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Old 09-10-2012, 08:50 PM   #1 (permalink)
 
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Smile KBL vs ergoline

What do you think about KBL Beds in regards to quality and price versus ergoline beds? I'm looking to upgrade equipment. I currently have soltron/ergoline beds. I use a 5 level bed concept.
4 hot peppers
1 shout
1 dance
1 shark
1 shuttle
11 sun dash 332 pros
1 mystic

I wonder if this type of concept, which worked well for many years, is still the way to go or is the industry evolving to a different mix? Such as less levels and just low and high or low medium & high. Also is ergoline the way to go or is there another bed that has the features and quality with better price tags. We all know that new ergos have gotten quite pricey and with all the challenges in this industry the last few years I tend to be a little more conservative on how I spend lately.
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Old 09-24-2012, 06:10 AM   #2 (permalink)
 
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

KBL far better..ergo is more flash than splash.
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Old 09-24-2012, 07:26 AM   #3 (permalink)
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

KBL is very well built and tan great, however ask around about parts for KBL. I've been hearing some crazy things on prices & availability on parts.

The best VHOR bed on the market is the Prestige 1100 by Ergoline, the KBL Alpha is a close 2nd.
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Old 09-24-2012, 08:30 AM   #4 (permalink)
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

Ergo equipment is flash, but also built well, and tan great. I have Soltron/Ergo equipment and it is bulletproof. Parts are easy to get, and U can deal better, when buying Ergo equipment. Supply and demand, is the reason this company is still around, and most likely the last to go.
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Old 09-24-2012, 12:28 PM   #5 (permalink)
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

Ergo / Soltron hands down. Great tanning and bullet proof. KBL looks nice but parts are hard to come by and can be expensive.
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Old 09-24-2012, 01:11 PM   #6 (permalink)
 
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

Ergoline parts are not expensive? Ergoline forces you to ues their techs at a pretty high rate. I would say both KBL and Ergoline are expensive.

Also the upfront cost of Ergolines have gone up a lot in the last few years. I have heard that PC Tans has raised the price of KBL quite a bit in the last year or so, if thats true, well then they all cost too much!
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Old 09-24-2012, 01:57 PM   #7 (permalink)
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

Quote:
Also the upfront cost of Ergolines have gone up a lot in the last few years. I have heard that PC Tans has raised the price of KBL quite a bit in the last year or so, if thats true, well then they all cost too much!
Yeah, it's absolutely crazy some of the prices I am hearing. But if you have a solid business plan the ROI on these beds is awesome.
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Old 09-24-2012, 02:55 PM   #8 (permalink)
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

The real answer to your question is.........it depends! :-)


There is no "one best bed" or even "one best brand".

Best is a function of what else is around you, what you are trying to achieve, your budget and a lot of other factors.


For example - looking at your mix - I don't see that upgrading a Dance or a Shout to a KBL 6800 is going to make any difference at all.

What I DO see is that currently, you have 20 units - and 55% of them are Level 1. 75% of them are Level 1 and 2 combined. That means - all things equal - it is possible that you are seeing your usage mirroring that -- and that your customers have a lot more "opportunity" to do your lowest revenue producing units with the lowest performance - than they do any alternatives.

I would look at your numbers - and I will guess that they greatest room for improvement for you will be decreasing your number of Level 1 units - and increasing your number of upgrade units.

Within that - I see a clear opportunity to bring in full HP.

Also maybe other services - airbrush to complement the Mystic, teeth whitening, red light therapy, body wraps, hydration station, ..... ALL these are things that could fit in a room previously sized for a Level 1 bed - but have the potential to bring in a lot more revenue (key being POTENTIAL - have to know what you are doing with it!).

The GOOD news is - you are starting with a quality bed lineup! Now the key is to "tweak" things to get the most from it -
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Old 09-24-2012, 03:37 PM   #9 (permalink)
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

Get rid of the "pros" and replace them with hot peppers. THis is one of the best beds Soltron has ever made.
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Old 09-25-2012, 05:19 AM   #10 (permalink)
 
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Re: KBL vs ergoline

I am going to 'pop' in the conversation again...

I like BOTH KBL/Ergo, and yes on all points mentioned above....if I was to do it all over again, which I never will, I would stay local and look into Heartland Tan...an old favorite of mine, affordable, looks good w/o the cost, EZ to work and get parts for, well established company (USA). Perhaps I am a bit bias, since my work and association with them has always been positive. They are local to me (Atlanta), have visited their showroom and parts dept many times..they are a class A operation.
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