everything comes so easy for you, and you have all the luck.”
Listen… Your ideas are great. Keep those great ideas to yourself, work hard. Work harder than anyone else around you and show people what your dream is instead of telling them. Then when people think you just get everything handed to you, you’ll know the truth about how hard you worked for it. Risk = Reward.

Oh and your real friends don’t ask for handouts. Your real friends support you through thick and thin. :)

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

I’m still working on this but social media is such a crucial part of growing a business. Anyone who knows me knows that I can’t stand having to post on social media sites. However it is definitely not a waste of time. Your audience, your friends, your fans, your clients, or whoever you are trying to reach…. They want to see you. They want to see not only your work but be a part of your life. So get on those sites, show your work, also show your personality. Be silly, show your day to day life and share. You’ll be happy you did and so will your business.

Contact Info:

• Website: Www.Thevintagetattoos.com
• Instagram: Thevintagetattoos
• Facebook: Thevintagetattoos
• Other: Instagram of artists- Tomhuestisart Rkamla Michelle_evans_tattoos Mauriciotattoosp Bre.beauty.laser

Image Credits
Photographer- Kara Robinson