Six years ago, Karen Morris decided to bring something to her sleepy little tourist town –a tanning salon with a strong emphasis on customer service. Although small, the four-unit salon serves as the sole tanning-only salon in East Tawas, MI. But despite its size, the business is extremely popular with local tanners. The salon is so busy, in fact, that Karen is already scouting possible sites for a second Electric Beach in a nearby city.

Career Change
In 1999, Karen Morris made a drastic career change – she left her 12-year job driving a school bus and opened a tanning salon. Although five years have passed, some people in town still address her as “Mrs. Morris.” “Some of my clients used to ride my bus and many have children of their own now, but occasionally I have to remind them to call me Karen,” she laughed. “Believe it or not, my experience driving a bus actually helped me in owning the salon because it gave me many years of working with the public.” Electric Beach has the distinction of being the sole tanning-only salon in Tawas City, a fact Karen’s quite proud of. “We work to give our clients the best possible product by providing quality equipment and constantly educating ourselves about the tanning industry,” she commented.

Building the Beach
When Karen and her husband purchased Electric Beach in February 1999, there was plenty of work to be done. “I’ve been an indoor tanner for about 17 years, and I knew exactly what I wanted for our new business,” she said. “We immediately went to work improving the facility, upgrading the equipment. We added a stand up unit and later that year, we bought a new Ergoline Sundash bed we saw at a tanning expo in Las Vegas. Today, Electric Beach has four tanning units, an Exotic Tanning airbrush system, and lotions – lots of them. “We now carry Designer Skin and BreeZe products,” Karen said. “I’m very happy with these products. For our clients’ safety, we also offer California Tan Peepers eye protection.”

Electric Beach tanners can also pick up plenty of beachwear during a visit to the salon. “We carry sunglasses, t-shirts, swimwear, beach bags, sandals and shorts. Our brightly colored shirt line has palms, beach scenes, kissing fish and geckos that add to the festive tanning experience,” Karen tells us. “We try to offer something different than the tourist shops in town.”

Bright Lights, Small City
Word travels fast in a small town, and in the case of Electric Beach, Karen counts on it to help her business grow. “I reward my clients with two free sessions for each tanner they refer to our salon,” she said. “We also like to get involved with many of the local school fundraisers and activities. For the past couple of years, we’ve donated money and products to sponsor school projects such as PRIDE, an anti-drug program, 4-H clubs and Jump Rope for Heart.” For the salon’s five year anniversary, Karen held a drawing every Friday for tanning lotions, accessories and beachwear, and this generated a lot of excitement. “Designer Skin helped with the festivities by donating lotion and shirts, which was a very nice gesture on their part,” she added.

In the sparsely populated region of Tawas City, Electric Beach provides the locals with an opportunity to brush off the cold Northern winters with a tropical getaway. “We are the busiest between January and June, when we could see as many as 110 to 120 tanners a day,” Karen said. The salon’s logo is a sun, and the bright yellow walls are stenciled with starfish, dolphins, snails and exotic fish. “Our clients get an experience that’s beach-like and fun,” Karen continued. “Our motto is ‘Come tan with us and leave your tan lines at the door.”

Value In Education
As a responsible tanning professional interested in the future of her business, Karen is no stranger to tanning industry events. “We’ve been to the Las Vegas Expo, Solar Seminar TanCun 2002, and the ITA World Expo 2000 in Nashville,” she said. “I attend these events because it’s a great opportunity to learn new things, network with people in the business and see all the new products coming out.” Karen had planned to attend Solar Seminar 2004 in Jamaica, but her son was coming home from Iraq at that time, so she sent one of her employees instead. This year, she vows not to miss the industry’s No.1 networking event!

Looking Ahead
A continued investment in education and equipment, along with providing plenty of warm smiles, makes life a beach in Tawas City, MI. Electric Beach just celebrated its sixth anniversary, and Karen Morris is now looking a little to the north to expand and add another location. “I would love to open a second salon in Oscoda,” she com-
mented. “Some of our clients live in Oscoda, and it would be a great convenience for them, as well as great for our business.”

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Solar Beach Inc. is on the business growth fast track. Co-owner Hayley Jacobs has a long and unique history with the tanning industry. She started tanning indoors at the age of 13, so it's no surprise this bronzing Briton grew up to become co-owner of four salons. With education, an entrepreneurial spirit and a little help from friends and family, Solar Beach Inc. has established itself as an upscale salon chain with high-quality equipment and well staffed facilities where class is key and an unparalleled level of service can be found. Now, while keeping an eye on the future, Hayley's next step is to open more Solar Beach locations in the Hampton Roads, VA area.

