Island Sun Times

The concept behind The Tanning Wedge by KB Innovations, Inc. is as straightforward as it is effective – placed under each leg during a sunbed session, these acrylic wedges help your clients achieve a complete tan with no unsightly white “smilies.”

The Tanning Wedge is a perfect accessory sale for salon professionals, says Keith Brink, KB Innovations Vice President. “’Smilies’ are the white, crescent-shaped tan lines left in the area between the buttocks and the legs, and it’s a common problem for many female tanners,” he added. “The Tanning Wedge addresses this issue because it allows this area to tan. Best of all, it’s very easy to use – tanners simply place the wedges underneath the body where the white crescents are located, and tan as usual. Before long, those smilies will be completely gone, and replaced by evenly tanned skin.”

Salon owners will be glad to know that the patent-pending Tanning Wedge is made of 100 percent Polycast Solacryl. “I spoke with the tanning industry’s top acrylic manufacturers, and they’ve assured me that this material will not scratch the surface of the sunbed’s acrylics,” Keith explained. “And the product is very affordable, too – a pair of wedges sells to salons for $14 – and tanners can use them for as long as they need to. Best of all, it really works.”

Keith will never forget July 1, 2006. The date is etched into his memory because that was when he first came up with the idea for The Tanning Wedge. “I was at a family get-together and several of the women put on their bathing suits to go sit in the hot tub,” he recalled. “My daughter-in-law made a comment about her aunt’s ‘smiley faces’, and everybody laughed.” Keith asked what the “smilies” were, and was informed that’s what women call the white, crescent shaped areas below the buttocks that often don’t tan like the rest of the body does. “We went to the lake the next day and I noticed that a lot of women had them,” he said. “That’s when I said, ‘I can fix that.’”

Keith, a product manufacturer by trade, developed a wedge-shaped device to be placed where the buttocks and the leg meet, separating the two areas and allowing UV light to reach them. “Before we released it as a product, we tested them with a salon owner here in Oklahoma,” Keith said. “She used a wedge on one leg and nothing on the other to compare her tanning results. In just six sessions, the side with the Tanning Wedge was perfectly tanned, and she had a ‘smiley’ on the side without.” Keith promptly put The Tanning Wedge into full production, and the salon owner’s results are featured on the front page of the company’s website and in its ads.

The Tanning Wedge debuted at the Indoor Tanning Association World Expo 2006, and quickly became a popular salon accessory item. The product is sold by four industry distribution companies – American Sun Systems, Four Seasons Sales & Service, National Tanning Supply, and Salon Support. Salon pros interested in The Tanning Wedge are encouraged to contact these distributors.

For more information, call KB Innovations at 800.541.7199, or visit www.tanningwedge.com.