Tattoo artist and Fort Myers native Dawn Webb reopened Paradise Tattoo, an award-winning custom shop, at a new location more than 14 months after Hurricane Ian devastated Fort Myers Beach and destroyed the building. 

The new shop is at 17274 San Carlos Blvd., Unit 205, in Indian Creek Plaza. While not on the barrier island any longer, Webb is grateful to have her business back up and running after nearly exhausting her funds to reopen.  

Webb initially opened her Paradise Tattoo shop on Fort Myers Beach more than a decade ago and worked alone for many years. Her shop had no signage, so she put a surfboard on the roof of her car and parked it by the road. Webb said the surfboard is what brought in most of her customer base all those years ago.  

After the storm, Webb looked at nearly a dozen different locations, considering some that were more inland. Running into obstacles, such as availability of units and permitting, the rebuilding process Webb believed she could start in February didn’t come to fruition until six months later.  

A yearly rock-and-roll-based cruise called ShipRocked, which Webb frequents and donates artwork to for auctions to raise money for cancer, started a GoFundMe for Paradise Tattoo after Ian’s devastation and reached its $10,000 goal just a few months after the storm.  

Webb attended ShipRocked for nearly a decade, finding solace and community in her ShipRocked family. Webb boarded ShipRocked in late January with the intent of hitting the ground running with rebuilding in February. 

However, the plaza she had lined up sprung some unexpected news on her. It was going to be another five months before Paradise Tattoo could move into the unit.  

“It was like a knife to the chest after having this amazing trip,” Webb said.  

Initially not wanting to wait five months, her new unit in Indian Creek Plaza wasn’t available for move in until Aug. 15. 

Exhausted in more ways than one, Webb knew she needed to get back to work.  

Soon after learning there was a hold in her plan to rebuild as soon as possible, the owner of Tiger Lotus Tattoo and Piercing reached out to Webb in April and offered an open chair for Webb and her team to begin taking some clients again. 

“Working there was an absolute pleasure,” Webb said. “I’m so thankful for them. They helped us not only financially by letting us work there, but mentally too. We gained lifelong friends with the entire team.” 

Prior to the destruction, Webb saw her clientele grow from locals, 11 years ago, to national and global clients, booking appointments a year in advance. 

Now, Webb’s eager clientele can book at Paradise Tattoo’s new home. “A lot of people have been waiting for us,” she said. “They don’t want to get tattooed anywhere else. They wanted to wait until we reopened. A lot of my clients went to Tiger Lotus and saw us. They’ve just been ready.” 

Once feeling mentally exhausted and creatively uninspired after the loss of her shop, Webb can now breathe a sigh of relief.  

“Everything was so scary and uncertain,” she said. “To finally be on the other side of all of that. It feels so light. We appreciate every day now. We’re so in love with the shop. It’s everything we imagined.” 

Once considering moving more inland to Fort Myers, Webb said she’s proud to stay in Fort Myers Beach. 

“We’re not on the island anymore, but we’re still in the town of Fort Myers Beach,” Webb said. “I can proudly display Fort Myers Beach still.” 

Webb is also grateful that some outcomes of the storm brought her even closer to the community, as she recently contributed to the Fort Myers’ River Basin Mural project. 

Other opportunities have come up for Webb and the rest of the Paradise Tattoo artists, including running the tattoo parlor on ShipRocked 2024.  

“The three of us will be tattooing instead of vacationing this time,” Webb said. “This is going to be my ninth time going on ShipRocked, but my first time working.” 

Taking off in February, it won’t be long until the Paradise Tattoo team sets sail to leave their mark on the 2024 cruise.  

However, Webb and her team are happy to be back in a place they can call home. The newly cosmetically remodeled 953-square-foot shop is open from noon to 6 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays, housing the surfboard that served as Paradise Tattoo’s first signage more than a decade ago and was found intact under rubble after Hurricane Ian.