retailer awards 2022: celebrity ink finalists of prestigious award
Celebrity Ink is thrilled to be the first tattoo franchise to be nominated for Store Design in this years retailer awards!
At Celebrity Ink™ we challenge the norm with studios where people feel welcomed and safe without any judgment. We aim to create a space for everyone because we all deserve to celebrate ourselves and get inspired by each other.
Our brand celebrates every body and we empower self-esteem. Because when people can express their ideas on their bodies, they like their bodies.
This simple, but empowering idea permeates everything we do.
Celebrity Ink™ is about feel great experiences that our customers will remember for the rest of their lives, so we make sure to get the little things right. Our customer is always first (#yourskinyourstory). We are deeply passionate about what we do. And as we are setting new sector rules, we are brave enough to do that.
Inside Retail’s Retailer Awards 2022
This year, we are delighted to be one of the finalists for the Store Design or Concept of the Year of Inside Retail’s Retailer Awards 2022. Inside Retail is a publishing company and a trusted source of retail industry news for more than four decades.
Behind this entity are seasoned journalists and commentators with decades of specialist retail knowledge driving their coverage. This year, the panel looks at how businesses thrive amidst the challenges and limitations of the global pandemic.
We are proud and happy to have this recognition from the award-giving body.
Why We Deserve to Win in the Retailer Awards!
Our studios are where all exploration of the human body’s canvas begins, and this is where beautiful stories of our customers are told through body art.
We want to elevate body art from underground to mainstream, and we intend to be at the forefront of that change.
Because there’s more to it than just ink and a needle; it’s an experience that should be enjoyable.
A Celebrity Ink™ Tattoo studio is more than just a place to get inked.
What’s Different About Our Store Design Concept?
The Celebrity Ink store concept is a radical reinvention of the tattoo parlour as people know it. Or more to the point, as many people don’t.
Because that’s the point.
Traditional tattoo studios are not welcoming places; located in back lanes, windows are covered, spaces are not always clean and the artist is about the work, customer service is not their strong suit.
Our stores turn this paradigm on its head.
We are located in high traffic malls, with open lease lines, with clean white surfaces to make them accessible, and trained concierge teams to bring best in class customer experience to tattoo.
Our personality and exceptional staff define us as a space unlike any other, something you cannot find anywhere else. We are all about making your experience fun, and that starts, in part, when you come in the door.
There are interactive touchscreens for mood board creation, a collaborative table for the co-creation of your desired tattoo design, a VIP room, and of course, complete sterility and cleanliness on all of our tattoo equipment.
The idea behind a comfortable and welcoming atmosphere at any Celebrity Ink™ studio is one that is relatable. No matter who you are or where you come from, we can all agree that no one wants to feel uncomfortable in their own skin.
We want to put our customers into the spotlight and celebrate the community’s diversity through a space where people can feel accepted and empowered with who they are and what they want.
We think it’s important that people, no matter their gender or race, feel free to express themselves and get tattoos wherever they want.
We grew up in a culture of limited options—and we want people to know they have choices today.
What Makes the Celebrity Ink™ Experience Unlike Any Other for Customers?
Welcome Zone
The welcome to Celebrity Ink™ is warm.
The store façade uses holographic branding, screens on the lease line displaying brand assets with interactive search screens where customers can explore a catalogue of tattoo styles for inspiration for their designs.
When the customer is ready to engage, our concierge welcomes them, and curates their experience.
Design Zone
If they are arriving for a design consult, they are shown to our design table, with iPad tablets to sketch and craft their expression.
VIP Experience
As well as a series of chairs, we also provide a VIP experience which is a private room with TV, bar fridge and space for a few friends if that is your perfect tattoo experience.
Red Carpet
And because we make our customers the star of their story, we have a logo wall for the photoshoot that completes the experience.
Our New Face is Bringing A lot of New Faces
The store has been the vehicle for our new brand in market, an embodiment of the direction in which we are taking the business.
We are starting to see a dramatic uplift in customer retention, increased basket size and brand performance, with one recent in store campaign showing 300% YoY growth.
With most of our global geographies affected by government-mandated salon closure, Covid has not been kind.
Our growth trajectory has been heavily impacted and new store openings have delayed by at least 8 months.
That being said, as a lifestyle passion franchise, we are seeing huge post-pandemic interest from corporate escapees in the ‘Great Resignation’.
Our business model is exactly what many potential franchisees are looking for.
Our high-quality facilities and experienced artists ensure that you get the best service possible, and we take great pride in the reputation we hold and strive daily to uphold it.
When you walk through the door, you should leave your worries behind.
You’re going to get a tattoo that you’ll love.
You’ll find a group of people who will make sure of it.