There are an estimated 25,000 tanning salons nationwide, yielding nearly $2 billion dollars in sales per year in the US alone. However, even in “sunshine” states like Florida and California, tanning salons are still booming industries with an appeal that seems to be a never ending successful venture.

So what is the secret to starting one of these cash-cow businesses? Where do you start? How much will it cost for start up, and then yearly expenses? But most importantly…how do you reach customers and make yourself more attractive?

Perhaps all you need is vision, drive, initiative and a little creativity to get you started running a franchise or self-owned tanning salon…and it may be just as easy as a breath of air.

Sometimes a “gimmick” is all you need to get going; something fun and exciting that your average strip-mall tanning salon won’t offer. Still can’t guess? Think H2O.

Patte Purcell, owner and founder of The Oxygen Experience can attest to the benefits of simply adding oxygen to your tanning services. Her patented oxygen bar system is ideal for tanning salons, not only to provide aromatherapy services, but also [...]

Tanning beds can cost up to $25,000 per bed depending on the quality, which can really drain a tanning salon of its cash flow.  This is why many tanning salons choose to lease their equipment.

By leasing tanning equipment, the tanning salon can also save their credit to use in an emergency situation, instead of taking out a loan to buy an expensive tanning bed.

There is also a tax advantage for leasing tanning equipment.  Salons who lease their equipment are allowed to write off the rental payments, which is more attractive than the depreciation tax cuts for owning tanning equipment.

The Indoor Tanning Association (ITA) announces that the Tanning World Expo will be held in Nashville, TN at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center through 2012. http://www.theita.com/

YEAR—–DATES
2006——October 26th-29th
2007——October 11th-14th
2008——September 18th-21st
2009——October 22nd-25th
2010——November 4th-7th
2011——September 29th-October 2nd
2012——November 1st-4th

This debate has been waging for years amongst scientists.  However, the public does not seem to care much as they continue to patronize their local tanning salon.  Some scientists feel that any sun is bad sun.  While others, like Dr. Berwick (2001) believes that sun tanning gives the body much needed Vitamin D which is activated in the skin through sunlight.  Exposure to ultraviolet rays has also been said to help reduce psoriasis pains.

Sun tanning is bad when you burn, however when your skin tans at a slow rate it is actually the body’s way of protecting itself.  By forming a nice base tan the skin is less likely to burn and therefore less likely to experience the harmful effects of the sun. So if avoiding sun burns is the way to make tanning healthy, then tanning beds seem to be a perfect solution.

Developing skin cancer or melanoma takes 20-30 years of over exposure to the sun.  Therefore the cases of melanoma of today were caused back in the 1970’s before tanning beds became popular.  The number of deaths related to non-melanoma skin cancer has decreased [...]

20 minute tanning time – 28 High Powered Phillips 100 Watt tanning lamps (14 in the canopy and 14 in the bench)
Tanning bed costs approximately $3,000

20 minutes tanning time – 32 High Powered Bronzing 100 Watt tanning lamps (16 in the canopy and 16 in the bench)
Tanning bed costs approximately $5,000
15 minute tanning time – 36 High Powered 100 Watt Reflective BRONZING lamps (18 in the canopy and 18 in the bench)
Tanning bed costs approximately $5,500

12 minute tanning time – 20 High Powered BRONZING 160 Watt Reflective tanning lamps in the canopy and 20 100 Watt tanning lamps in the bench
Tanning bed can cost $6,500
12 minute tanning time – 20 (2 meter) High Powered 180 Watt Reflective tanning lamps in the canopy and 20 (2 meter) High Powered 120 Watt Reflective tanning lamps in the bench
Tanning bed costs approximately $9,500

If it were simple to attain a loan – everyone would have one. There is quite a bit involved in the loan process. There are a number of forms to fill out and background checks to conduct.

There are a number of sections required in creating your loan proposal document. There is a summary of the request, which simply summarizes The Summary of Request section is similar to an executive summary in a business plan. A person should have a good idea of your entire proposal after reading the summary. It is best to write the Summary of Requests last in order to include all the information necessary.

Borrower’s history is another section that needs to be in your franchising loan proposal. This section will contain a short description of the franchise you are purchasing as well as your own business history. You should also mention how you will build on past success to guide your future success.

The Market Data section of the franchising loan proposal should include an overview of industry trends, assessment of competitors, market size and potential, advertising strategies and an industry trend overview. The [...]

The scare of skin cancer being caused by UV rays has made people turn to sunless tanning or a spray tan. The best sunless tanning sprays contain DHA (dihydroxyacetone) as the active ingredient. DHA is a chemical that mixes with dead skin cells to produce the appearance of a tan.

The only draw back to this type of tanning is that it lasts only 7 – 10 days due to the shedding of dead skin cells. DHA has no known side effects for external application as long as the eyes, lips and mucous membranes are protected. Those who get this sunless tan must keep in mind that it is not a real tan so they can still burn from UV ray exposure.

1. What is the risk involved with franchising and how do you (the franchiser) intend to minimize that risk?

2. What happens if I decide I no longer want to operate the franchise? Do you (the franchiser) have a policy that requires me to pay a cancellation fee?

3. Do you have any lawsuits against your franchise? May I see the list of lawsuits?
(Look at reasons sited to see if there is a pattern).

4. What is your franchisee turnover rate? Can I have a list of the franchisees that left?

5. How much money can I potentially earn? – They should not answer this question, as the law prohibits them. Be careful of the ones who do answer this.

6. Do the company-owned stores provide most of the support for the parent company? (Should be a yes to avoid over-dependence on the royalty stream).

7. Is your franchise trademarked? (Should be because it’s what you are buying with the franchising fee).

8. How long is your franchise-training program? (Don’t want it to be too short/long).

9. Can I see some of your company’s financial statements?

10. Can I have [...]

Tanning beds can cost up to $25,000 per bed depending on the quality, which can really drain a tanning salon of its cash flow.  This is why many tanning salons choose to lease their equipment.

By leasing tanning equipment, the tanning salon can also save their credit to use in an emergency situation, instead of taking out a loan to buy an expensive tanning bed.

There is also a tax advantage for leasing tanning equipment.  Salons who lease their equipment are allowed to write off the rental payments, which is more attractive than the depreciation tax cuts for owning tanning equipment.