Oddities shop and tattoo studio Culture Shock opens in downtown St. Pete
/Culture Shock, an oddity shop and tattoo studio that quietly opened earlier this week at 244 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street North in downtown St. Petersburg | Brian Zucker
Getting a tattoo can be scary for first-timers, but getting inked while surrounded by items of the occult is on another level.
Ben Harris, a longtime local bartender, is marrying the macabre and curated art collection at his new business concept, Culture Shock, an oddity shop and tattoo studio that quietly opened earlier this week at 244 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Street North in downtown St. Petersburg.
With its ominous allure, black shelves line the tall walls inside the 3,600-square-foot space, displaying religious iconography, funeral and burial photos, creepy dolls, foreign weaponry, and taxidermy.
There are also items from Harris' procured personal collection, including a hatchet belonging to the notorious Butcher of Plainfield serial killer Ed Gein, eerie paintings of clowns, tribal spears, Ouija boards, and crosses.
Different artists, including Franklin “Fredo” Alfaro, contributed to the mural work inside the shop | Veronica Brezina
"Throughout my travels, visiting 17 countries before I turned 18, I've always picked up little trinkets," said Harris, who hails from Germany. "I'm fascinated by the weird stuff. Places have different cultures and rituals, and my father was insistent on learning about them."
The space, adjoining the Central Oak Barber Co. shop and shuttered Coney Island Grill, was previously poised to become a deli. However, the would-be owners Doug Merriott, owner of Speakeasy Kava Lounge, and David Funk, a partner of Culture Shock, chose not to pursue the restaurant business.
Harris, who is well acquainted with the art community, knew Franklin “Fredo” Alfaro, a 20-year tattooer and the owner of Fredo Ink & Co. and The Brass Dagger, was seeking a brick-and-mortar shop in St. Petersburg, where many of his clients reside.
So, Harris decided to take over the eight-year lease and turn the blank canvas into an eerie gallery and tattoo destination.
One shelf displays candles, holy water, and messages of last rites, which are a collection of last prayers given to Catholic-identifying individuals shortly before death | Veronica Brezina
Fredo, alongside two other artists, will have 600-square-foot designated spaces in the rear of the store. Tattoo sessions must be booked in advance with the artists as they will not accept walk-ins.
"I'm pretty much serving as the curator of the retail space," Harris explained.
Some of the bizarre and hauntingly beautiful pieces, such as the mounted taxidermied goat, are consignment items from Dysfunctional Grace, an oddities storefront described as "the only shop in Ybor City where death and dysfunction dance in a graceful ballet."
"We have plenty of thrift and antique shops in St. Pete that shy away from the stranger things - but St. Pete is full of weirdos," Harris laughed. "It's a missed market. St. Pete is a communal place for many artists and local makers of various things."
An Aztec death whistle made in Mexico. The whistles were used by the Aztecs to mimic the death cries of their enemies, invoking fear | Veronica Brezina
Collectors and the intrigued will often visit indie flea markets and hunt for objects via online marketplaces, but Harris wanted to create Culture Shock as a one-stop-shop for it all and boost business for other entrepreneurs.
The store carries products from St. Pete-based businesses such as Mortician's Cabinet, which makes soy wax wood wick candles, shirts from apparel company Unkind Intent, and paintings from local artists.
Harris plans to add custom-designed tarot card decks and Dungeons and Dragons dice, as well as more unique art installations and pieces, including a 14-foot-long python skin showpiece stretching across one of the walls.
"We are trying to keep things neat by taking advantage of the wall space and storing other items in the back rooms to not clutter the floor," Harris said.
The store's items, curated and on consignment, range from Tibetan skulls, taxidermy, a mix of sinister and intriguing paintings, and handmade knives | Veronica Brezina
Culture Shock’s grand opening is set for February 11th, but the retail portion is already open every day from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
If Harris is not at the shop, he is likely at an oddity expo or at The Neon Lunchbox, a new '80s and ‘90s-themed bar opening next month on Central Avenue, where he will be curating the drink program.
For more creepy content, follow Culture Shock on Instagram.
