Tan Talker

I have been following this thread for a while and contributed my thoughts in the early stages. TJ's post really clarifies the concerns of many tanning salons that were looking for an add on to make additional income and perhaps haven't seen it.

There are some "HOT" shots out there that can sell ice cubes to Eskimoes. I have already given you my thoughts on the device so moving past that, the key phrase of this thread is (is anyone making money?). Those who are making money are obviously good at sales and marketing, those who aren't probably thought the machine would sell itself.

Personally, I feel that if you have to resort to EFT's to keep the cash flowing you don't believe so much in the product, as you do in your ability to sell the sizzle and tie the client down to a contract.

So, is "the machine making you money?" or are you making the money selling the benefits of the machine and the products through your marketing and sales skills? Want to make money? Sharpen your sales skills, educate yourself in the market you are selling and continue to track your results to make adjustments.

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ninkies

This post got me thinking and I did a search on this guy and his salon. It looks like he generated his own PR:



http://www.gazette.com/onset?id=2042...e=article.html

BEYOND THE TAN
By CAROL McGRAW, THE GAZETTE
March 28, 2007 - 2:23AM


Carolyn Geiser goes to Sun Spot Atlantis tanning salon three times a week, but most of the time she doesn’t get in a tanning booth.

She changes into a spa robe and comfy slippers in the VIP lounge, grabs water out of the fridge then picks the services she wants:

Today, perhaps, she’ll use the hydrotherapy pod, which infuses her skin with moisture and vitamins as the scent of lavender wafts through the air.

Or maybe she’ll relax in a $5,000 massage chair in a dimly lit room with waterfall scenes and listen to music.

Then again, Geiser just might choose to spend a few minutes reclining in a white leather lounge while a $30,000 light-therapy machine holds out the promise of stimulating collagen production and diminishing lines under the eyes.

This is not the tanning salon of days gone by. Sun Spot Atlantis, with 6,000 square feet and 29 rooms, exemplifies a new breed of mega tanning salon that uses hightech equipment and provides spalike services and ambience to please customers and stay competitive with day spas.

“It’s the trend, and we had to pick up our game,” says Ric Rooney, who, with wife Crystal, owns Sun Spot. He started the business in 1991 downtown and moved to 4310 Austin Bluffs Parkway in 1996. He enlarged his spa last year and now has more than $250,000 worth of equipment in the venture.

Similar mega salons are springing up all over the country, according to Looking Fit, an online site for tanning-salon owners. Tanning has matured into a $5 billion-a-year industry with 30 million customers, lured by a range of light therapies and spa services including massages and pedicures, nutritional drinks and even jewelry. You name it, they’ve got it, says Sherry Teal, spokeswoman for the American Tanning Institute.

For example, at Tropical Tan and Resort Wear, 3373 N. Academy Boulevard, Vicki Stermitz offers not only tanning, but a variety of resort wear, including bathing suits, flip-flops and jewelry. There’s even an on-site travel agency.

“It all goes together — people who tan are often heading out on vacation. They need resort clothes and tickets,” she says.

At Euro-Tan, at Colorado Highway 115 and Star Ranch Road, services include reflexology, manicures, pedicures, massages and, of course, tanning.

But it’s not just about the services. Tanning salons are also ratcheting up the ambience. At Sun Spot Atlantis, a tropical submarine theme makes visitors feel as if they’ve traveled far from the Rocky Mountains.

The entrance has curved gray walls, and some rooms have portholes. Wire-encased lights above the doors look like those on ships. Some of the hallways are curved like an undersea vessel.

There’s also a children’s room stocked with a television and toys, and out front are tables and sofas where customers can sit and chat after their treatments, much like they’d do at a coffeehouse.

The backbone of the salons — the tanning equipment itself — has also undergone dramatic changes in the past 15 years, Rooney says. Some customers like to get their tans from the Mystic Tan booth, which sprays a mist of cosmetic colorant in about a minute and lasts about a week.

Those who like the old-fash- ioned tanning beds can use newer high-tech equipment designed to lessen the risk of sunburn and address skindamage and skin-cancer concerns — although many doctors, as well as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, still discourage people from using tanning beds and sun lamps.

Tanning sessions on the old beds used to take 30 minutes and expose skin to 6 percent UVB rays — the rays that tend to burn the skin. The newer machines produce about 1.2 percent UVBs and the sessions last less than seven minutes.

“It’s more skin-friendly,” Rooney says.

And the salons are more fun, clients say.

Diane Gibson, who hadn’t visited a tanning salon in several years, visited Sun Spot recently and found the experience more enjoyable than in the past.

“I was surprised; there’s a lot of spa stuff,” she says. “It’s relaxing and you feel more pampered.”

Geiser is so taken by the salon — not to mention the after-treatment gatherings with friends in the front lounge — that you pretty much need a crowbar to pry her out.

“I don’t want to leave,” the college professor laughs.

CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0371 or carol.mcgraw@gazette.com

Nice, nice work. I only hope that I would do this well!

House of Tan

Dayyymmmmm Ric!

I'm jealous

That is a nice piece.

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TJ

Me too......................

TJ

It's a wonderful thing Tony is doing out there for lumiere. Has anyone seen any articles in Vogue, Glamour, Cosmopolitan, New Beauty, Harper's Bazaar, Jane, Seventeen, , Elle, Self, Lucky, Redbook, Good Housekeeping, WWD, Women's Health or Teen Vogue magazine that you could steer us to? I can't wait to see some results from this campaign. Does anyone know what the new machines are selling for now?

TJ

Wow................I really thought people would be excited about this.

TJ

Hmmm..........It's been two weeks since I ask the question and no one has found an article for me????????????

mr belvedere

Sorry Teej, I don't subscribe to any of those.

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engfant

Biggest problem with anything like this.

BOTTOM LINE, if THIS is rejuvenating, then TANNING must be the OPPOSITE and that's what JOE don't buy.

I DO NOT DAM ONE HALF OF MY BUSINESS TO SUPPORT THE OTHER HALF. Just WILL NOT HAPPEN.

You see results in a few visits with this thing? With MY 20+ year old UWE you see results IMMEDIATELY as in CLEAR SKIN, CLEAR COMPLEXION, CLOSED POURS, ETC and I'm talking 400watt ol school HP facial technology.

Maybe in a spa setting. Maybe next to a hydro station.

Not in my place.

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The #1 cause of death is natural causes...but where's the ribbon?

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bobselectrictan

Does anyone have a Lumiere for sale? I have a customer interested in Upstate New York