In 1996 Kingpin Tattoo Supply began as a small manufacturing company producing and selling hand-built tattoo needles to tattoo artists around Florida. We started hand soldering each needle with precision and care. Then protecting the tips with heated shrink wrap, they were sold in rubber-banded bundles of 50. The convenience of purchasing pre-made needle-on-bar is what put us on the map, and our business grew.
In 2003, we began providing artists with the convenience of pre-sterilized needles. Packaged them in pouches and manually autoclaved them for sterilization. The process was a bit unrefined, but we took the concept of convenience even further.
By 2005, we were producing 50 count boxes of pre-made needles in sterilized blister packaging. Ready to use right out of the box, this innovation in needles was a huge game-changer in the industry. We began attending trade shows and conventions to offer our supplies to participating artists to expand our reach. Meeting artists and hearing what they had to say about their experiences in tattooing inspired us to innovate further.
One such pain point was cleaning stainless steel tubes, which was the primary option available for tattooers at the time. With this information in mind, we worked tirelessly to develop a solution for tattooers who were bogged down by the tedious task of cleaning stainless steel tubes.
In 2007, we introduced the infamous Kingpin Blue Tubes, our first disposable tube option. The community reaction was nothing less than stellar, artists noting the comfortable grip and even ink flow that the tubes provide.
As the community grew, so too did Kingpin, and we expanded west to accommodate our customer base. In 2009, we moved into our current east coast location in St. Petersburg, Florida and opened our west coast location in Anaheim, California. With more space and resources available, we could hold more product, expand customer service hours, and provide faster shipping for our customers.
With the influx of resources, Kingpin was able to produce more items in-house, and in 2013 we began producing machines and machine parts, paving the way for our collection of hand-finished custom coil and rotary machines. This development resulted in making some of our best-sellers like the Ferrum, G.O.A.T., and Stryker machines.
In 2020, thanks to the unyielding support of our customers, we were able to expand even further and opened our central warehouse in Austin, Texas. With the Texas showroom opening in late 2021.
Today, Kingpin is the premier supplier of tattoo, piercing, permanent makeup, and medical equipment to licensed professionals worldwide. Our mission is and has always been to provide the very best tools of the trade and the highest level of customer service to the artists and tattooers that make up the community.