Should I Start an LLC for My Body Piercing Shop?

Starting a limited liability company (LLC) for your body piercing shop can provide several benefits.

Most importantly, an LLC structure offers limited liability to its owners, which can protect their personal assets from lawsuits and creditors.

For a body piercing shop, lawsuits can arise from things like negligence and personal injury claims (e.g., as a result of failing to properly sterilize your equipment, recklessly damaging a customer’s skin, etc.).

LLCs are also affordable, highly flexible (from a tax point-of-view), and can make your body piercing shop seem more credible.

Recommended: Use Northwest to form an LLC for $29 (plus state fees).

Do I Need an LLC for a Body Piercing Shop?

LLCs are a simple and inexpensive way to protect your personal assets and save money on taxes.

You should form an LLC when there's any risk involved in your business and/or when your business could benefit from tax options and increased credibility.

LLC Benefits for a Body Piercing Shop

By starting an LLC for your body piercing shop, you can:

Protect your savings, car, and house with limited liability protection
Have more tax benefits and options
Increase your business’s credibility

Limited Liability Protection

LLCs provide limited liability protection. This means your personal assets (e.g., car, house, bank account) are protected in the event your business is sued or if it defaults on a debt.

Body piercing shops will benefit from liability protection because of the risk of personal injuries to customers, workplace accidents, and libel claims.

Example 1: While carrying out a body piercing for a client, an employee at your body piercing shop fails to adequately sterilize his equipment. This leads the client to develop a serious infection and thus sue your business for this workplace negligence. Limited liability would prevent you from being held personally responsible for this business liability.

Example 2: After a successfully completed piercing, a customer begins to feel lightheaded and trips over an exposed cable, breaking her collarbone. As a result, she sues your business in an attempt to claim the medical expenses of the injury. In this scenario, the liability to pay these expenses can only be imposed upon your business’s assets and never yours.

Example 3: An employee at your body piercing shop bumps into a customer while walking around the shop, causing him to drop and break his expensive laptop. The customer then sues your business for the property damage he alleges it has caused. If found liable to pay for this damage, liability would be restricted to the business’s assets alone.

Example 4: A customer sues your business, claiming that they got a severe infection after getting a piercing in your shop.

An LLC will also protect your personal assets in the event of commercial bankruptcy or loan default.

To maintain your LLC's limited liability protection, you must maintain your LLC's corporate veil.

LLC Tax Benefits and Options for a Body Piercing Shop

LLCs, by default, are taxed as a pass-through entity, just like a sole proprietorship or partnership. This means that the business's net income passes through to the owner's individual tax return.

The business’s net income is then subject to income taxes (based on the owner's tax bracket) and self-employment taxes.

Sole proprietorships and partnerships are taxed in a similar way to LLCs, but they do not offer limited liability protection or other tax options.

S Corp Option for LLCs

An S corporation (S corp) is an IRS tax status that an LLC can elect. S corp status allows business owners to be treated as employees of the business (for tax purposes).

S corp tax status can reduce self-employment taxes and will allow business owners to contribute pre-tax dollars to 401k or health insurance premiums.

The S corp status requires that the business pay the employee-owner(s) a reasonable salary for the work they perform.

In addition, the business might need to spend more on accounting, bookkeeping, and payroll services. To offset these costs, you'd need to be saving about $2,000 a year on taxes.

We estimate that if a body piercing shop owner can pay themselves a reasonable salary and at least $10,000 in distributions each year, they could benefit from S corp status.

You can start an S corp when you form your LLC. Our How to Start an S Corp guide will lead you through the process.

Credibility and Consumer Trust

Body piercing shops rely on consumer trust. Credibility plays a key role in creating and maintaining any business.

Businesses gain consumer trust simply by forming an LLC.

A growing business can also benefit from the credibility of an LLC when applying for small business loans, grants, and credit.

Northwest will start an LLC for you for just $29 (plus state fees).

Get Started

How to Form an LLC

Forming an LLC is easy. There are two options for forming your LLC:

You can hire a professional LLC formation service to set up your LLC for a small fee
Or, you can choose your state from the list below to start an LLC yourself

Select Your State

For most new business owners, the best state to form an LLC in is the state where you live and where you plan to conduct your business.

Do LLCs Need Insurance?

LLCs, just like any business, require insurance to protect their assets from the plethora of liabilities they face every day. Your body piercing shop would need insurance to protect its assets, such as its piercing equipment and autoclave.

LLCs protect the personal assets of their owners through limited liability, while insurance protects the assets belonging to a business.

Common Situations Business Insurance May Cover for a Body Piercing Shop

Example 1: As a customer enters your shop, she trips, cuts her hand on some broken glass in the parking lot, and demands you pay for her medical treatment. General liability insurance would cover her medical care.

Example 2: A competitor claims you libeled his business in your last advertisement and files a lawsuit. While you disagree with the claim, you want to hire a lawyer immediately. General liability insurance would pay for your legal defense.

Example 3: While carrying supplies across the store, an employee accidentally knocks a customer to the ground. The customer breaks a wrist in the fall and decides to sue your business. General liability insurance would cover your legal fees and any required settlement.

Other Types of Coverage Body Piercing Shops Need

While general liability is the most important type of insurance to have, there are several other forms of coverage you should be aware of. Below are some other types of insurance all body piercing shops should obtain.

Commercial Property Insurance

You made a major investment in your piercing equipment and supplies. In the event of a fire, theft, or natural disaster, commercial property insurance would cover the cost of repairing or replacing your business-related property. This includes structural damage to your shop as well as the business equipment and supplies you store there.

Professional Liability Insurance

While you strive to deliver the best possible piercing experience for your customers, there’s always a chance someone might claim your professional services caused them harm. If one of your customers sues you based on a negligence claim, professional liability insurance would cover your legal fees and any required settlement.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance

If you have any employees, most states require you to carry workers’ compensation insurance for both part-time and full-time workers. This coverage protects your employees if they become injured at work or fall ill after a work-related accident. It not only covers an employee’s medical bills and lost wages if they need time to recover but also any disability or death benefits stemming from a work-related accident.

Commercial Umbrella Insurance

While your general liability insurance policy covers most claims, some accidents or lawsuits may be so catastrophic that they threaten to exhaust the limits of your primary coverage. Commercial umbrella insurance protects you from paying out-of-pocket for any legal fees and awarded damages that exceed your primary policy.

Should I Start an LLC FAQ

Choosing the right business structure depends on your business’s unique circumstances and needs. However, unless your business is very low risk (like a hobby), an LLC is likely the better option.

Visit our LLC vs. Sole Proprietorship guide to learn more.

At a minimum, you’ll need general liability insurance, commercial property insurance, and workers’ compensation insurance if you have employees.

Read our Body Piercing Shop Business Insurance article for more info.

Getting your body piercing shop started could require you as little as $2,000, with a little reinvestment further down the line after your business has expanded slightly. Some items that will form part of this budget before you open your shop include body jewelry, piercing equipment, sterilization and hygiene supplies, furniture, and a first aid kit.

Visit our How to Start a Body Piercing Shop guide to learn more about the costs of starting and maintaining this business.

Typical ongoing expenses may include supplies, inventory, marketing, supplies, salaries, and rent.

Learn more about running a body piercing shop

A body piercing shop earns money on each piercing it performs. They often also sell various types of piercing-related jewelry.

Learn more about starting a body piercing shop.

A body piercing shop provides many types of piercings, depending on the customer’s preference. These can include ear piercing and other areas of the body, such as the nostrils or tongue.

The profits of a body piercing shop depend on how many piercers it employs and its overhead costs.

Learn more about starting a body piercing shop.