THE UK’s biggest tanning salon chain, which was founded in Stirling, has invested £350k into the opening of a new branch in Huddersfield.
It comes just a month after the Scottish tanning tycoon Indigo Sun reported its best ever results, recording a turnover of more than £26m and almost £5.6m profit in its latest financial year.
It plays part in a major expansion plan by Indigo Sun, with the Huddersfield venue becoming its fourth Yorkshire outlet to meet that demand, with a fifth (Doncaster) due to open within months.
Indigo Sun has an army of 18,000 tanning fans across Yorkshire, who spend an average of £500 each per year on tanning sessions.
The new salon created eight jobs and brings the total Yorkshire workforce to 40. It offers a host of hi-tech features including bluetooth sunbeds and personalised aircon and specialist settings for different skin types.
Frank Taylor, the founder and CEO of the family firm, commented: “Part of the reason that dedicated tanning salons are growing in popularity is because of the cost and complexity of the equipment.
“Modern sunbeds now have features such as Bluetooth so that customers can connect their phones and play their own choice of music. They also have sophisticated aircon systems and sensitivity settings for specific skin types.
“On top of that our salons have more sunbeds installed to reduce waiting times and dedicated staff with an in-depth knowledge on the use of sunbeds.
“Put all of that in a convenient location where people may also be visiting a gym, a supermarket, a pharmacy or a food outlet and you can see why the ease of use means our typical customers are now spending £500 a year with us.”
Across the UK, the firm, which is headquartered in Stirling, is targeting its expansion of towns or population centres of at least 100,000 people. In bigger cities, it will look to create clusters of salons, for more streamlined management.
Currently stretching from Inverness to London, Indigo Sun has 100 tanning venues across the UK, employing 817 people. Most of the salons are 1000-2000 sq ft.
