We were lucky to catch up with Yennifer Giraldo Ballesteros recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Yennifer, thanks for joining us today. Quality control is a challenge almost every entrepreneur has had to focus on when growing – any advice, stories or insight around how to best ensure quality is maintained as your business scales?

When I started learning everything about tattooing, I used to visit some friends at their tattoo shop, and something that I always liked about them was how seriously they were taking their jobs and the commitment they always had to improve their art. I was very curious about how they kept this motivation and constant dynamic going on.

One day one of them was talking about something that might be obvious but once you really think about it and internalize it, it’s very enlightening. What my friend said was that: We, as tattoo artists, need to understand the huge responsibility of having people trust us enough to let us put permanent marks on their bodies. Those marks are always going to be a part of who they are. Thinking about it like that makes you reconsider doing anything carelessly, knowing how it could affect the final result of the tattoo.

That idea stuck with me, and that’s why I believe the best way to maintain and improve the quality of my work is by always remembering how important it is for my clients. I’m grateful they chose me out of all the options they have.

It might sound romantic, but I’ve found it really helpful, especially when I catch myself starting to slack on certain processes. Quality, to me, is how you show that you care.

Yennifer, 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 graduated from college as an Industrial Engineer in Colombia in 2015. In my last semester, I started spending time with students from the visual arts program. After graduation, I had a job for a month, and that made me realize I didn’t want to work in a company where I didn’t care about what they were doing. I knew I needed something more creative.
That’s when I started thinking about art and trying to find a way to make a living from it. Then I met the director of a local comic convention, Nelson Zuluaga, he invited me to be part of the project every year. Through that, I met a lot of illustrators and visual artists. One of them, an illustrator from Spain, introduced me to Urban Sketchers, a global group that promotes drawing on location. So with a friend, we created the Pereira chapter of Urban Sketchers. That group shaped my artistic journey. It’s where I learned so much and met so many inspiring people.
One of the people I met was Jordy, who was just starting to tattoo. He showed me what he knew, and the first time I tried a machine, I spent six hours tattooing fake skin. I fell in love with every part of it. I understood the process more deeply than I had any other form of art.
During quarantine, I bought my first machine and started practicing while watching YouTube tutorials. I had so many questions that I eventually started visiting my friends’ tattoo shop, where they patiently answered everything. They were serious about their work and constantly improving their art, which set a great example for me.
After six months of practice and study, I moved to the U.S. and decided I wanted to work at a tattoo shop. Within 15 days, I got my first job! I showed the owner my portfolio, and even though my English wasn’t great, she gave me a chance. I worked at that shop for two and a half years, honing my skills and applying everything I’d learned in Colombia.
By my second year of tattooing, I was overwhelmed with everything: posting content on Instagram, promoting my work, answering client messages, drawing, and, of course, tattooing. So, I hired Rick, who manages my email and schedule. He’s organized, and smart, and has been a huge help, allowing me to focus more on what I love—improving my art.
Another reason I hired Rick was to make my interactions with clients more professional, especially since I wasn’t confident in my English. I was also worried about making mistakes, like double-booking clients, and I never wanted to waste anyone’s time.
In September 2023, I moved to a new shop, and that’s where I’m currently tattooing. Through everything, I’ve learned that offering a great experience to my clients is just as important as the final tattoo. Even a beautiful tattoo can be tainted by a bad experience. I believe in constantly investing in my work, my team, and making sure everything is done the best way possible.
What I’m most proud of is that I’ve made tough decisions, ones that were uncomfortable, expensive, or even scary, but in the end, they’ve been incredibly beneficial for my clients, my business, and myself.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

There are different ways to work in a Tattoo shop, the two most common are working by percentage or renting a spot. I started paying the percentage at the first shop and then switched to paying Rent when I moved to the shop I’m currently working at. This change migth sound like an easy change to make, but is not when you have to leave the shop that open it’s doors for you at the beggining of your career, but It was something I needed to do and the desicion that made more sense for me as a bussiness owner.

I’ve been at this shop for a year. With this change, my income increased significantly and I had more freedom in the way I was managing my time at work. I started going to conventions with my coworkers, which was a stressful, interesting and mostly a fun experience, which became part of the yearly schedule for the business.
I have coworkers that are more interested in learning and improving their art, it means now I have more people around to study and get better with.
With these two new better conditions, I was able to plan for myself a trip to Europe, which was something that I have always wanted and at the same time I thought was going to be convenient for my business if I was tattooing in the cities I was going to visit.
I made the decision to look for guest spots in 4 different cities in Europe: Amsterdam, Brussels, Barcelona and Valencia. I tattooed in each of them and it was a great experience, also very meaningful for my career and my life in general. I went to so many museums, I met amazing people, Visited unbelievable places and all of that was so inspiring for me, when I came back to the United Stated I was missing so much tattooing in my own place and all my amazing clients.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

My biggest story of resilience is moving to the U.S. and working here. Before 2021, I came to the U.S. a couple of times, working in restaurants and cleaning companies. It wasn’t the best time for me, but it led me to where I am now.
Another big moment was when I had to ask for a job at a tattoo shop with very broken English and not much experience. Those first days were hard because of the communication barrier, but with the help of a close coworker, I improved. Over time, the language barrier became less of a problem, and I grew both as a person and a tattoo artist.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @yenn_ink
• Facebook: Yennifer Giraldo Ballesteros
• Other: Email: yenn.inktattoo@gmail.com

Image Credits

Josh Slack
Juliette