ETS Tanning Bed Blog

It's like a line of dominoes. After Utah and Florida started banning teen tanning, other states have quickly been falling. In Arkansas, the state senate passed a bill, 34 - 1, that will require a parent or guardian's consent before teenagers can use indoor tanning facilities.

We found this one on our own local NBC station, WTHR. ence Day">Hollywood Tans will celebrate TanNation Independence Day by offering free tans to all customers in participating salons on April 4, 2009. Customers can sign up for TanNation at their website and find them on Facebook.

WCTV, Tallahasee, Fla.'s CBS affiliate found there are more tanning salons than McDonald's and Starbucks combined. Some of the salons included apartment complexes that include them as part of their amenities. Florida is one of the states considering a ban on anyone under the age of 16 using tanning salons.

Tanning salons in the Sunshine State are not taking the proposed ban lying down. A story on NBC-2, Southwest Florida's NBC affiliate said tanning salon owners are speaking out against the ban. "Any tanner we lose of course affects our bottom line," said Brandi Botts of Tan Lines Studio in Cape Coral.

Hair and tanning salons are feeling the weight of the economy right now. In Providence, Rhode Island, people are stretching out their haircuts, skipping facials, and avoiding pre-season tanning sessions. Salon owners there are saying business is down from where it was last year. One salon reported their business is down 15 - 20%.

Who knows why some of these stories get legs, but we couldn't help seeing Simon Cowell's smiling face in the news this past week. The American Idol producer is installing a professional tanning salon in his new $22 million, 11,550 sq. ft. Beverly Hills mansion. According to the London Daily Mail, the solarium off the master bedroom will have a full-length tanning machine and a facial tanner.