Why laser tattoo removal is on the rise – and why you should think twice before getting inked in the first place

Denise Winter doesn’t always learn why her clients have fallen out of love with their tattoos. As her laser zaps away their body art in her Hong Kong Island studio, she won’t push them to tell their stories, but her friendly nature often makes them feel comfortable enough to open up.

“I try to create a safe space in which people feel like they can share if they want. It’s part of the process,” she says, adding with a laugh: “Usually the people who got the tattoo when they were drunk are the ones that will tell you the whole story.”

Winter runs Hong Kong Laser Tattoo Removal, one of several clinics that have emerged in Hong Kong in tandem with tattoos’ increased popularity. It specialises in removing ink entirely or fading it enough for a cover-up.

The practice involves targeting ink beneath the skin with a highly concentrated laser beam and takes training before someone is qualified to operate lasers safely. Originally from the US state of Iowa, the 36-year-old former maths teacher moved to Hong Kong in 2009 and taught English before embarking on her current profession. In an intriguing twist, Winter is engaged to a tattoo artist, Chiu Chan, who has operated his own studio in the city’s Mong Kok neighbourhood since 2010.

Sensing a growing demand for tattoo removal in the city, she decided to retrain as a laser specialist.

“At first it was a joke, but then we started seeing people coming to the studio who’d gotten laser treatment. The results weren’t that good. I started to realise that the treatment that was affordable for most people was not effective, and that the treatment that was effective was too expensive for many people. I thought there had to be a place that could do both,” she says.