81. RUETHLESS IRONS - How corporations are taking over tattooing

2026-02-20

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Today, I’m sitting down with Rue from Ruethless Irons for a conversation that gets right to the heart of things. Rue has been in the game since the late 90s, coming up in San Francisco and Amsterdam before finding his true calling in machine building. But we aren't just talking history. This episode is a wake-up call about the current state of tattooing. We get into the quiet corporate takeover happening right under our noses, as private equity firms buy up our supply chains to strip and consolidate them.

Today, I’m sitting down with Rue from Ruethless Irons for a conversation that gets right to the heart of things.

Rue has been in the game since the late 90s, coming up in San Francisco and Amsterdam before finding his true calling in machine building.

But we aren't just talking history. This episode is a wake-up call about the current state of tattooing. We get into the quiet corporate takeover happening right under our noses, as private equity firms buy up our supply chains to strip and consolidate them.

We talk about the absolute necessity of voting with our dollars, ditching the convenience of corporate monopolies, and throwing our support behind independent, tattooer-owned brands. We also touch on the real why behind machine building and how smaller, tattoo-focused conventions are keeping the real community alive.

Tattooing has given us everything, and this conversation is all about how we protect it.

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ruethless-irons.com

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