Want a Tan? Eat a Snack!

Want a Tan? Eat a Snack!

by Hollie Costello

It is very rare that something totally unique comes to the indoor tanning industry, though things do improve and expand, becoming bigger and better with time and experience. Performance Brands, Inc., the Plantation, Fla.-based makers of PRO TAN^® lotions, wants to do both. With two new nutrition bars that not only provide energy and increase metabolism but also make people tan, Performance Brands is adding to their lotion legacy as well as setting a new standard for the indoor tanning industry. A standard of health and well-being on the inside as well as on the outside.

Bars As Big Business

In years past, nutritional bars were plentiful. Any day of the week, any week of the year, people could enter a gym, a supermarket, even a wholesale store and purchase nutritional supple- ment bars that would give them quick energy or a low-fat snack.

No where were nutritional bars more plentiful than at body building and muscle/fitness competitions. Providing athletes quick energy without ruining years of hard work, the bars were a good source of vitamins and nutrients.

Stacy Kaufman, president of Performance Brands, Inc., noticed this proliferation of supplements as he made his way through the circuit of competitions and workout centers, advertising his PRO TAN^® lotion products to the athletes.

"Bodybuilders were using the bars as a supplement because they fill you up in addition to providing the vitamins and nutrients a body needs," he says. "Gyms and distributors were making thousands of dollars a month just selling the bars."

Kaufman soon came up with an idea of his own. Searching far and wide for nutritionists in addition to working with the most up-to-date research available, Kaufman created Slim Tan^® and Quick Tan^™--nutritional bars with melanin enhancers and other nutrients that contribute to a deep, dark tan.

"I thought, if they can sell these bars at the gym and make so much extra money, why not try it at indoor tanning salons, which body builders also patronize," he notes. "People, not just body builders, go to salons because they are living in a fast-paced world. These bars are the perfect solution for people on the go."

You Can Never Be Too Thin or Too Tan

Slim Tan^®, which comes in two flavors--yogurt covered apple/cinnamon and yogurt covered strawberry/banana--are made with a ratio of energizing carbohydrates to protein builders. According to the company, the ingredients in Slim Tan alter fat metabolism, helping customers decrease stored body fat.

"There is a growing market in functional foods," Kaufman says. "So far, the indoor tanning industry has been very receptive of the bars and we hope to support them as well. Right now, we are selling the bars exclusively at salons, and hope never to have to sell them anywhere else."

Slim Tan is made of vitamins and minerals, including natural fibers that release carbohydrates slowly, preventing energy peaks and valleys that often occur with snacks. In addition to thermogenic and fat-burning nutrients such as hydroxy-citric acid, which diverts dietary fat away from storage areas and allows the body to burn it for energy, the bars contain chromium picollnate, an insulin enhancer which burns fat and protects proteins, resulting in leaner, better-conditioned muscles.

However, that is not all Slim Tan offers. The bars contain Tyrosine, a building block for melanin, which creates darker skin color.

"The bars can tan by themselves, without any type of indoor tanning involved," Kaufman says. "If a person ate one bar a day for 7 to 14 days, they will achieve a golden tan without even being near sun or an indoor tanning booth."

Quick Energy

In addition to the Slim Tan products, Kaufman presented the Quick Tan products to the public at LOOKING FIT's 10th Annual International Tanning Trade Expo. Quick Tan, like Slim Tan, contains the Tyrosine for the deep, dark color; however, with the Quick Tan energy bars, the body also can use the Tyrosine as adrenaline, offering increased alertness and a burst of energy. Rounding out the energy effects in the chocolate covered whole grain granola--flavored with peanuts, vanilla, raisins and apples--are kola nut and guarana as well as cocoa for small bursts of caffeine-like compounds.

"This offers the incremental sales for salons," Kaufman states. "The bars also can act as a conversation piece which could lead to other incremental sales and more daily cash intake."

Kaufman stresses that he did not make the bars to compete with the indoor tanning industry. He wants to enhance salon sales by adding a nutritional snack into the customer's quick visit.

"This is a pure profit center for salons," he says. The company recommends a $2 per bar price; however, if the salon feels it can make a profit at a lower price, they determine how the bars will sell.

"Salon owners are looking for something that will make clients spend money on a regular basis," he says. "They already have the monthly revenue of the sessions and memberships, now they need something that will bring daily revenue into the salon.

"Our goal is to make all customers happy--from the salons who buy the bars from us to the clients that buy the bars from salons," he continues. "People will be skeptical; however, selling quick energy or a dietary boost only can help salons increase their bottom line."