Eike and Sophia Schumacher created Carolina Icon Ink LLC with the intention of traveling the East coast and giving out tattoos at events like festivals and car meets
Couple Eike and Sophia Schumacher traveled over 4,000 miles to see their dream become a reality – and then York County pulled the rug out from under them.
Originally from Germany, Eike and Sophia Schumacher spent the last three years creating their Carolina Icon Ink LLC. and filing paperwork so they could gain their visa and start up their business here in America. During that time, they were also coming over to the states to transform their RV into a mobile tattoo parlor.
Luckily, with the help of a lawyer who works between D.C. and Berlin and friends from Germany who are now living in the states, the process was fairly simple.
It seemed like everything was good to go and the couple was going to be not just the first mobile tattoo parlor in South Carolina – but the entire East coast.
“The state law of South Carolina said it’s totally fine to open the tattoo studio, even if it’s mobile. You just have to have to make sure everything’s up to par –so that’s what we actually did,” Eike Schumacher said.
However, when the time came to get the business up and running, York County stopped communicating.
“I go to the zoning department, to the health department, and ask them what I have to do next, but I never get a reply,” Eike Schumacher said.
Zoning rules in York County are especially strict for tattoo parlors, as they have to be a certain amount of feet away from places like churches or schools.
“You have to stay at least [a] 1000 ft. from a church, school, playground, or park – then at least 200 ft. from a residential [neighborhood],” Eike and Sophia Schumacher said.
While the zoning ordinance is a major headache for the couple, they said they’re really more upset over the lack of communication and transparency from York County.
“We wrote emails, we called them, he went in person to talk with them – and nothing. It feels impossible,” Sophia Schumacher said.
York County has faced scrutiny over the past few years due to their lack of transparency for business owners, with the decision to terminate the lease for the Tom S. Gettys center being a recent example.
Many local residents have also complained about the lack of diversity amongst new businesses – which Eike and Sophia Schumacher have also heard.
“That’s what we heard from the people here, that York County doesn’t want new things for some reason. Only restaurants, and you see nail salons and smoke shops everywhere – in every strip mall,” Sophia Schumacher said.
These restrictions are not a problem for North Carolina, as Charlotte alone has over 100 tattoo parlors, according to an Axios report from 2023. This has allowed Eike and Sophia Schumacher to rent space in a hair salon in Mount Holly, North Carolina.
Before they found the hair salon in Mount Holly, Sink or Swim Tattoo in Fort Mill worked with the couple and gave them a place to work on their craft. Sink or Swim is also currently the only tattoo parlor in York County.
Despite all these challenges for the couple, they have no intentions of giving up on the mobile tattoo parlor.
“We will keep trying it, even if it takes us a year or two, it doesn’t matter,” Eike Schumacher said. “It was actually our plan to open a couple [of] studios, not just in South Carolina, maybe one or two in North Carolina.”
The couple also has no desire to move back to Germany, saying how much they love “the weather, mountains and people here in South Carolina and America.” They also highlighted how difficult it is to start a business in Germany, as “self-employed people pay 70% in taxes” over there.
However, Sophia Schumacher did mention how much she misses the bread in Germany.
If you’re looking for a first or new tattoo, you can find Eike and Sophia Schumacher at Sink or Swim in Fort Mill in the meantime, and eventually Salon RebelRebel in Mount Holly. For more information regarding the mobile tattoo parlor, visit their website www.carolinaiconink.com.
