After Months Of Waiting, New Berkeley Tattoo Shop Opens

BERKELEY, NJ — KC Vintage Tattoo was ready to open its new shop on Route 9. Then the pandemic hit.

The Berkeley tattoo parlor and every shop in its industry waited months until their businesses could reopen. Then after Governor Phil Murphy gave the OK for June 22, KC Vintage Tattoo could finally open its doors at 655 Route 9.

"(The owners) had built the studio," said tattoo artist Anthony Riccardo. "It was scheduled to be inspected for their opening. Then I guess COVID hit, and they had to sit in limbo with all this investment for the next four or five months."

As parlors waited to fire up their tattoo guns, customers had months to think of new ideas for inc. As a result, KC Vintage Tattoo hit the ground running once June 22 hit. Tattoo artist Kristen Schmidt, whose father owns the store, says they made $10,000 in their first month.

While they were waiting to finally operate, they felt prepared to follow health protocols. Once the state provided guidelines, there was little the shop had to change, besides enforcing mask wearing and taking everyone's temperatures. They also disinfect the store every couple hours.

"Other than that, it’s pretty much the norm except that we’re only able to work by appointment," Riccardo said.

Related article: Ink Therapy: After Reopening, Monmouth Tattoo Shops Get Personal

Click here to get Patch email notifications on this or other local news articles or get Patch breaking news alerts sent right to your phone with our app. Download here. Follow Berkeley Patch on Facebook. Have a news tip? Email josh.bakan@patch.com.