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Eddie Hakim opened his first salon in Sterling Heights in 1987. Business picks up as people prepare for vacation somewhere warm, he says.Local spotlight
Tanning, hot tub fans enjoy bubbly hot spot
Spa owner says winter is the peak time when vacationers seek bronze tone before their trip.
Bubbly Tan & Tub owner Eddie Hakim, shown with his wife Linda, says the secret to his Madison Heights business's success is the most up-to-date products and equipment. He offers more than 200 tanning lotions.
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MADISON HEIGHTS -- The debate over the health risks and benefits of tanning hasn't been resolved, but Michigan tanning salons can still count on people wanting to look their best before heading south for a vacation during winter.
It's a predictable trend that helps make tanning a steady business for Eddie Hakim and his wife, Linda, who operate 17 tanning rooms and four hot tubs at Bubbly Tub & Tan on John R in Madison Heights. Business picks up as people prepare to put on bathing suits for vacation and then casual clothes for summer.
"People tan all year-round but the next few months are the peak," Hakim said.
Tanning is a $5 billion industry in the United States with more than 30 million customers, and Michigan is a hot spot with 2,200 salons, according to the Indoor Tanning Association.
Hakim opened his first tanning salon in Sterling Heights in 1987 and moved to his current location in 1993. He competes against at least half a dozen tanning salons within a mile and close to 30 within the five-mile radius he considers his primary market.
According to Hakim, the way to stand out in the crowd is to keep the equipment up to date and in perfect running order. He carries more than 200 tanning lotions and added 50 new ones this week.
"I want to make sure I have everything new," he said.
Hakim boasts that he hasn't raised his rates since 1993. Most customers pay $19.95 for a five-session package. For $99.95, they get four sessions in high-pressure tanning beds or the UV-free spray tanning booth.
Marcia Kopich of Royal Oak, an operating room scrub technician at Southeast Michigan Surgical Hospital, said she passes by other tanning salons to come to Bubbly Tub & Tan two or three times a week because the staff is friendly and the facilities are clean.
She likes to build up her tan before going on winter vacation, but she also believes tanning improves her health, both mentally and physically.
"I'm one of those people who have to have sunlight in the winter," Kopich said. "It makes you look healthy and feel healthy."
She says friends have warned her that the ultraviolet (UV) rays absorbed during tanning can lead to premature wrinkling and even skin cancer, but a book published last year documents the health benefits of short periods of exposure to natural or artificial sunlight several times a week.
In "The UV Advantage," Dr. Michael Holick of the Boston University School of Medicine argues that 40 percent to 60 percent of Americans are seasonally or chronically deficient in vitamin D. "Many who practice dermatology and their supporters in the sunscreen industry have scared the public right out of the sun, the best way to produce the vitamin D the body needs," he said.
According to Holick, adequate vitamin D production improves bone health and helps prevent a long list of maladies, including heart disease, several types of cancer, diabetes and arthritis. It also lessens the symptoms of seasonal affective disorder that can lead to depression.
Eric Pope is a Metro Detroit freelance writer.
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The Detroit News.
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