Chichester tattoo studio ‘over the moon’ after funds raised to fix vandalised window

The owner of a Chichester tattoo studio is ‘over the moon’ after a fundraiser set up by a friend raised almost £1,500 to replace a vandalised window.
Lewis Batten, left, and Jack Upton at the Inksmiths in ChichesterLewis Batten, left, and Jack Upton at the Inksmiths in Chichester
Lewis Batten, left, and Jack Upton at the Inksmiths in Chichester

Jack Upton, who runs The Inksmiths in Southgate along with his business partner Rhys Saunders, said it felt ‘great’ to know that people cared about small independent businesses like his.

He discovered the studio window had been broken about a week ago – just days after the crushing announcement that, unlike hair salons, tattoo shops would not be permitted to open on July 4, as he had hoped.

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On finding out about the damage, he said: “My heart sunk straight away. It’s just devastating.

“Being made to close for three months, the financial strain on us as an independent business is a struggle.

“To find out the window had been vandalised through an act of sheer idiocy was really upsetting actually.”

Mr Upton and Mr Saunders took over the studio last year, only to have the pandemic force them to stop trading in March.

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As 25-year-olds running their first business, he said it had been ‘a nightmare’.

Like all businesses, he has also recently had to fork out for new protective screens and PPE to help get them ready for reopening.

His friend, Lewis Batten, was so saddened by their plight that he was spurred to set up a fundraiser to help cover the cost of replacing the window.

The 25-year-old, who is planning to study Design in Digital Media at Brighton University from September, decided to offer stylised caricatures in return for any £10 donations that were made.

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“It really took off from there,” he said. “I wasn’t expecting it to.

“We hit £1,000 in the first day. It really did well.”

He has already got to work creating the stylised drawings based on photos that people have sent in to him.

Mr Upton was delighted when he found out about the fundraiser.

He said: “I’m not one to ask for help. I thought we would just have to suck it up.

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“He just completely left-field surprised me with the fundraiser.

“It was an act of human kindness that I really needed at that point.”

He said it felt great to see how many people had donated.

“Even if we don’t meet the target, I’m over the moon that people have even contributed,” he said. “Anything is a massive gift of generosity.

“It really felt like people do care about small businesses.”

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He hopes the window will be replaced by the time the studio is allowed to reopen, which he believes could be next month.

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