Dear Readers,
I hope that summer’s first half has been a good one for your business and family, and that you’ve had some time for fun. I haven’t taken much “me time” as yet; however, I look forward to some R & R this month.
For me, August is a time to take a good look at my salon chain’s performance and compare it to the budget I developed early last November. I consider my annual budgets to be one of the most important tools for measuring my companies’ operations. For my salons and franchisees, average tanners are down by eight percent and sales are down just over five percent. That being said, I feel that the weather played a major role in the sales slump. I usually start talking to salon owners and tanning product manufacturers in early June to get a feel for how the season fared. This year, I concluded from my conversations that the industry is down anywhere from 7-20 percent and most believed that the weather was a significant factor. But we go on – another season will be here before we know it and will be bringing some change … but change can be good.
Whenever there is change, we do our best to make sure you’re informed. In June, ist Magazine alerted our email Club Members that after many years of scrutinizing our industry, the FDA finally rendered their decision and have reclassified tanning equipment and sunlamps as Class II medical devices. What does this decision mean to you as a salon operator? Our Head Writer, John Ribner, talked to leaders at the companies that will be directly affected by the reclassification. Be sure to read our Cover Story, “FDA Reclassification … What Class II means for YOU!” Many elements of the decision will still need clarification, and you can count on our team to bring you updates on this important issue – we are your industry resource.
We work very hard to keep our community connected! Check out our new feature, “Salon Pros Say …” (p. 68). We will be posting questions you can respond to on our facebook page – we want to know what you have to say.
There is a lot of great energy in the tan biz right now! With another successful West Coast Expo now in the history books, it’s time to start preparing to get to St. Louis, MO for the National™ Tanning Expo in October. It will be a great time for you to get your team certified with Sun is Life® Training, see everything new for the upcoming season and do some valuable networking with tanning community leaders who are dedicated to the growth of our industry.
Thanks for reading.
