ETS Tanning Bed Blog

Some lawmakers in Delaware would like to see kids getting their parents’ permission to use tanning salons. A bill sponsored by Sen. Bethany Hall-Long would not allow teens 14 to 17 to use indoor tanning salons unless they had a consent form signed by a parent or guardian in the presence of a tanning facility operator. Those under the age of 14 would be totally prohibited from using tanning salons, unless medically prescribed by a doctor.

Delaware is following in the footsteps of Ohio lawmakers who already require parental consent for teen tanners ages 13 to 17. But now that state is considering even tighter restrictions.

According to a story on the NBC24 Philadelphia website, Democratic Senator Bethany Hall-Long of Middletown, is sponsoring a bill to make it illegal for a teen to tan in a commercial salon without parental permission.

The Indoor Tanning Association , which represents more 20,000 tanning salons is opposed to any legislation of this kind.

ITA Executive Director John Overstreet said in an interview with Macon.com that indoor tanning is safer than tanning on a beach . "It’s a lot easier to get a sunburn when you’re outside. In a tanning salon, you know exactly what you’re getting."

If the Delaware legislation is made law it would require parents of teens age 14 to 18 years old, to sign an annual consent form, and a doctor's approval for anyone under 14.

Over-regulation is a serious threat and one that could seriously hinder our industry. So, if you live in Delaware or know anyone in Delware, I urge you to write a letter and encourage your friends to write letters speaking out against this ban.

To learn more about legislation in your state, contact your local government or visit the Indoor Tanning Association website .

A recent study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that a high percentage of critically ill patients also suffered from vitamin D deficiencies.

Now, I'm all about vitamin D and its incredible health benefits (bone health, immune boosting, etc), but I'm a little concerned about the quality of this study.

First, it only followed 20 male and 22 female patients, making a total of 42 study participants - not exactly comprehensive research. And although the study found that only 7 percent of those individuals (3 of them) had sufficient vitamin D levels, it didn't do the best job of addressing the implications of that or acknowledging why these people were vitamin D deficient.

In the article, the author states "this study cannot establish causality between hypovitaminosis D and adverse outcomes," but he does concede that vitamin D deficiency in critically ill patients could result in potentially worse outcomes than for those whose vitamin D levels are fine.

We believe in and support the research being done by Drs. Lee, Eisman, and Center, and other vitamin D researchers. But I'd love to see further research on this along with suggestions on how we can get vitamin D to critically ill patients.

Because most critically ill patients are typically hospitalized or in care, they're most likely not getting that daily dose of sunlight or UV-B rays that is so critical to vitamin D creation in the human body. One way to do it may be portable face lamps or even lightweight, indoor tanning systems.

Face lamp and indoor tanning systems are commonplace in the medical systems of Nordic countries like Norway and Finalnd, so why aren't we using them here?

Last time, we discussed how to get members to upgrade to the next level of membership in your tanning salon by increasing the value of each level of membership , offering additional upgrades, additional passes, and even giving commissions or bonuses to your staffers who sell them.

So what are some other ideas to improve the value of membership, and get those revenue-generating upgrades?

When you get to Level 3 membership, the benefits should be about the prestige of being members, rather than saving/spending money. That is, when does a bigger discount on a bottle of lotion become just another gimmick? A tanner who has three different bottles of lotion won't be as jazzed by a fourth.

Customers who feel extra special will be extra loyal. They'll become raving fans who become your unpaid sales force because they're telling their friends about your salon. Your Level 2 and Level 3 members may end up being some of your best forms of advertising, so make them want to tell their friends about your salon. The best way to do that is to offer special benefits and programs that only the higher level members can get.

Improving the Value of Membership

Here are a few ideas other salon owners have used to add value to the upper levels of their membership. If you have any of your own, add them to the comments section.

