Peachy Keen Tattoo Studio in downtown Sheboygan Falls is back to its near-former glory. It’s taken months of work to get there.
Owner Jamie Prinsen reached out to me again since we last spoke in August. It was then I dropped by to see the studio in shambles — walls torn out, ceiling tiles missing, all furniture gone.
“I was so anxious, I was so stressed,” Prinsen reflected. “I was worried that things might not go back to normal."
The state of the studio was the fault of a couple of Vrbo guests renting the upstairs unit.
In one night, they destroyed the whole property by clogging the sink and leaving the faucet running for hours — an estimated 640 gallons worth.
“Nobody could've seen this coming," Prinsen said.
Everything was caught on the doorbell cam, including the guests' schemes to cover it up.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Picking up the pieces: Sheboygan Falls vacation rental, small business destroyed by Vrbo guests
In the video footage, one can be heard saying, “For right now, let's get this…we can say we woke up to it."
The repairs needed for the whole building cost around $120,000.
At the time, Peachy Keen had been open less than a year.
“I was really worried about my clients too. I wanted to be sure that I could keep up the rapport with them.”
Now, Prinsen can breathe a sigh of relief. Her studio is back in business for the first time since the night of the damage.
She’s hosting a grand reopening party on Friday starting at 5 p.m.
When I asked her why she reached back out to me she said, “We had a really big response from the community. They were so supportive of us throughout all of this and we wanted to let them know that we made it through this disaster."
"Putting so many hours and effort into opening your own business, only to have it ripped out from underneath you, only to have to rebuild that again…I can’t even imagine the stress,” said property owner Ashley Deutsch, who also ran the Vrbo.
Deutsch said insurance and contractor issues delayed reopening from October to December. She insists her priority had always been getting Prinsen up and running again.
Watch: What became of Sheboygan Falls apartment, studio destroyed by Vrbo guests?
"I can't say enough about [Jamie’s] character for sticking with it and rebuilding with us. I'm just so proud of her."
The battle is far from over.
The upstairs unit is still under construction. Deutsch has decided not to rent it anymore due to this experience, and keep it within the family.
She's turning her focus now to the legal fight against the people who rented the unit.
"They have not been held accountable personally or financially at this point, but it's something that we're willing to pursue."
"There needs to be some kind of recompense,” added Prinsen “For all of this turmoil."
For now, Prinsen's enjoying getting back to her old routine, doing what she does best — tattooing.
"We can say that we've come out of this stronger and closer,” Deutsch noted.
Prinsen: "After this, I know we can make it through anything."
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
