Viking spirit. Modern artistry. Timeless impact.

Valkyrie was built the way its founder was trained: with discipline, purpose, and a standard that doesn’t bend. Jesse, a U.S. Navy veteran with over a decade behind the machine, opened the studio in Burlington, North Carolina in November 2023 after years of watching other shops make bad choices in how they ran their businesses and treated clients. Valkyrie is the answer: private, unhurried, and personal.

We believe art is more than what’s etched into skin. It’s a story, a healing, and a transformation. Every tattoo and piercing here is designed to honor your journey and express who you are. That’s why you won’t find a high-volume factory floor at Valkyrie: you’ll find artists with time to listen, a space where you’re more than just an appointment, and details that reflect the beauty of your story.

The Norse thread running through our name and our walls isn’t decoration. It’s a reminder of what we practice: courage in the work, loyalty to the people who trust us with their skin, and craft honed until it’s worthy of a lifetime. Honoring the past. Crafting the present. Building legacies.

That standard doesn’t stop at our door. In 2025, WRAL Investigates featured Jesse advocating for competency standards and licensing reform in North Carolina’s under-regulated tattoo industry. We exceed the state’s minimum requirements because the minimum was never the point.