A popular tattoo studio looks set to expand into a second premises, if plans are approved.
Emily Davis and Stewart Lucas have been the town’s tattooists for five years now from their studio, Silver Street Tattoos, and are close to getting the green light to expand into a new property at 7 Jesu Street.
Emily told the Herald: “At the moment, you get more than three people in there and it’s elbows and ears which is no fun at all.”
They submitted a planning application to convert 7 Jesu Street, which used to be the Brain Freeze cafe but closed in August.
The application has the support of Ottery Town Council, with a final decision from East Devon District Council (EDDC) all that remains before building work can commence on the River Otter-inspired Rivers Of Ink studio.
As the business grew, so did staff numbers and the pair quickly found their eight metre by four metre studio increasingly cramped.
Emily said: “It’s the old fire station. It’s in the days when they actually had a wagon that they would harness horses to.
“The moment we get the word go we’ve got builders, electricians, plumbers ready to go. We’re really hoping to be set up and opening around the end of March.”
With tattoos becoming increasingly popular, so have tattoo removals. Emily said they hope to be able to provide laser surgery in the near future.
“Laser removal is definitely a pricey venture to go into. It also requires packing people off to training, up to places like Leeds. It’s in the pipeline. We need to setup Rivers Of Ink first to get that going and make the transition from Silver Street down to there then I can focus on getting Silver Street turned around,” she said.
Keen to dispel any prejudices people may have when it comes to tattoo studios, Emily said they try to create a friendly, welcoming atmosphere and said that would continue into their new studio.
She said: “I know people were concerned there’d be motorbikes parked up the road, people smoking outside, we’d have terrible pictures on display outside and loud music playing but of course we don’t have any of that type of thing because we don’t like it ourselves.
“We all started at the very bottom and worked in studios that are like that and hated every moment, so when we got the opportunity five years ago to set up our own studio that’s how Stewart and I chose to do it.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here