Alchemy Tattoos and Body Piercing

I had a very inadequate experience with this shady place and I regret ever going there. My purpose for visiting this shop was to purchase a retainer for my beloved monroe piercing because I had interviews and didn't want it to be the reason I lost a job opportunity. Due to having vision problems, poor dexterity, and not being too knowledgeable of piercings in general I asked that one of the people remove my stud and put the plastic one in. The guy did this and I was appreciative so I gave a tip since they don't generally have to put them in for customers. Well, at first everything was good but then after a couple days I checked out my piercing and to my horror the flat back wasn't visible inside my mouth....shockingly, it had gone inside my mouth and was stuck there with the hole healing around it. I don't have extensive knowledge on piercings, but I do know that the plastic retainers can be dangerous for this reason so I was fearing the worst. I had no insurance and couldn't afford to go to the doctor since I'm 18 and had just moved to Florida a month before. I was forced to remove the retainer by pulling it out unnaturally from the outside. Not only was I at risk for serious infection, but I lost my 50 dollar piercing. Had I gone somewhere else that could have informed me of proper care for my monroe, I would still have my piercing that could have been concealed and kept for as long as I wanted it. By the way, I had my monroe for over 8 weeks so it was by this time healed. When I walked into this shop I made it blatantly clear that I didn't know much about piercings...and I trusted these people!! I can't get my monroe pierced again because I can't wait 6-8 weeks to accommodate to a healing piercing just or hide it from potential employers. Rich spoke to me and apologized about the inconvenience this caused and graciously offered to re-pierce my monroe at a discounted cost. Well, the first time we set a date he cancelled because his wife went into labor or something along those lines (which was no problem for me, family is a priority) but the second time he completely screwed me over. We agreed to meet at 8:00 pm Sunday and I arrived at around 7:50pm just to ensure punctuality. I waited for this guy to finish speaking to the lady behind the counter and when it was my turn I asked if Rich was there and informed her that we had an appointment. She told me that no, he wasn't there and that he wouldn't be in the shop until Wednesday! I was livid at this point but left because there wasn't much I could do. Of course when I e-mailed him he claimed that he was waiting for me but I wasn't there. When in fact, I certainly WAS and he then said that he was there from 7:45 to 8:30pm and that I must have been there too early. I kept catching him in his lies, it was all so shady. His final claim was that he went to go get a soda. I'll have to provide some proof because it really shows how shady and unbelievable this "business" is. Too bad for him, because me being the way I am I would have refused a discount and would have paid full price since he so courteously offered to help me. I would not advise people go here, it is a very unprofessional atmosphere. The first time I walked in the people informed me they'd be in to help after they were done chatting and smoking cigarettes. I completely agree that tattoo shops should be more calm and relaxed than most businesses, but don't act like paying consumers are an inconvenience! I work in customer service and I know better than to do that.

Not only is Alchemy losing business from loyal clients, but they are losing great artists to Richard's bad business practices. I'm going to be thrilled to go to Ace's new shop to receive better work than is offered at Alchemy, more professionalism (i.e.: No constant profanity, talking about porn, arguing with customers in front of other customers, talking badly about past customers and artists, etc.) I sincerely hope that the days of Alchemy are numbered. I rue the day I ever gave money to this "business".