Store under fire after selling beginners at-home tattoo kit that children could buy

An Australia discount department store has come under fire online for listing a beginners tattoo kit with no age restriction.

If you live in Australia and frequently source out the latest discounts available by scouring department BIG W's site, you may've been slightly taken aback to find a product listed under the 'Makeup and Cosmetics' category if you browsed in the last few days.

The since-deleted listing was named the 'Beginner Tattoo Kit Set Machine Gun Power Supply Needles Ink Grip' and cost $111.01.

BIG W's product information stated the set contained six tattoo tips, 10 medium tattoo ink cups, 10 'grommet keep needle steady,' 10 rubber bands to help steady the machine vibrations, 10 O-rings and one adjustment tool for the machine.

As well as listing the contents of the box, it added some 'more information' about the product such as how the machine can be 'set for both lining and shading' and what voltage it works on. The set had a 'one-year warranty' and with it being a power-supply system has short-circuit and leakage protection to make it 'safer, steadier and more powerful'.

BIG W added the inks are 'approved by SGS and FDA' and 'can be used in a safety way', the grips are 'professional' and the needles are 'pre-sterilized', however, nowhere on the description did it appear to state an age rating or any warnings.

In areas such as Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania and Queensland, 'it’s a criminal offence for a tattooist to do tattoos for someone under 18 years,' according to Australian parenting website Raising Children.

"In the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, teenagers under 18 years need to get their parents’ permission for tattoos," it adds.

Yet without an apparent age restriction on the product, a child could've ended up ordering the tattooing kit without a parent or guardian's knowledge.

And it hasn't taken long for people to weigh in online.

Taking to the reviews of the product, one user said: "Not good, no age restriction, we’ll have 14-year-olds walking around with ugly tattoos soon."

Another added: "The products, such as the ink in this pack, are not Australian standard and are poisonous. Children (who can not legally consent to a tattoo) can easily buy this and give themselves and their friends blood poisoning. This is so disappointing and not safe at all! Studios and artists in Australia need licences to practice for a reason. Council controls this industry for a reason. This will hospitalise you."

A screenshot of the item listing on BIG W's site was uploaded to Reddit thread r/australia by u/justfxckit.

U/seebob69 wrote: "Is there an age limit on purchasing this?

I can only imagine the horror of a14yo boy buying one of these and trying it out on his 10yo sister."

"The intern who vetted this supplier is getting in trouble today," u/justfxckit said.

A spokesperson for BIG W told UNILAD the set was uploaded to BIG W's website by accident by a third-party seller.

They continued: "BIG W Market is a marketplace for trusted third-party sellers on the BIG W website. The tattoo kit was recently listed on BIG W Market and we acknowledge this product was not categorised correctly.

"We can confirm we have removed it from sale, and no orders have been fulfilled."

Topics: Australia, Beauty, Reddit, Social Media, Parenting

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible and is such a crisp fanatic the office has been forced to release them in batches.