Inked Baristas: NOC BA Tower, Lee Garden Three and Mercury

NOC is sometimes referred to as ‘that coffee shop with inked baristas’. In our second installment of the series, we talk to team members from our Mercury, Lee Garden Three and BA Tower stores, on how certain inspirations through their lives have now been eternally inked onto their skin.

Sticky (Head Barista, Mercury Store)

I was working as a chef in a Japanese restaurant when I came across latte art videos on social media and became interested in coffee. As a newbie with no prior experience, it took me months to find a coffee shop that was willing to hire me and when I finally did, I struggled to learn coffee skills at work. That was when I had this finger-crossed drawing (01) tattooed on my forearm, to wish myself good luck in my career change and to keep myself motivated.

Jamie (Barista, Mercury Store)

This is my favourite part of the tattoo sleeve I have on my left arm (02). My family saved my cats from the streets around a decade ago, so I have had them for over half of my life. Having had my cats with me through my teenage years helped me deal with the overwhelming emotions I had when I was younger. I’m thankful they are still in great health, but I know that someday they will die, so I got this tattoo to make sure they will always be with me, wherever I am.

James (Head Barista, Lee Garden Three Store)

The tattoo on my left arm (03) is a Buddhist symbol called unalome, which represents the path of enlightenment. The spiral near my wrist symbolises the confusion we encounter at the beginning of our lives, and the start of our life journey. The infinity symbols are the twists and turns we experience as life happens. The symbols become smaller as the tattoo stretches towards my elbow, meaning we learn to care less about less important things in life and to focus on what really matters. The straight line represents the moment we fade to nothing and reach peace and harmony.

Becky (Barista, Lee Garden Three Store)

My grandmother took care of me since I was a baby. She passed away a few years ago, so I got this tattoo (04) in honour of my grandma. It’s a drawing of the last time I held hands with her, before she passed away in the hospital.

Jennifer (Head Barista, BA Tower Store)

There is something about watching sunsets on the beach that is so mesmerizing. I enjoy it so much that I decided to get this tattoo (05) on the back of my left arm.

This is only 1/3 of the baristas that have tattoos at NOC stores. To check out some more or for inspiration to perhaps get your very own coffee tattoo, check out our posts on Tattoos in Hong Kong and Coffee Tattoos.

For more inspiration, check out some of these Hong Kong tattoo artists that we dig:

Mini Tattooer

James Lau

Nathalie Talii

Magaga

Elizabeth Gaus
Argon Tattoo