I cannot quite believe what I am about to say. I feel the need to whisper, so as not to jeopardise matters – but equally, I want to shout it out as loudly as I possibly can: tanning salons around the UK and Ireland are generally reporting their busiest start to the year for many, many years!
After what was overall another challenging start to the New Year, I am somewhat surprised but of course, equally delighted! Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised that my own team is busier than it has been for some considerable time. Yet, it was literally only a few weeks ago when we reached record numbers of positive Omicron COVID cases in the UK and whilst the threat of another lockdown was never really a viable option whichever way you looked at it, the consumer mood level was undeniably at a low ebb and that impacted salon footfall and spending. Fast-forward a month or so and now, a remarkably different picture is being painted.
There can be no doubt professional tanning salons should be looking forward with confidence after two long and difficult years.
And yet, all this is despite some ongoing restrictions and salons still suffering the impact of the Omicron variant. But there can be no denying, overall, salon footfall is up, up, up! It is almost as if I am in a very pleasant yet illogical dream from which I simply do not want to wake. But I am awake and there is no mistake: the overall industry vibe is very positive indeed.
Talking to colleagues and salon owners, it seems clear that we are once again experiencing the release of a pent-up demand for tanning. The Omicron variant was so prevalent in the lead-up to and over Christmas and the New Year, resulting in parties, festivities and gatherings being cancelled or put on hold as everyone tried to avoid testing positive.
But it is certainly all changing now. And the demand has no doubt also been fuelled by the removal of expensive COVID testing requirements for holidaymakers returning to the UK. Just about everyone I talk to has already booked or is planning to book their holiday, with many taking them earlier than usual, which quite possibly also means they may very well justify another holiday later in the year as well! Of course, this is all good news for UK tanning salon operators with a large percentage of their customers using the salon to secure their pre-holiday base tan and then post-holiday top-up!
It is also good to see that this boost in business is realising a boost in confidence and ergo, a boost in investment in new equipment and new lotions. We are even talking to salon owners planning their next phase of expansion. There can be no doubt professional tanning salons should be looking forward with confidence after two long and difficult years.
So, the timing could simply not be better for SHINE, our annual national industry event, which is taking place for the first time since 2019. Whether by foresight or simply pure coincidence, the line-up of presentations represents a perfect reflection of what our industry needs right now and for all those attending, I very much expect it to provide the perfect springboard into the 2022 season, equipping salon operators with the tools, information and confidence to make 2022 a year to remember … and for all the RIGHT reasons!
