InkSpired Magazine BEST OF ISSUE | Page 157

been there for me and I do love him dearly. As far as other contemporaries go, I really look up to and appreciate my piercer friends who have struggled through their times of working for other people and taken the next huge step of opening their own shops and handling business on their own terms. People like John Johnson at New Flower Studio in Long Beach, California, Christina Shull at Integrity Piercing in Wenatachee, Washington, Cody Vaughn at Vaughn Body Arts in Monterey, California, and Alicia Cardenas at Sol Tribe in Denver, Colorado. All of these piercers are sole proprietors who own and operate world class studios and still find it within themselves to donate their time to work with The Association of Professional Piercers in various positions, either as board members or conference instructors and speakers. Another piercer I really like and respect is Adam Richins who with a few tough sacrifices, InkSpiredMagazine.com 155