Hidden Gems: Meet Kirsty York of Blackbird Ink

Today we’d like to introduce you to Kirsty York.

Hi Kirsty, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
My name is Kirsty York, I own a tattoo shop in Lafayette Colorado named Blackbird Ink. Blackbird ink is an all-female-owned and operated tattoo shop. They have a team of four lovely talented ladies here at Blackbird. The shop has recently celebrated its 5th anniversary in our current location. Our little shop had grown quite a bit over the past 5 years and is continuing to do so!

We recently found a larger building and are planning an expansion come February! We will soon be located on Main street in Longmont. We will have a larger team of artists and a whole new retail side of Blackbird. It is crazy to think about how Blackbird started as just my self-tattooing alone in our little shop, and now we are expanding.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It had not been a smooth road. I started Blackbird completely alone and tattoed alone in the shop for a while. At the time I was not well known as a tattooer and the shop was completely unknown dew to it just opening. It took a while until artists want to start working alongside me.

Even then artists kept leaving Blackbird to move on to better opportunities at more well-known shops. It wasn’t until 2020 with a little help from social media that Blackbird started to take off. As our social media presence grow so did our clientele. More clients meant artists finally started wanting to work at Blackbird long-term. Fast forward to today and I am now so grateful for the strong team of artists I have.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Blackbird Ink is an all-female-owned and operated tattoo shop. We are best known for creating a welcoming nonthreatening tattoo shop environment. We focus on not only having talented artists but kind professional ones as well. Currently, we have a team of four very talented ladies and with our shop expansion, we are looking to hire two more. With our shop expansion, we are going to have room for also a whole new retail/ art gallery side to the shop.

Our retail shop will house books and plants. candles, art, and much more! We are hoping to get the retail shop up and running by March! The bigger space also allows us to host events and art shows. Our first Art Show will be on February 11th and is called: For the Love of Art, an art show featuring 50+ female and non-binary members of the tattoo community.

Do you have any advice for those just starting?
Just keep going, and never give up. Many people may tell you that starting a business or becoming an artist for a living is a risk, but it’s a risk worth taking!

Contact Info:

• Website: Blackbirdinktattoo.com
• Instagram: @blackbirdinktattoo
• Facebook: Facebook.com/Blackbirdinktattoo