Lou Perrine’s Inks Customers With New Tattoo Promotion

KENOSHA, Wis. -- Single-store convenience retailer Lou Perrine’s Gas & Groceries celebrated its 64th birthday on Oct. 22 by giving customers tattoos. Anthony Perrine, owner of the Kenosha, Wis.-based c-store, told CSP Daily News he wanted to part with traditional in-store promotions often seen around the industry for the celebration.

“I wanted to do something bigger—more exciting,” he said.

CSP named Anthony Perrine as one of its 2017 "Indie Influencers" for this familial and community spirit, as well as for the retailer’s experimentation with delivery. The high-volume gas station and c-store is also known for selling produce, Wisconsin cheese and Mama P’s HoHo Cakes. It is expected to open a second location later this year.

• Click here to view CSP's 2018 "Indie Innovators."

Here's an inside look at Lou Perrine’s 64th birthday promotion …

Photographs courtesy of Lou Perrine's Gas & Groceries

When scrolling through his store’s social media feed, Perrine noticed that many of his customers have tattoos and that two of these customers own a tattoo shop a few blocks away from his store.

“I approached them and said, ‘Hey, how about you give us a deal on tattoos? I'll do my part to incentivize people to get the tattoos and you guys get some good publicity out of it,’ ” he said. “And it worked.” 

Perrine announced the promotion via Facebook on Oct. 19 while receiving his own Lou Perrine-branded tattoo by Jen Parise, owner of Talulah Tattoo Inc., the partnering tattoo shop.

“[The video] went viral,” he said. “The next thing you know, everywhere I went in town people came up and told me how excited they were for the tattoo.”

Lou’s payed for the tattoos, and each participating customer received a $100 gift card to the store. There were two tattoo options: the Lou’s logo and the Mama P’s HoHo Cake—one of the store’s staple items. Customers who were inked with the Lou’s logo will receive double points on their Lou’s loyalty card every day for a year, while those who opted for the HoHo Cake will get a free piece every time they visit the store for the same duration.

“We made the deal to be the first 15 people who arrived on Monday before noon could get the tattoo for free,” Perrine said.

More than 100 people showed up at the tattoo parlor Monday morning for their spot in line, some earlier than others. “A few people lined up as early as 5 a.m.,” Perrine said. ‘It was awesome.”

Regarding the tattoos, Perrine said it was an even split between who got the HoHo Cake and Lou’s logo. The most popular body parts receiving the tattoos were shoulders, calves and feet, while one dedicated patron even got one on his rear.