A tattoo artist asked me to help him open his shop. (I do consulting)
So I wrote up a contract for our partnership and asked for 15%(to be paid monthly) plus $5000 when we opened (which he agreed to) and waived the fees for the video.
He had an investor for $20k that said he’d invest once the LLC and basics were up and running.
I need to mention, I have a service dog. She’s always with me and he knew that. She stays attached to a waist harness even when I’m working or filming. I love it!
He started our endeavor by telling me “You can have your dog until we are open but once we are open I don’t want the dog in here” I explained that he can’t do that due to law. I also showed him health code that I would be in an office so I wouldn’t be near the tattoo surgical area. (I have all the texts) He said “I don’t care. I don’t want a dog in my business or people to think somethings wrong with you”
I said “Well…We will have to talk about that when we get there” and he just said “👍” via text.
SO:
Here’s a list of what I did for him over the period of the first 30 days before the open
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I registered an LLC and EIN/TAX # with all of his info. Set up a bank acct
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Affadavit to the tattoo board (because he’s a felon)
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Set up his local and state health inspections. ALL passed.
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Did all of his website design and 3d design as well as got him a sponsorship for $5k in free tattoo gear.
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In the middle of all this I did his wedding photos for him and his wife for free.
The investor came through with the $20k so I said “Ok well its time to pay” and he comes back with “Ah man with the new baby and all the bills I’ve got this money has to go straight to the business”
I explained “I AM one of your bills and I’m the only reason the business is operating”
So I sent him invoices and a legal lawsuit warning saying he had 30 days to pay me HALF of what he owned and I wouldn’t sue. I offered a payment plan and everything.
His WIFE responded "Fuck you he ripped the contract so its not valid. 😅 That’s not how that works.
I continued to send legal letters for almost 90 days as my lawyer said the more I try peacefully the better it will be in court.
He literally blocked me on everything and also told me “to go fuck myself” and how I was trying to “scam him” which is absurd. 6 months later: I got all the audio and text messages about the service dog. I reported him to the ADA and the tattoo board. He was also cutting corners health wise and within his first month of being open had no help and had no idea how to run a business. I sent it all off to the proper authorities and now he’s getting shut down.
Also he was just hit with a $25,000 lawsuit + fees
Just wondering if that’s too harsh. Plus I needed to get this off my chest. AITA?
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next deal make sure ur % is in the LLC
So I wrote up a contract for our partnership and asked for 15%(to be paid monthly) plus $5000 when we opened (which he agreed to) and waived the fees for the video.
He had an investor for $20k that said he’d invest once the LLC and basics were up and running.
OP there were so many red flags. 🚩🚩🚩
- The service dog dispute.
- No upfront payments.
- Free wedding photos. Wtf.
Why on earth are you operating your business like this? Take a good long hard look at what you are doing.
You just got the short story. It’s easy to see the red flags when someone else points them out.
It all worked out in the end.
I would have cut the services short the minute he was yammering about the dog and just got paid there.
I’ve had people who tried to be cofounders or have me invest who say the stupidest things about my past and the next week it’s a “this won’t work out” situation.
I definitely learned from the mistakes. The reason I didn’t leave just then is because I still had work to do and figured I would wait til paid and then sever my contract (not get paid for future work. Just my fees/services provided til open) but yeah…I don’t think he ever had the intention of paying me. I actually found out this week that he’s done this type of thing to several other people and used them until it was pay time. He’s REALLY good at making you feel bad for him. He does it in a very eloquent way If that makes sense…so it doesn’t feel like a “poor me” type of thing.
But he would just block these people and tell them to fuck off…Karma is about to hit him like a ton or bricks.
Not too harsh at all. He reaped what he sowed.
100% not too harsh. Intense and emotionally charged aka harsh doesn’t always mean wrong or bad. You did alot of work and your actions are merited .
Also: I am starting a business on my own and reading your break down of all that you did deepened my appreciation for the several roles I have played thus far and for the value of a team that uplifts each other and works in integrity. Hoping your next venture is met with virtue and clarity!
You are right on everything except:
You literally can’t have dog in there bro. That’s a health department violation to have a dog, even a service dog, in a tattoo parlor. Period.
The state can and will revoke a tattoo license for that.
Yes I was about to respond. I know they are allowed because I checked with ADA, local health and state health. They DO ask that the service animal remain outside of the surgical area if possible. (I would have been 25ft away behind 2 doors in a private office)
I was willing to work something out until he told me “no”. The ADA was not happy about the report and that’s all I can legally say. We have a followup soon and the tattoo board should be down in a few weeks to complete the closure. He has no idea what’s hitting him.
Maybe he’ll do the right thing next time. Also I found out he’s screwed over several other people in this town for thousands!
I think the fact that he’s a felon should have been a red flag. Depending on what he was in for, you might just want to win this one go and treat it as a valuable learning experience for future clients.
It was armed robbery. He gave me a sob story about how “drugs made him do it”. I am a person that believes in 2nd chances. Hell, I was on both sides of the law myself. Never caught a felony though or committed armed robbery lol… He seemed successful and capable of making money AND HE WAS…But through shady ways…The investor he has will never see an ROI either.
I’m honestly done consulting after this one. I’m focusing on my own endeavors. I’m using this experience tho to help others that’s for sure!
That’s quite the story… What kind of pressure did the tattoo guy have to ignore you for that long? Whatever it is, what he got wasn’t too harsh, he set himself up to failure with how he treated you.
Thank you for sharing this story.
He avoided me because I didn’t want to work with him and kept asking for money. I started sending legal notices and he in fact responded “fuck you fa**ot” to one of them…
The best was his wife sending my wife a message saying “haha he didn’t sign the contract and ripped it so it’s not valid” FURTHER VALIDATING the contract. 😅
No offense OP but even just reading this the entire thing sounded like a bad idea from the get-go.
Sorry but this is an absolute shit take. You’d be surprised how many people you associate with have had issues with the law or have tattoos you can’t see. This isn’t the 1940s.
No, NTA, just a dummy for not getting 1/2 up front.
It isn’t too harsh. You likely saved his potential victims, as he’s just as likely to pull this on customers as other vendors, the landlord, etc.
This being mister nice guy isn’t really helpful in business. There are far too many posts on every dimension of this bad idea to argue otherwise. The huge number of “no contract, got screwed” posts should serve as a warning to everybody.
Mike Montiero has a video, “Fuck You, Pay Me” to put this in context. You aren’t friends with these people. There are no brownie points to be awarded. People are looking for signals they can screw you – and plenty here practically give bottom-feeders instructions.
Wantrepreneurs want the ‘easy capitalism’ the ‘nice’ kind of business success. Bless their heart. You get more accomplished with a few kind words and a head on a pike than the kind words alone.
Mike Monteiro: F*ck You, Pay Me if you can’t bring yourself to say the words, you may not be cut out to be in business.
The Vendor Client relationship - in real world situations people are bullshitters and if you fall for the bullshit you will fail in a wide variety of situations.
Excellent post and those clips serve as brutal reminders that you absolutely cannot slip into casual mode when doing business. Get your fucking money, deliver the value agreed upon, and get the fuck out. Rinse and repeat.