I have been a body piercer since 1994 and have worked very hard to serve my public in the safest, fairest way possible. I have always felt honored to be in a position which entrusts me to play an intimate part in the safety and welfare of another person and provides me with an income. I feel that you fulfill a similar role in that you are providing a solution for the same segment of people and your writing reflects your sincerity to help them with an area of frustration. Perhaps, an area causing more pain than the piercing itself! As my occupation has provided rather meager monetary rewards, I am sympathetic to the burden caused by the cost of jewelry. I am, by the way, a practitioner using high end jewelry, providing the needed time to my clients to perform a procedure correctly and fully inform them of all aspects of their consideration. I charge what I believe to be a fair fee for my services and jewelry used based on my time, experience, and cost. I have been chastised more than once by partners and employers for giving away the shop, as I tend to overly charitable by nature (some experts use the descriptor “enabler”). The disparity of retail pricing for my industry has been an enormous headache. I realize that a piercing is essentially a luxury. To perform this service in a way which is honest and respects the health and safety of a person requires more than many people fail to consider. I don’t think that one should have to give up a week worth of groceries to indulge in it, however!

Aside from the acceptance of some – that it is acceptable to rush a person in and out in an effort to meet the volume required to make a $10 shop profitable – this is where I believe much of the conflict begins: I think you have failed to gain a complete understanding of what makes body jewelry safe to wear. While the choice of metal alloy is certainly important, the end product is not going to be appropriate for wearing in the skin, unless certain manufacturing requirements have been met.

There are two main deficiencies I’ve noticed. One concerns design flaws such as rough threading and gaps between sections which may cause damage and risk with wear and/or insertion, as well as, allow the build up of filth, bio-slime, dead skin, soaps, etc.

The other is the polish. If one were to take a 10X magnifier along, while shopping for jewelry, it would likely become apparent how shoddy the bulk of body jewelry truly is. Uneven surfaces contribute to the leaching of harmful ions, such as nickle, into the skin and create sanctuaries for microorganisms.

Buyers of body jewelry would do well to demand more for their money, as for the most part they are being ripped off!

Shoddy surfaces, in my nearly seventeen years of observation as a piercer, are the primary reason many people experience poor healing and excessive complications. It is maddening that a majority of shops are willing to exploit the ignorance of the public by using jewelry, which should be worn by no one, for new piercings. The sad reality is, while it may seem like a real bargain to purchase a piece of jewelry and even receive a piercing with it for $10, A better bargain would be realized if the shop took the $10 and threw the jewelry in the trash.

The only winners in that scenario, if you want to call it winning, are the shop owners making a thousand percent markup by treating people like fast food and the manufacturers. Do you think the factory workers can possibly be earning a living wage by making a product wholesaling for pennies?

Meanwhile, the handful of companies that produce jewelry which meets quality standards sufficient to use for piercing are charging exorbitant prices. If the same markup is used for these products as the cheap crap, plain stainless steel barbells would start at around $80 to $100 dollars minimum. Getting more than a keystone markup (2 times wholesale cost)is difficult. Typically, jewelry enjoys a three to five time markup in the retail arena.

This makes some shops greedy and uncaring, while appearing affordable. The others appear greedy, while they struggle to afford the overhead required to care for their clients in the safest possible and only appropriate manner.

It is ironic, I think, that it seems common for a consumer to purchase athletic shoes, costing in excess of a hundred dollars. An item worn outside of their body for maybe 6 months to a year. Meanwhile balking at the expense of an item which meets the standards necessary to safely in the body. An item which may be worn for a literal lifetime!

I sympathize with the sentiment leading to your attempt to solve the sore spot in so many pierced peoples wallets. I feel however that you have, in essence, missed the mark. In today’s arena of body jewelry, cheap does indeed mean crap and crap is not something healthy to wear inside of the body. Honestly, I wonder if it might in fact be healthier to wear literal crap instead!

The solution, in my eyes, will occur when the consumer begins to be more discriminating in the purchase of these items. Only then will manufactures have to raise their quality standards, will retailers cease to swindle their clientele, and will the quality producers have competitive pricing.

I appreciate the obvious effort that went into your presentation. I think you sincerely care about the needs of your readers and have tried to offer them the best solution. I hope, however that you will continue to work towards a more complete solution which involves the education needed to make a safe and truly cost effective purchase.

I have been working toward that end for nearly two decades and can tell you it has been a long, bumpy road. A road that is absolutely worth taking. After all, I would surmise that the most valuable compensation, for you and I in our seemingly unrelated endeavors, is the offering of trust by a public having no intimate knowledge of the true intentions in our hearts. So much like lambs. I have chosen to be a shepherd, many do not recognize the wolves.

Thank you,
Toast