Atomic Tatoo & Piercing

It’s all about the art at Atomic Zombie. When they opened their doors in 2007, Scott Campbell and Matt Cottell were looking to make the shop more like an art collective than a run-of-the-mill tattoo parlour.

Shop manager Alyssa Thompson recalls the times they used to work at other studios, growing tired of owners who didn’t support nor understand the tattoo artists’ needs. “We just want to make custom art and give our clients the best tattoos that they can get,” explains Alyssa. “We constantly want to learn and evolve and keep current on the different trends.”

Atomic Zombie sends staff to industry conferences and brings in guest artists so everyone can keep up to date on the latest techniques. And with 11 artists on staff — all with their own unique gifts and expertise — new knowledge gets shared among the group. “That’s why it’s nice to have so many artists who offer so many different styles,” says Alyssa. “They can feed off of each other, learn from one another and be exposed to styles that maybe they wouldn’t have encountered in a smaller studio.”