• Offer a wine and cheese night for Level 3 members. Put a price on it. Let Level 1 and 2 members come, but they have to pay for the price.
• Offer a text club. Send texts about specials out in reverse order. Level 3 gets the first round, Level 2 gets the next, and so on.
• Open up during special hours that only Level 3 members can take advantage of.
• Create a referral program. Give rewards to people who refer new customers to your salon.
• Give extra gifts like iTunes or Starbucks gift cards.
• Offer free access to special equipment like the Rejuvasun bed.

Last time, we discussed how to get occasional customers to become members of your tanning salon by bundling services together, adding some discounts, and throwing in things like Free Friday Bed Upgrades or Free Friday Friends and Family passes. This will get the occasional customers to become members, and increase your cash flow.

But what do you do for the people who are already members, and you want to get them to bump up to the next level?

Getting Them to Move Up

In our last example, we were charging $20 a month for a customer to become a member. They were given unlimited tanning on the Level 1 beds, got discounts on tanning lotions, and one free upgrade and pass per month.

To get them to move to Level 2, $35 per month, give them unlimited tanning on the Level 1 and 2 beds. Give them bigger discounts -- say 15% -- on tanning lotions and teeth whitening services. Give them an extra Free Friday Friend & Family pass each month (remember, these are potential customers who are visiting your salon for the first time).

Level 3 could include unlimited tanning in any bed of their choice, a free bottle of lotion, a free teeth whitening session, and special Level 3 members-only events. (We'll discuss some of those next time.) Some salons even throw in free uses of their Rejuvasun beds . (We'll talk about the benefits of Rejuvasun beds for salon owners soon.)

Show Them the Money

After a while, explaining all of this can be rather difficult, and hard to keep straight. Build a menu board that shows the three or four different levels of membership. Divide it into as 3 or 4 columns, and show them what they get for each membership.

Your board can include number of visits, levels of beds available, lotion discounts, free passes, and even special events (more on that next time). Make sure you show them the value of each membership level, as well as the cost.

Finally, be sure to train your staff to sell the value of the membership to the customers, and the value of upgrades to your members. Offer your staff incentives and commissions for selling memberships and upgrades. Their success means success for you. Reward them accordingly.

Next time, we'll discuss some different bonuses you can add to your different membership levels.

Are you running a membership program now? What are some things you offer your members? Leave us a comment or ask a question. We might even turn it into a blog post.

Buying an existing tanning salon involves a lot more than applying for a loan and signing a few legal forms. It takes research, an understanding of the business development, patience and a willingness to walk away from the deal (it happens).

I came across a recent article on the GlobalBX blog about buying an existing beauty salon or barber shop . Yes, I know a tanning salon is neither of those things, but the business development between the two industries can be fairly similar. Both are service-oriented businesses often geared towards individuals interested in improving their physical appearance. As a result, many of the tips and steps laid out in the article could easily be applied to the tanning salon business.

1. Check the Customer Stats

Regular customers are going to be your bread and butter, so before you buy a tanning salon, make sure they have them. Then, make sure the number of regular customers is either going up or remaining stable, not going down.

If the tanning salon you're interested in doesn't have a strong customer base, ask why? Is it the local competition? The existing marketing? Do you think you could really turn it around and if so, how? Is the lack of regular customers reflected in the sale price?

 2. Assess the Equipment Value

Most of a tanning salon's hard value is in its tanning beds. A salon with 15-year-old beds and no concern for current trends has little-to-no assets other than its customers.

If you're looking at a salon and thinking of upgrading the equipment, or even just need help assessing the current value of the beds, please feel free to drop us a line . We'd be happy to consult on the potential equipment needs, if any, of a tanning salon.

3. Get a Clear Financial Picture

Before you buy any business, you should be able to review their financial records. You're looking at more than just profits and losses though, you want to funnel down to their individual overhead costs, marketing expenses, staff costs and each and every source of revenue. Is there potential here? Are there revenue sources, like product, that they're not maximizing? Could you cut costs or will too-high rents keep this salon from ever achieving real profitability?

4. What About Staff Assets?

In terms of staff, will this tanning salon be a turnkey operation or will you need to spend the first few months overhauling and retraining the staff ? A quality staff can make a transition smooth and effortless while a problem staff is going to cost you profits.

