Local piercing and jewelry company celebrating third year of business
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AMMON
Owner of local piercing and jewelry company reflects on 3 years of business
AMMON – An Instagram post about a piercing party prompted Lorin Parkinson to launch her own piercing company. Three years later, it’s a thriving business that also sells earrings, necklaces, jewelry boxes and piercing aftercare products. It also has a nonprofit that gives back to others in need.
Get Pierced Co., which shares a space with Hip Sip at 1615 Market Way in Ammon, is celebrating its third year of business in eastern Idaho. It provides hollow needle piercing services for ears and nostrils. It also has a warehouse location at 3811 North Commerce Circle, where it fulfills online orders. The e-commerce side of the business launched in 2023.
Parkinson tells EastIdahoNews.com the needle is one thing that sets her business apart.
“A needle, which is what you would’ve only seen in a tattoo shop before, is the gold standard in piercing. That’s what we want to use. It’s going to cause the least amount of trauma to the tissue, it’s going to result in better healing and it’s more sanitary,” Parkinson says.
Another thing that Parkinson says distinguishes her business is her customized flatback earring studs. It’s the bread-and-butter product that started the piercing studio, and later the online jewelry store. A series of stud collections are released throughout the year.
“We have an upcoming collection called Into the Wild. There’s a stud that looks like the Grand Tetons, there’s a stud that looks like a grizzly bear, a leaf, a pine tree,” says Parkinson. “Curated collections are released seasonally.”
See what the business is like in the video above.
Parkinson’s interest in piercing and jewelry stems back to her teenage years in Rigby. She had multiple piercings in high school and has enjoyed wearing earrings and jewelry throughout her life.
She was working as a dental hygienist when she came across the Instagram post that gave her the idea about starting her own business.
“I started a deep dive into piercing, in general, and I thought it would be so fun to bring something like this to eastern Idaho,” Parkinson recalls. “I saw a need and I also thought … a lot of my background in dental hygiene could translate into piercing. I’d given people injections in their mouth for years and felt like I could give somebody a piercing with a needle.”
Once the online jewelry portion of the business started to take off, Parkinson started looking for ways to give back. Get Pierced for a Purpose, a nonprofit that donates 100% of the company’s proceeds for one day every other month to a local person in need, launched earlier this year.
It identifies recipients through nominations. Sometimes, Parkinson knows people she wants to help.
The nonprofit recently awarded $20,000 to Laura Eves. She and her husband, Curtis, were part-owners of the Madison Armory and indoor shooting range in Rexburg. Curtis passed away in May.
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Laura and Parkinson have been friends for years, and even worked together as dental hygienists at one time. That connection made Parkinson want to help.
“We weren’t going to start Get Pierced for a Purpose until September. But in May, Laura lost her husband and we were like, ‘We have to start in June.’ We wanted to jump in and help her right away,” says Parkinson.
Laura says it’s been a rough couple of months, and she’s grateful for Parkinson’s donation.
“I’m super grateful for her generosity. It meant a lot to me and my kids,” says Laura. “She (Parkinson) is awesome.”
Parkinson says the business is on track to make four times more in sales than it did last year. She’s grateful for the community’s support in the last three years and looks forward to serving new customers going forward.
Get Pierced Co. is open by appointment. Visit the website to learn more.
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