Tattoo and piercing supply retail is a professional trade niche with significant regulatory complexity. Since January 2022 in the EU (and with updated UK REACH regulations), tattoo ink pigments must comply with strict chemical safety requirements — hundreds of previously common pigments are now restricted. Body jewellery sold for initial piercings must meet implant-grade material standards. And the customer base is overwhelmingly professional (tattoo artists, piercers, studios) with exacting technical requirements. WooCommerce tattoo stores typically used custom fields for needle specifications and compliance data. Shopify handles this through metafields — but the migration requires careful attention to regulatory data.

Tattoo and piercing product categories

Tattoo needles: Groupings by type (round liner, round shader, magnum, curved magnum, flat) and count
Tattoo cartridges: Pre-assembled cartridges with membrane — compatible with cartridge machines
Tattoo ink / pigments: Professional tattoo colours — heavily regulated post-2022
Tattoo machines: Coil machines, rotary machines, pen machines — professional equipment
Power supplies: DC power supplies for coil machines, batteries for wireless pens
Accessories: Grips, grip covers, clip cords, foot pedals, machine cases
Aftercare: Tattoo aftercare ointments, soaps, sunscreen — cosmetic products
Stencil products: Thermal stencil paper, stencil solutions
Piercing jewellery: Body jewellery for initial piercings (implant-grade) and healed piercings (fashion jewellery)
Piercing tools and equipment: Needles, receiving tubes, forceps, sterilisation equipment
Studio consumables: Gloves, cling film, medical tape, barrier protection

Tattoo needle specification metafields

product.metafields.tattoo.needle_grouping (single_line_text) — "#1 Round Liner", "#3 Round Shader", "#7 Curved Magnum", "#14 Flat" — needle type and count
product.metafields.tattoo.needle_gauge (single_line_text) — "#12 Standard (0.35mm)", "#10 Bug Pin (0.30mm)", "#8 (0.25mm)" — needle diameter
product.metafields.tattoo.needle_taper (single_line_text) — "Long taper", "Medium taper", "Short taper" — affects penetration depth and ink dispersal
product.metafields.tattoo.membrane_type (single_line_text) — for cartridges: "Standard", "Double action", "Safety" — membrane prevents ink backflow
product.metafields.tattoo.compatible_machines (list.single_line_text) — cartridge compatible machine brands ("Cheyenne", "Fk Irons", "Bishop", "Universal")
product.metafields.tattoo.sterile (boolean) — sterile packaging (individually gamma-sterilised)
product.metafields.tattoo.pack_quantity (number_integer) — needles or cartridges per box

Tattoo pigment compliance (EU/UK REACH)

Since January 2022 (EU) and aligned UK regulations, hundreds of tattoo pigments are restricted or banned due to chemical safety concerns:

product.metafields.tattoo.reach_compliant (boolean) — compliant with EU REACH Regulation (EC) 1907/2006 Annex XVII, Entries 75 and 76 (tattoo inks)
product.metafields.tattoo.reach_updated (single_line_text) — "Reformulated 2022", "Original formula pre-2022" — helps professionals know if they're buying compliant product
product.metafields.tattoo.colour_code (single_line_text) — manufacturer's colour code (e.g., "Dynamic Black", "Solid Ink Cobalt")
product.metafields.tattoo.pigment_type (single_line_text) — "Organic pigment", "Iron oxide", "Carbon black" — pigment chemistry type
Compliance display: show REACH compliance status prominently on all pigment product pages. Professional tattoo artists are liable for using compliant inks — this is a significant purchase decision factor.
Banned inks: do not stock pigments that fail EU/UK REACH requirements. Particularly affected: certain blues (CI 74160 Pigment Blue 15), greens, and some blacks. Verify with your supplier.

Body jewellery specifications

Initial piercing (implant-grade) jewellery

product.metafields.piercing.material (single_line_text) — "ASTM F136 Implant Grade Titanium", "ASTM F899 Implant Grade Steel", "ASTM F67 Niobium", "Solid 14k Gold", "Solid 18k Gold"
product.metafields.piercing.astm_grade (single_line_text) — ASTM standard compliance (F136, F899, F67) for implant-grade materials
product.metafields.piercing.implant_grade (boolean) — implant-grade material suitable for fresh piercings
product.metafields.piercing.anodised (boolean) — anodised titanium (for colour variation without nickel/coating)
product.metafields.piercing.nickel_tested (boolean) — confirmed nickel-free (especially important for EU Nickel Directive compliance)
Display ASTM grade prominently — professional piercers check this before buying jewellery for fresh piercings. Mislabelled or non-compliant jewellery causes serious harm.

Jewellery dimensions

product.metafields.piercing.gauge_mm (number_decimal) — gauge in mm (1.6mm = 14g, 1.2mm = 16g, 1.0mm = 18g, 0.8mm = 20g)
product.metafields.piercing.length_mm (number_decimal) — internal thread or total length in mm
product.metafields.piercing.diameter_mm (number_decimal) — for circular jewellery (rings, circular barbells)
Gauge and length as variants: most body jewellery comes in multiple gauges and lengths. Set up as Shopify variants for easy selection.

Trade account setup

Tattoo and piercing supplies are primarily sold to professionals. Consider trade pricing with verification:
Studio verification: require customers to provide studio name and business registration or VAT number for trade pricing access. Approve manually.
Trade pricing structure: discount on bulk needle orders (500+ packs), ink by the case, wholesale pigment sets
Trade catalogue: some products (particularly needles and specialist equipment) may be restricted to verified trade customers only. Use Locksmith app to gate access.

Age restriction

Tattooing minors: in England, Wales, and Scotland it is illegal to tattoo a person under 18. While you're selling supplies to professionals, body art supply retailers should not promote products toward under-18 consumers.
Piercing minors: piercers typically require parental consent for under-16s. No specific national law restricts supply sales, but professional trade status requirement serves as a de facto age gate.

Tattoo and piercing supplies migration checklist

Create tattoo metafield namespace: needle_grouping, needle_gauge, needle_taper, membrane_type, compatible_machines, sterile, pack_quantity, reach_compliant, pigment_type
Create piercing metafield namespace: material, astm_grade, implant_grade, anodised, nickel_tested, gauge_mm, length_mm, diameter_mm
Audit all pigment products for REACH compliance — remove non-compliant inks from catalogue
Display REACH compliance status on all pigment product pages
Display ASTM grade on all implant-grade jewellery product pages
Migrate WooCommerce needle and jewellery specification custom fields to metafields
Set up gauge and length as product variants for body jewellery
Build cartridge machine compatibility display on cartridge product pages
Set up trade account verification and approval workflow
Create professional collections: Needles, Cartridges, Pigments (REACH Compliant), Implant Grade Jewellery, Studio Consumables
Verify: REACH compliant badge visible on all tattoo pigment pages
Verify: ASTM grade visible on all implant-grade piercing jewellery pages

The REACH pigment compliance migration is the most critical regulatory obligation in this sector and the most consequential for business continuity. A tattoo ink retailer who unknowingly sells non-REACH-compliant pigments after January 2022 faces product recalls, regulatory enforcement, and professional liability exposure from the artists who purchase those inks and use them on clients. Before migration, conduct a complete audit of your pigment catalogue against the EU REACH Annex XVII restricted substances list. Mark each product as compliant or non-compliant. Remove non-compliant products from the catalogue before the Shopify store goes live. Add the REACH compliant metafield and badge to every compliant pigment. This audit should happen regardless of migration — but the migration is the forcing function to do it systematically.

Migrating a tattoo & piercing supplies store from WooCommerce to Shopify (2026)