With Phase 3 of the province's Re-Opening Plan having a target date set for June 8th, many local small business owners are preparing for how that will look for them.

Local tattoo artist and business owner Kathryn Erickson says some of her clients are itching to get back into the chair.

"People are like, 'I need ink I need ink! Kat, I'm going crazy!'," she shared, saying it's not just the pain, or the beauty, but it's also a culture, and there is always a conversation.

Now, clients coming to Fuel & Kat's Shop won't be able to bring with them someone to hold their hand, which is often the case. While the one under the needle will now have to be alone for their appointment, there is an upside.

"We have lots of conversations, it's good. That's what I miss the most, is connecting with people," shared Erickson.

Easing in with one appointment each per day, Kathryn and her husband, fellow tattoo artist, Fuel Palomares, will not be bringing their children to the shop, either, which is also often the case.

"I don't want to start off too heavy, because I'm going to have to make sure everyone's okay and everything keeps going smoothly for everybody," she said. "I'm excited, but at the same time, I'm enjoying this time with my kids and family. But it'll be good, I'm excited to get back."

Another way to ensure a smooth transition is to not book too far ahead.

"That way, if they change it, we only have a week or two to rebook," she explained. "You've waited how many months for a tattoo, you'll be fine. It is what it is."

Erickson celebrated the Canadian government's assistance for small business owners, saying they will happily pay income tax on it. She also shared how the new guidelines will affect the day-to-day operations.

In addition to their regular client waiver, for example, they'll have another waiver in part for contact tracing, but also to ensure nobody has been sick, and to rule out client travel.

"We won't be accepting any people who have been traveling outside of the country, especially the states and stuff," she said, noting that people do come from all across the province for tattoos, so it's important to have as much information as possible.

"Just to make sure that there's less traffic coming in and out in a day, the doors will be locked, we won't accept walk-ins, and if people want piercings, we'll accept only a certain amount a day, and it will only be at hours when we're not tattooing," Erickson explained. "Because Fuel and I have separate rooms, it's only four people in the building total, and it's two people per room, and there's a wall between us."

Due to the nature of their business, the Erickson-Palomares team have been well-versed in how to ensure there is no cross-contamination of blood, or anything else.

"So we sterilize with a chemical that kills hepatitis, so we're constantly making sure everything's really clean. So our cleanliness won't change too much, other than having masks," she commented. "Everyone will have to wear a mask, and we'll wear a mask, and because we have little kids at home, we need to make sure our kids are protected, too, so we have to take the precautions for ourselves."

She said they will be supplying the disposible masks for clients free of charge. She and Fuel have a good supply of masks made by neighbour Pa Bumstead.

Erickson shared how this time has afforded them to be working on each other's tattoos, and she now displays a giant octopus on her right leg.

While the way the appointments are done will certainly be handled differently, the love of ink will take many to whatever lengths necessary. Phase 3 will ensure everyone in takes the time, and the space, they need.

Photos courtesy of Jorge Palomares/ Facebook.