Ezliving_Jim

Today the Indoor Tanning Association (ITA) announced plans to host and facilitate the first-ever World Summit of Indoor Tanning Trade Associations Jan. 31 - Feb. 2, 2003 at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in New York City.

More than 35 tanning association leaders from around the world have already been invited to this two-day meeting, which was planned and conceived at a preliminary planning meeting of 24 tanning association leaders at the Indoor Tanning Association's World Expo Nov. 7-10 in the United States.

Topics on the agenda will include:

1) Establishing regular channels of communications between tanning associations worldwide;


2) Establishing a permanent network to coordinate research being conducting or sponsored by the industry; and


3) Initiating discussions on regulatory reform proposals taking place in several countries worldwide with the goal of reaching consensus on how to cooperate to combat unnecessary or over-burdensome regulation.

The ITA Board of Directors has committed $15,000 for the administration of this inaugural meeting. According to ITA President Dan Humiston, "The ITA Board is very excited about this concept and the ITA staff is working hard to pull it together. The ITA would like to establish a mechanism to enable nations of the world to cooperate in efforts to advance the tanning industry and to be organized in facing our industry's critics. This process should ultimately empower the participants in this summit with information necessary to defend their constituents' right to tan worldwide."

Humiston formally proposed the tanning summit at the preliminary meeting in the United States Nov. 9 at the ITA Indoor Tanning World Expo. Based on the brief discussion at that meeting there is significant worldwide interest in holding this summit. Invited guests already include association leaders from all over Europe, Canada, South America, Australia and New Zealand.

The Indoor Tanning Association, formed in 1999, has membership representing ownership of more than 6,000 tanning facilities in the United States and Canada and 95 percent of the equipment, lamp and lotion suppliers to tanning salons in the United States.

http://www.theita.com/page.php?ArticleID=80

BooBop

Wow, so what do you think all this means and wonder what will come of it?

Do you think we could ever get the world on the same page in our industry? If so, we may have better chances in fighting the Anti-Tan segaments.

What do you think this could mean?

fungirlz

This is wonderful.............
Very Very wonderful..............

CHUNN

What makes us think they will get the world together when they do not even get the US together?

Just my opinion. Not trying to be negative. I think this is a positive move but trying to figure how they will accomplish this when they fail to even communicate with us.

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"The new tantalk is going to be fantastic!" -- Don S.[ This Message was edited by: chunn on 2002-12-13 08:59 ]

Ezliving_Jim

I am curious if tanning industry professionals meeting online qualifies as an association.

It appears our online association, while appearing as an anarchism, may qualify and meet at least the stated goals of #1 and #3 directly, and indirectly #2.

fungirlz

Jim:
We had a hard time getting the on line meeting together in Can Cun..... it was arranged.....we showed up...but seems another "MORE important meeting" was taking place at the same time ours was scheduled...
( made me feel like crap!!).........

I won't make any waves here..... just stating a fact...!!! and those that saw this go down all agreed... WOW........ whatz up with that!!!!

I think "some people"...want to be with us...but when it works "best" for them.....
read between the lines on this one......

C

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Christine'
Cub Reporter
with a bad hang over from Can Cun[ This Message was edited by: fungirlz on 2002-12-13 09:26 ]

Soakinuptherays

Despite the fact that one of the people calling and posting for this internet meeting, was too busy to attend.

Those that did attend agreed on several key points:

1) No personal attacks should be tolerated by any on-line industry site. That it is the responcibility of the moderators and owners of those sites to delete those personal non-professeional attacks.

2) No vendor or manufacturer should be a moderator of any site.

It creates a "privileged" class of Manufacturers/vendor and the idea that those manufacturers have "control" over the content of the site. On-line sites are designed to be an interactive format were professional debate is welcome and that debate is not ended or interfered with because if adversly effects a fellow moderatror that happens to be a manufacturer/vendor.

If salon owners are to gain control over our industry then they need to have control over the web sites. On-line sites should not become like industry trade magazines where advertising dollars sometimes contols what is written and what is not written.

3) The long term goal of the on-line web sites should be to form a salon owner trade association that has it's own trade shows. That way quality educational programs and manufacturer/vendor accountablility can be the rule not the exception. Solar Seminar we all agree was a vast improvement over other "sample hound" formats.

fungirlz

three cheers gregg....
you said it ...
Now lets see what do we do from here gang!!!!

Ezliving_Jim

Quote:The long term goal of the on-line web sites should be to form a salon owner trade association that has it's own trade shows.

...because that is where the money is. ITA shakes a million dollars a year out of that money tree.