It is well known that the Jersey Shore cast are regular frequenters of tanning salons and they have helped to further popularize the practice. One of the cast members appears to have made a deal with a salon chain in order to endorse one of their favorite past times.
This story was being circulated last week, but we thought we’d share it anyways.
Anything to boost marketing!
One industry writer makes a good point. As the tanning debate continues, more and more tanning businesses are becoming vulnerable to litigation when it comes to the perceived effects of tanning.
While the tanning industry asserts that a moderate amount of UV light is good for you, there are others that want to argue that UV light is dangerous whatever the case. While this debate hasn’t been resolved with scientific certainty (you know of course what our position is!), there will still be customers that will seek lawsuits if they believe they have been harmed in any way by a tanning bed.
What the writer adds is that though he in no way seeks to take a definite position in the article, he sees many cases of litigation where customers argue they were not warned by the tanning salon about possible health dangers.
To get to the point, it wouldn’t hurt to take a look at the sample consent form he posted and think about how to best inform your customers. If you warn your customers about potential health risks (whether it is scientifically proven or not) you are less vulnerable to lawsuit. It is a simple way to protect your business.
There’s been a lot of hand-wringing in the tanning industry news lately. All we seem to see are articles concerning threats to the industry coming in from all sides: tan tax woes, state bans, and even the occasional oddball robbery or vandalism for good measure. So it is definitely a breath of fresh air to see some good news concerning tanning business.
A recent article out of Missoula mentions two local salons that have been doing relatively well even with the tan tax. One salon owner mentioned that the repeat tanners want to keep tanning, regardless of raised costs. Another salon owner talked about just absorbing the costs herself, keeping the tanning prices the same, and diversifying a bit, adding a hair salon. Business owners in Missoula are making do with what they have, which is definitely encouraging.
Another encouraging fact mentioned in the article that we did not know about is this: there are actually two bills circulating in Congress that advocate the repeal of the tan tax. Definitely good news!
There is an interesting story going around about a salon owner and her two daughters who survived a tornado by taking refuge in a tanning bed. Good for them! Here is some coverage of the event.
We’ve been watching coverage of the storms in the southeastern part of the country with horror. Destructive tornadoes have been carving up towns all over the map, leaving many homeless and over 240 dead. Our condolences go out to the victims of these terrible storms.
However there are some good bits of news amid the chaos. Saved by a tanning bed! Read more here.
Another story is up about a peeping tom victim’s experiences of being video taped in a tanning salon. The story brings up some good points about tanning privacy.
Many tanning salons have to leave gaps between their tanning booths and their ceilings for ventilation purposes. This poses a problem for tanning booth privacy, as customers can use chairs or other props to stand on and film tanners over the partitions.
If a tanning salon has to rely on these gaps for ventilation, there are several things to consider. The salon in the article mentions separating men and women into different sections, which could prevent some of these instances. Also, it wouldn’t hurt to remain extra vigilant when tanners are in a session, keeping an eye on the space in between the gaps or possibly retaining electronic devices that could take video.
These are just some of the ways to ensure better tanning privacy. And it helps to keep in mind that these instances are pretty rare, but if they do happen, they can be very distressing for the victims, and can invite possible lawsuits.
It never hurts to ensure that the customer can be sure of their privacy when they tan.