Here's my opinion! Whats yours?

[megatanman]

Unity,i think you are mistaken,i was not referring to you specifically,Please take the time to read a post completely.No where in my post did i try to bad mouth you or your ideas.I agree with you on lotions and such,i just don't get whats up with people in general.

Im suppose to raise my prices so someone else can"make it"?That just doesn't make sense to me,maybe I am wrong,If i offended you,I apologize.I am a businessman first. Tanning is only one of them and the least profitable for me,but the most enjoyable.Theres just too much competition in my area.Lower prices make or break you.

[unity]

Ok, I apologize also. You had quoted me, so I thought your thoughts were targeted at me.

Not that I am saying you should raise prices. I am not sure how you compare to others and you sound like a "real" salon.

Its these hair salon/package shipping/gyms that are hit number one to pricing. I really have strong feeling for regulations that require a salon to be a salon and not a quick add-on. For a gym its nothing to add a couple beds. While they may or may not get used a ton, often they do not even follow our own states regulations when it comes to operation and sanitization.

Then we have these salons that never change bulbs and have crap for sanitizer. We have one in town like this. While the client may not get a decent tan, all they care about is price. We educate clients all the time on the importance of a healthy tan. But these salons dont care about how they tan their clients, they just feed off of the connivence of being next door to a college or that they can do $2 tans since they bought used beds and added the salon onto their house.

Let me put it this way. You can compare fast food places. Some are better than others but when you go to McDonlads, Burger King or even Taco Bell they expectation for the amount of money you can and will spend is the same. But with tanning prices are all over, packages are all different and sometimes its hard for the client to figure out if they are getting a good tan at a good price at place A or B.

Gyms are a good example of the way I wish the tanning industry operated. Almost ALL gyms have a membership based program, even the YMCA. Most dont offer just one month or x number of visits. If you walk into a gym and want to become a member, you usually plan on being one for 6 months or a year since its rare to offer any less than that. You also plan on handing over your credit card or checking account.

While people may not tan year round, I would love to see the move to salons being JUST EFT memberships. It stabilizes income and give control to the salon. People will tan more since they have already paid for the service, more people tanning attracts even more people to do the same.

At times it feels like the customers have control, no matter how much we educate them or explain why our packages may be better for them. Its like trying to pick out the ONE bottle out of 1,000 that are out there for them to use.

	Superior UV

[engfant]

The PROBLEM is that the MIDDLE CLASS (who are the BEST and most FLEXIBLE customers) are either ALL GONE.

They have either gone ALL BROKE (most likely) or is friends of GWB (so they probably weren't spending money in your place to begin with).

ALSO, you have people that have gone from "upper class" to FLAT BROKE yet LOOK rich but are just "living off what they have and can do no more".

And you have the fools that are rich cause they NEVER spend money.

Trying to "guess" what one person has compared to the next guy is CLOSE TO IMPOSSIBLE. You don't want to LOSE the sale to a broke looking person BUT you want them to pay what you want.

Same for people with money. They hold it over your head like you are a ****ING *** DICKHEAD and threaten to go elsewhere if you don't play ball.

I SAY smile, ask them what they WANT and then TELL THEM what they REALLY want.

I'm not saying $100 of AG is what EVERYONE WANTS (I wouldn't sell that for $40 or even $30 cause I know it sucks and no one will like it anyway) but everyone one wants SOMETHING.

Just ask em......and start stocking lotions that you can make GOOD MARKUP without dealing in outlandish priced bottles of poop.

FOR INSTANCE, I have a bottle of XXX that I sell for $28 or $18 if they pick it up when they sign up. EVEN IF I sell at $18 I still make $13 on the sale.

I'm happy. They are happy cause the stuff doesn't SUCK and they WANT to use it.

The bottles that SUCK are the ones they MILK and they NEVER run out and when they go bad, HOW WOULD YOU KNOW??? IT ALREADY SUCKED TO BEGIN WITH.

I know of MORE TANNERS that come in with a DS big bottle and only use it on their faces.

Guess what, NO MORE DS FOR THEM. Bottle is all warped and **** from the high heat of the summer but they don't care. They HATED IT from the beginning.