Everybody Wins: Victory Tattoo
- OEV BIA
- Jul 3
- 2 min read
Meet Kriss Portillo, the owner and one of the tattoo artists at Victory Tattoo! Located right at the entrance to Old East Village at 634 Dundas, this tattoo parlour is serving up old school tattoos with a modern twist. “Victory, like on the door, is supposed to be a win for you and a win for me,” Portillo says. “The idea is, I do something for you and I do something for me, and we meet in the middle.” Victory Tattoo has independently operated for the past six years, though Portillo says he’s been tattooing for a long while.
A London local all his life, Portillo describes himself as an “East Ender” at his core. “My business has always been in the east end. I like the hustle and bustle, seeing all types of people,” he says. “I just love everything about Old East; the food, the people, the adventure. When you come down here, you’re going to have a story to tell.” Having operated in other tattoo shops, Portillo eventually got a push to return to his roots and open his own store.
OEV is home to several tattoo shops, with Dundas being dubbed “Tattoo Alley” by some. Steps away from Victory’s front door is the Inkery, and the new kid on the block, Underdog Tattoo, sits just across the road. How does Victory stand out? “I'm just trying to just do my own thing,” Portillo says. “ I like seeing that other people are coming in doing their own thing, I just want everyone to have the same level of passion and respect that I have for [tattooing].”
Victory Tattoo has seven artists on staff, along with a revolving guest artist spot. Portillo says those slots are great for allowing artists from all over the world to see what makes Victory special. “These guys come in from places like Italy, France, Barcelona, Hong Kong. We've had some guys from Toronto, and some literally as close as Brantford or Woodstock. But it's guys that genuinely just want to see what's new and what's happening. And I think we have something special; the people.” He adds that if clients are looking for something different, they should check back regularly to see who’s in that guest chair.
Victory Tattoo is open seven days a week, from 12-6 Sunday to Thursday and 12-9 on Fridays and Saturdays. “We don’t just do traditional, we do Japanese, we do fine line, we do black work, cover-ups, blast overs,” Portillo says. “Cool tats for cool cats, we do them in a flash. If you got an idea, we want to hear it.” If you’re looking for a tattoo, make sure you stop in at Victory for an easy win!
📍 634 Dundas Street
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