A former professional footballer has opened a new tattoo studio in Stroud after turning a creative interest developed during his playing career into a new business.
Sean Rigg has launched Workhorse Tattoo at the former Swan Inn on Union Street, in the town where he grew up. The studio brings together his experience in professional football, his long-standing interest in tattooing and his ambition to create a welcoming place for clients and artists.
Rigg played for Forest Green, Newport, AFC Wimbledon, Port Vale, Oxford United and Bristol Rovers during a professional career that lasted more than a decade. The former midfielder made more than 400 league appearances and scored 52 goals.
From Port Vale to a new Stroud business
His route into tattooing began while he was playing for Port Vale. Rigg became friends with an artist working close to Vale Park, the club’s ground, after the artist had tattooed him. That friendship led to an opportunity to learn the craft.
Rigg said the training gave him something to fall back on after football, although it eventually became more than a secondary skill. He recalled that the first tattoo he completed on another person was Māori tribal work on his mentor’s brother.
“The time just felt right for me to take the plunge into opening my own studio,” he said.
Years after beginning that training, Rigg has now moved from learning the trade during his football career to running a studio of his own. He said having the premises allowed him to develop the concept he had held in mind and bring his own approach to the business.
“I had a vision in my head and I’m not getting any younger, so why not go for it!”
The former pub building was chosen after Rigg considered other options. Although he looked at locations elsewhere, he said the Union Street premises stood out because it had character and offered the kind of setting he wanted to make his own.
“I chose to stay in Stroud as it’s my home town. I did have a good look around but this place really stood out to me and it was exactly what I had in mind – somewhere with character that I could make my own.”
Rigg also pointed to the support of the surrounding business community as part of the reason the location felt right for Workhorse Tattoo.
“The local community is great and we are surrounded by some great businesses that always look out for each other.”
Black and grey realism and Japanese influences
Rigg’s main area of tattooing is black and grey realism. More recently, he has been moving towards traditional Japanese tattooing, while remaining open to working in a range of styles.
He said some clients give him freedom to develop a design, while he generally prefers to receive at least a theme that he can interpret. That approach gives him room to create work around an idea rather than simply reproduce a standard image.
“I mostly tattoo and enjoy black and grey realism, but recently I’ve been leaning into traditional Japanese.”
Tattoo trends influence some of the requests he receives, but Rigg said the most enjoyable projects can be those that allow him to produce something different. He particularly values the chance to tattoo an idea for the first time and create work that feels more original.
“People do tend to follow trends, and that’s OK, but I do enjoy doing something more original.”
He said the same creative freedom can make a client’s theme especially useful when planning a design.
“I have some clients giving me free rein and that’s great, but I prefer to be given at least a theme. Then I can work off that and make it work.”
A studio designed to put clients at ease
Workhorse Tattoo is intended to be more than a place where Rigg works. He said he wanted to create an open and welcoming environment where clients could relax, bring their own ideas and feel comfortable during the process.
“It means a lot to have my own place because I can bring my own vision to life.”
“I want to offer a welcoming, open space where people feel relaxed.”
Rigg also addressed the concerns that can accompany a first tattoo. He said it was understandable for people to feel nervous because they did not know what the experience would be like. However, he said many clients were reassured once the session started, while noting that some parts of the body were more painful than others.
“People getting their first tattoo are always nervous about how it’s going to feel or if it will hurt.”
“Which is understandable because it’s the unknown. Then you usually start and they are relieved – it’s not all that bad.”
Taia and Jim join the venture
Rigg is joined at the Union Street studio by fellow tattooists Taia and Jim. He described both as important members of the new venture, with their own skills and enthusiasm helping to shape the business.
“I’m lucky enough to have Taia and Jim along with me. They are both great tattooists and passionate to grow and put out some great work.”
The team’s aim is to establish a creative space in the heart of Stroud where tattoo artists can develop their work and customers can feel able to be themselves. For Rigg, the opening represents the latest stage of a journey that began when an artist near Port Vale’s ground offered to train him.
That journey has taken him from more than 400 league appearances and 52 goals to a new role as the owner of a Stroud studio. Workhorse Tattoo now combines the footballer’s post-playing ambition with the creative skill he began developing during his time at Port Vale.