Tanning in the UK
Perhaps it can be said that the Solar Beach salon chain was "destined to be." Hayley Jacobs purchased her first tanning bed when she was just 14 years old - before that, she rented a canopy to use at home for £20 a month (about $35 U.S.) "I'll never forget it," she laughed. "It had 10 sunlamps and I would lay on one side for about 20 minutes, then flip over and tan my other side for another 20 minutes." Hayley's education in indoor tanning continued into her adult years. While traveling across America with her U.S. Army husband, Hayley had an opportunity to see how different tanning salons were operated. "I saw things I liked and didn't like, and remembered these experiences when I purchased my first salon," she said.

How It Started
In 2001, Hayley's family expanded with the birth of her fourth child, Jasmine. Her hands full, Hayley was looking to earn a living that offered flexible hours. Her solution was to do what she's always loved to do - indoor tanning. "We purchased a salon and renamed it, then the real work began," Hayley said. "We were looking to create a professional atmosphere - a place where we could really pamper our guests and retain a 'mom and pop' feeling.

We invested about $10,000 in interior decorating, upgraded equipment and had our staff trained and certified." Hayley worked diligently to foster and achieve her business goals, often at the salon day and night for the first six months it was in operation. She often kept her baby at the salon with her in a bassinet behind the counter, but says the investment of time and energy was worth it. "Looking back, I wouldn't have it any other way," she added.

The success of Solar Beach has not been a solo effort. Hayley co-owns the business with the person she trusts most - her mom, Jean Schegel. The mother-daughter duo keeps the shops running smoothly because each woman's role in the business has a different focus. Jean oversees daily salon operations and deals with staff issues. While mom is busy with the staff, Hayley has her eye on the future and spends much of her time working to take her entrepreneurial effort to the next level.

Doing Business
Since its inception in April 2001, Solar Beach Inc. has grown from one salon to four, all located in the Hampton Roads, VA area. There are two salons in Portsmouth, with the other two in Suffolk and Chesapeake. All salons feature top-notch equipment and lotions - the small chain boasts a total of 62 tanning units, a majority being Ergoline Sundash sunbeds and new Soltron sunbeds soon to be installed. The two largest stores in Portsmouth and Suffolk also offer Magic Tan sunless spray booths. Clients who frequent the Suffolk location can also make an appointment to pamper themselves with a 60-minute session in the Sybaritic Spectracolor Spa, which provides light, sound, aroma, color, vibratory massage and heat, and it also burns calories. This is certainly an added bonus for clients who want to look and feel their best after their salon visit.

Solar Beach clients are welcomed by an atmosphere designed to relax and pamper them. "The dŽcor is intended to have a very upscale feel with marble-look tile and floors that are waxed twice a week," Hayley explained. "We have chosen a relaxing shade of tan for our rooms with complimenting wallpaper for the lobby, and our lotions are also showcased in a large built-in case that's mirrored and lighted." Small conveniences also make clients feel comfortable, such as intercoms in all the tanning rooms, large vanity areas with all the amenities, and a candy kiss left in every tanning room.

Getting the Word Out
Advertising and staying visible in the community keeps Solar Beach Inc. in the black. "Our most effective form of advertising is mailers," Hayley said. "We send oversized postcards personalized with our palm tree leaf and beach logo. The large size tends to get attention, and the logo reinforces brand recognition. It works very well for us." Solar beach has also cross-promoted with a company called Contours, a women's fitness chain. "We also help with a number of local school events and fundraisers, such as car washes, raffles and silent auctions," she added.

Solar Success
Who says events like IST's Solar Seminar aren't worth the investment? Certainly not Hayley Jacobs. Last December, she spent some valuable time in Jamaica networking with ETS Inc./Helios CEO, Bill Pipp. His help and guidance inspired Hayley to further develop her expansion plans, and her salons now sell Australian Gold and Swedish beauty products exclusively. "I was impressed with Bill and the concepts behind ETS. I feel they really take care of their customers and 'go the extra mile' with education. I like their year-end cash back program; it's a great value for my salons." Hayley was also inspired to visit the ETS headquarters in Indianapolis, IN, which she found impressive.

Hayley also tapped into another type of friendship at Solar Seminar. "I spent a lot of time with Dennis McCormick, owner of the Malibu Tan salon chain and a couple of day spas in the Detroit Area. "Meeting Dennis was a great opportunity for me!" She exclaimed. "I learned a lot from him about how to further my business, and I was very inspired by his ambitious belief that there is no limit to the number of salons I could open."

Big Dreams
With an emphasis on quality, education and customer service, the Solar Beach chain can surely look forward to a prosperous future, and expansion is a long-term goal. Hayley says she hopes to open salons in seven of the eight Hampton Roads areas of Virginia. "Right now, I'm fine-tuning my system," she said. "Now that our salons are established, it will be much easier to expand the chain because we know exactly what we want to do. The opportunity here is huge."