Conversations With The Industry

by Judie Bizzozero

It’s an undisputed fact that the 2004 Florida hurricane season was the worst the United States has seen in 130 years. Four major hurricanes—Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne—made landfall in the Sunshine State within a crushing six-week period between August and September.

The Florida Insurance Council and Insurance Information Institute in New York have projected total insured losses from the four hurricanes at $22 billion to $23 billion, and total claims at more than 2.2 million. According to the III, Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne will be among the top eight more expensive hurricanes in U.S. history. Additionally, the 2004 Florida hurricane season would be the second greater insurance event in U.S. history behind only the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that produced $32 billion in insured losses.

LOOKING FIT® recently talked with some Florida tanning salons and suppliers to see how Mother Nature affected their livelihoods.

“All four hurricanes affected our business. We were forced to board up and close the salon because they couldn’t predict where the hurricane eyes were going to hit or how strong the winds were going to be. My salon sustained some roof damage and flooding. We also were without power for 10 days, which resulted in a loss of income. In fact, we barely were able to pay our overhead costs.

“However, we still consider ourselves lucky. There were a number of nearby salons that were devastated. We’ve helped out by accommodating their customers. We also contacted Australian Gold and California Tan for SPF donations. Both companies were very generous. My daughter, Jessica, and I handed out the SPF products to residents, relief crews and emergency service stations in Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda, which were hardest hit by Hurricane Charley.

“The tanning industry will endure, and we have high hopes that the winter snowbirds will return to Florida and our business will thrive.”

—Darlene Manning, Beachside Tanning Salon, Cape Coral, Fla.

“Things were really chaotic from Aug. 1 to the middle of September. Right from the start we knew it was going to be a record hurricane season and, unfortunately, we were right. The biggest problem was there wasn’t enough manpower or time for the city to clear away the debris left behind from Hurricane Charley. When Hurricane Frances came storming through, that debris turned into flying missiles and caused more damage. It was amazing the amount of devastation that surrounded the area.

“Our facility was relatively unscathed considering we were right on the fringe of the evacuation area. We took the usual precautions such as boarding up the building and securing our production facility and computer systems in case of flooding or water damage. We also were closed for a total of five days over the course of the four storms. This resulted in some lost revenue, but we’ve recovered.

“Our main business interruption was caused by the transportation standstill. The state experienced a gas shortage and freight trucks couldn’t get in or out of Florida. It made it extremely difficult to get our products to our customers and our ingredients to our facility. Luckily, things got back to normal relatively quickly.

“We’ve got great employees who made donations to the American Red Cross hurricane relief fund and we matched those donations dollar for dollar.”

—Mike Lemle, BreeZe Products, Largo, Fla.

“We didn’t take a direct hit like the folks in the Florida panhandle but we did suffer loss of business. You had to prepare for the worst because the forecasters couldn’t pinpoint where the hurricanes would make landfall. That meant boarding up the salon and securing equipment and products. Even though we were open most of the time, we estimate that revenues were down by 20 percent in September.

“This meant we had to play catch-up or risk ending the year on a sour note. I motivated myself and my staff to increase our sales skills to get more people in the door. In October, we were close to 15 percent over the previous year’s revenue at that time. We are glad to start the 2005 season next month because we know we can succeed above and beyond expectations when we drive ourselves.

“We escaped significant storm damage, but I advise other salons to make sure they have all the proper insurance coverages in place before next year. We are going to have a new game plan for a new season.”

—Jack D. Hays, Miami Tan Indoor Tanning Center, North Miami, Fla.

“While we did not take a direct hit, our graphic artist was without power and cable for a couple of days, which caused a lot of delays. We protected our physical building by boarding up all the windows and making sure the computers were properly shut down and moved to a higher location in case of flooding.

“I’m sure the tanning salons in the direct path of the hurricanes took a hit in their pocketbooks; however, it really didn’t affect our bottom line as much as it added a lot of extra stress and a few more gray hairs to my head. I really don’t see any lasting effects lingering for the start of the 2005 season.”

—Stacy Kauffman, Performance Brands, Sunrise, Fla.

“Overall, our business escaped a major hit, but we did have to close early, board up the building and shut off the water, gas and electric. Fortunately, we were only without power for 24 hours during both hurricanes Charley and Frances and had suffered only minor water damage. Unfortunately, our cable modems were down nearly two weeks after Frances struck and we were unable to respond to some calls and get shipments out on time.

“In terms of lasting economic impact, I think the entire state is going to suffer for awhile. Tourism along the coastal areas probably declined, and I predict that some residents displaced by the hurricanes may not rebuild.

“Our staff donated 250 pounds of food and $250 in cash to Second Harvest Food Bank of Florida to help the victims. Some staff members even gave a small part of themselves in the form of blood donations.”

—Jerry and Susan Baughman, Twighlight Teeth, Longwood, Fla.