Buyers Beware

Hey so for our ad class, we all got assigned into group to come up with an idea for the project. My group consisted of Jeremy, lisa and Tom. The four of us chose the topic of tanning salons, our teacher was skeptical on the subject but I think we did a pretty good job. We researched on how well tanning salons in the city do at informing their customers of the risks associated with tanning. We checked out five local shops:

Fabutan
TanFX
Sun City
Lava Suntan Studios
Golden Tan

We found that Fabutan and TanFX are both franchises and offer franchising opportunities,  they both have a selection of pamphlets, information posted in their lobbies and tanning bed rooms, and they both have websites. In fact TanFX has a tab on their site dedicated to positive press releases from the International Agency of Research on Cancer (IARC)  They both have strict guidelines on tanning precautions, appointment booking and time limits on their beds.  Although, buyer's beware: some staff do not follow these regulations.  As in an interview I conducted with a fellow co-worker (the name of which i will not disclose) She is a middle aged woman, who has outdoor tanned most of her life and only used tanning beds for two years.  In her first year at Fabutan, she was allowed to tan almost everyday for a year.  In her second year, as a new manger took over, she was not allowed to tan this often; the result of this excessive tanning she says

" It did wreck my skin.  The owner didn’t care how long I went.  I found a spot on my leg and that's why I went to see a dermatologist.  He said it was nothing but found a precancerous spot on my nose.  No doubt that was from the tanning bed.  All that intensity right in your face!  I couldn’t even believe it! He came into the room with a silver bottle, it was very cold and he zapped it off.  I see him every six months now."

She also said that she was not fully informed of the risks of tanning.  As hard as I looked I couldn't find anywhere associated with indoor tanning the actual risks and harm it could do to you.


The last three places: Sun City, Lava Suntan Studios and Golden Tan, did not offer brochures, they didn't have any posters up in their stores about the risks and precautions.  And one place even told me, "Its is not any different than being out in the sun, you have to protect yourself."


Our conclusion is, if you choose to use indoor tanning, go to Fabutan or Tan FX, but even so make sure you are aware and follow their guidelines.