A friend in Oregon owns a number of salons and before he purchases an existing location, he either scouts it out himself or sends a friend or staff member over to check out the level of customer service. It's a tactic that gives him great insight into how well the operation is really working.

5. Is there Potential?

Finally, buying a tanning salon isn't just about accepting the existing customers and existing revenues, it's also about recognizing the potential for business development. While you don't want to ruin a good thing, any solid investment should have some room for improvement.

Cancer Monthly , a cancer patient advocacy magazine, has published yet another article linking sun exposure (including UV-B exposure which can be derived from indoor tanning in tanning salons) to a reduced cancer risk.

The article, published in March 2009, cites a recent study published in the Annals of Epidemiology (Grant WB, Mohr SB. Ecological studies of ultraviolet B, vitamin D and cancer since 2000. Annals of Epidemiology, 2009) that found strong associations between vitamin D deficiencies (we get vitamin D from the sun and UV-B sources like indoor tanning) and various cancers, particularly colon, and breast cancer.

Dr. William B. Grant, Director of the Sunlight, Nutrition and Health Research Center (SUNARC) and a prominent researcher on vitamin D, says there are 14 different types of cancer that can be linked to UV-B exposure deficiencies. And since vitamin D is rare in the food supply, often added as a fortified supplement, most people can only obtain about 200-300 IU of the vitamin on a daily basis through diet (a fraction of what’s needed). Meanwhile, even just a small amount of UV-B exposure (5-10 minutes) can produce 1,500 to 4,000 IU of the crucial vitamin.

According to the article, there are also strong links between vitamin D deficiencies and non-Hodgkin lymphoma, ovarian cancer, and kidney cancer. As we have also detailed in our blog, researchers have also found connections between vitamin D and "a reduced incidence of other diseases," such as colds and flu, coronary heart disease, stroke, and congestive heart failure.

Though Dr. Grant recommends taking a vitamin D supplement during the winter months, indoor tanning in tanning salons can actually replicate those same vitamin-D providing UV-B rays as the natural sun.

You can read the full article Cancer Monthly article here.

We all know what happens when humans suffer from vitamin D deficiencies. Osteoporosis can occur, as well as osteomalacia, a bone-thinning disorder that happens in adults, and rickets, a childhood disease that retards the strength, growth and stability of the long bones.

Very few nations have higher levels of vitamin D deficiency than Canada.. According to a recent article in the Calgary Herald, studies by Dr. Michael Holick of Boston University shows that showed Canadians haven't been getting enough vitamin D .

"We did a study in Edmonton many years ago, which showed that you basically can't make any vitamin D there from October until about the first of April," said Dr. Holick.

Holick added that many Canadians are not getting enough vitamin D from sunlight, or from drinking milk, which might supply a small portion of the daily requirement. Another key finding from North American Conference on UV in 2006 showed that during the winter months, Canadians don't get enough vitamin D because the sun's rays are weaker in the winter. It is recommended that Canadians may want to consider taking vitamin D supplements during the winter.

However the specific country does have its skeptics.

Jacqueline Severson, a registered nurse from Morinville, Alberta, believes the news to be "interesting" but raises questions as to why Canadians were singled out and not other nations from northern climates like the United States, Russia, Norway, Sweden or the Alpine nations.

"I imagine it's not just Canada and Canadians lacking in vitamin D, but a lot of those northern countries especially in the winter months," Severson said. "It's the region more than the nationality."

Severson, who lived in her native Canada for 25 years, said while it's true that winter weather drives more people indoors in Canada, there are other parts of the world that receive as much winter weather as the Great White North.

She agreed that part of British Columbia could be susceptible to a lack of sunlight, but more so because of rainy weather in the wintertime and that parts of the United States, like Washington and Oregon would also have rainy weather because of their location.

Severson doesn't worry about a deficiency of vitamin D herself as she lives in Arizona year-round, but that's because of her preference, not the health risk.

"I happen to like the sun and the warmer climate."