Daily Inspiration: Meet Lauren Gonzales

Today we’d like to introduce you to Lauren Gonzales.

Hi Lauren, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
In 2022, I was running my interior design business when I decided I needed to find a creative hobby. At the time, any free time I had tended to fill with additional work or projects for others. Piercing was undoubtedly not the first thing I thought to try, but I’m forever grateful I did! It was June, and I wanted to thank my interior design team for working so hard over the last few months. We tossed a few ideas around when we ultimately landed on getting pierced. We visited a local Gilbert studio and had so much fun with the experience! After the appointment, the piercer let me know she had an opening to train a new piercer, and I was immediately interested. In October of that year, the time I had finally come to start training. It was a small group of trainees and two trainers with over 10 years of experience. To this day, we all keep in touch, especially to celebrate wins or ask one another about new techniques. Today I operate out of Nani Beauty, AZ a small beauty studio in Gilbert, Arizona. I have a full-time interior design business, so I’m currently only piercing twice a week.

We all face challenges, but would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The biggest struggle for me was the transition into an entirely new industry. Going from interior designer to piercer meant more research on how to run a completely different business, especially when it came to licensing and insurance. When others come to me and ask, I am always happy to share my resources and help to give them a head start.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Modern Poke LLC is a certified hollow needle piercing studio emphasizing stylized and unique ear layouts. I love to inject creativity into my client sessions and will often host models to help me try out fun ideas I have. My top goal is to elevate the piercing experience to be as comfortable as possible with results my clients can proudly show.

What quality or characteristic do you feel is most important to your success?
One of the qualities I value most about my business is the time and space I hold for my clients. Often clients come to me feeling a hundred different ways. Excited to get pierced, scared it will hurt, nervous about the piercing process, and more. I take the time to walk my clients through the process without surprises. Explaining the tools I’m using, demonstrating how their jewelry works, and reviewing the aftercare commitment are all part of each appointment.

Pricing:

• Piercings are $50-$85 each and include basic piercing jewelry.
• Retail jewelry for piercings is $30 each, and I assist in installing each piece.
• Piercing aftercare spray $10.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://modern-poke.weebly.com/
• Instagram: @modern.poke
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/modern.poke 

Image Credits
Zofia Sells, Zofia Sells Photography