Tattoo shop celebrates 10th anniversary

COSHOCTON – When you walk into Sixth Street Tattoo in Coshocton, you are immediately greeted by brown wood walls adorned with mounted animals.

But the distinctive wall decor isn’t the reason the tattoo shop, which was the first shop open in Coshocton, according to owner Dallas Brewer, is still going — it’s the at-home atmosphere that keeps customers coming back.

“(The shop) is creative,” customer Amanda Bible said. “(Coshocton) is like a hick town, and you come in here and it’s like you’re at home.”

“We really want to make everyone in this community feel at home in this shop,” manager John Wayne said. “You can go anywhere to get a tattoo, but you are never going to feel how you feel here.”

The shop is marking its 10th anniversary this month.

In those 10 years, the shop has seen some changes. The most recent came in January, when it began to accept walk-ins.

“I was tattooing full time, and I was so booked up, it was an appointment-only studio. We didn’t take any walk-ins at all. Now we are changing,” Brewer said. “John (Wayne) and Melissa (Shears) have come in and now we are taking both, together, so we are completely changing the way the shop is.”

Wayne and Shears are the two main artists in the shop, and they aren’t just changing the appointment policy; they have pushed the use of social media as well.

“(Social media) has helped a lot, just because you can post one picture and you will get four messages from people asking for you to tattoo them,” Shears said. “They get to see your actual work and your style.”

“People now come in here and they automatically know who they want to tattoo them,” Wayne said.

Those known personalities are bringing people back to the business, too.

“When I got my first one here, six years ago, they didn’t talk to me,” customer Carri Sampsel said. “During the tattoo, I just sat there the whole time. Now I feel like they joke around with you the whole time.”

“We are very welcoming,” Shears said. “We goof with them, we make them feel like they are at home. We just try to be very open with them.”

In honor of the support it has received from the community, the shop will host an open house Aug. 15 with food, drinks, custom-made T-shirts and tattoos.

“The community has kept this place going for 10 years strong,” Wayne said. “Anytime somebody wants a tattoo, we are here for them, even if it’s at 4 in the morning.”

No matter what time of the day it is, the artists at Sixth Street Tattoo try to make their customers comfortable, Wayne said.

“It’s very laid-back,” Bible said. “I can spends four hours here and not even think about it.”

cteaguerob@gannett.com

740-295-3442

Twitter: @cj_teague

If you go

•What: An open house marking the 10th anniversary of Sixth Street Tattoo

•When: Noon to 8 p.m. Aug. 15

•Where: Sixth Street Tattoo, 114 S. Sixth St.

•FYI: Food, drinks, custom-made T-shirts and raffles will be offered.