First tattoo parlor opens in Jefferson City in 30 years
February 10, 2010
Anchor Intro: When Mark Pulliam decided he wanted to open a tattoo parlor in his home town of Jefferson City, there was just one problem… tattooing had been banned within the city limits for over 30 years.
In the past, others had tried — and failed — to overturn the ban. But Pulliam, whose vision for a body art business more closely resembled an upscale salon than a tattoo parlor, was confident that he could convince the city council to reverse the long-time ban.
And that’s what the council did last month. With Pulliam’s help, Jefferson City rewrote its tattoo ordinance… and a week later, Cadillac Ink was open for business. KBIA’s Elle Moxley reports on the first tattoo parlor to operate in the capital city in more than three decades.
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Huge canvases hang on the walls of Cadillac Ink… in the windows, hand mannequins display delicate silver jewelry. And in the corner…
Cadillac Ink owner Mark Pulliam says he has a different business philosophy than most people in the tattoo industry.
The pain’s not as bad as she anticipated, she says, relaxing her grip. Across the room, Pope’s boss, Mark Pulliam, smiles. A tall man with a goatee, Pulliam’s face and hands are free of ink. He does not look like your typical tattoo parlor owner. His business philosophy is different, too.
“The idea is everyone feels welcome when they come in. It is a salon-type atmosphere. We have open tattooing. There is no room where you’re taken to be tattooed in.”
That’s why there’s art on the walls of Pulliam’s tattoo parlor… why you can buy mom a necklace and get a tattoo in her honor at the same shop. He says that he hopes by getting more people through the door, people who aren’t necessarily interested in getting a tattoo, he can change people’s perceptions about body art.
“Tattoo is no longer an underworld, underground thing associated with villains and mayhem.”
It’s the argument made when he first approached councilwoman Carrie Carroll with the idea of overturning Jefferson City’s longtime ban. At first, she was skeptical — but Pulliam, armed with facts and figures about the industry, argued that allowing tattoo parlors in the city would generate revenue. Similar bans had been overturned in court when challenged.
So Carroll, who does not have any tattoos, agreed to sponsor the bill rescinding the ban.
“I felt it was something the entire council needed to look at, and it wouldn’t be fair for one of us to say, well, whether we like tattoos or not, that’s not what the issue’s about.”
In January, the city council voted 8-2 to overturn the ban. Carroll says Pulliam, who joined the local Chamber of Commerce and the Eastside Business Association, has shown he is thinking not just about a tattoo parlor, but the community as well. Because the tattoo industry is already heavily regulated in the state, Carroll says it wasn’t hard to adapt the regulations to make them appropriate for Jefferson City.
Pulliam doesn’t mind some of the restrictions, like the ban on lighted signs — Cadillac Ink is scrawled on his window in a cursive script, no neon required.
But the ordinance also dictates that tattoo parlors close by 8 p.m. — a curveball for an industry used to operating into the wee hours of the morning. At first, Pulliam was worried that the operating hours restrictions would be bad for business.
“We chose this area because there is a lot of night life here — Prison Brews, the microbrewery, and the Mission, which is a live blues and jazz club — we knew there was a lot of foot traffic at night.”
But once Cadillac Ink opened, Pulliam says he stopped worrying. That’s because he’s had back-to-back appointments booked almost every day for the last two weeks.
“Right now, we’re tattooing twelve hours a day basically. You know, you can’t… I mean, maybe I’m not hungry enough, but I’m okay with that. I don’t mind shutting the doors at 8 p.m.”
Pulliam already has plans to expand his business to include a full-service salon and a studio for tattoo removal. It’s scheduled to open April 1.
Elle Moxley, KBIA News.