Can indie video rental stores survive by installing tanning bed services?
On the surface they appear a bit of an odd couple. But independent retail outlets are struggling to survive on video rentals alone. As THR’s Paul Bond reports, the struggling businesses are now pairing their rentals with tanning services. Approximately 35% of the 10,000 or so independent US rental stores now use tanning as an allure to get patrons into their stores. Bond channels research from industry insider Ted Engen, President of Video Buyers Group: A good tanning bed — one that consumers won’t mind paying about 50 cents a minute to use — can cost up to $15,000. Despite the hefty upfront cost and fattened energy bills, rental time combined with ancillary product sales like suntan lotion translate into a profitable business. Engen said peak hours, days and seasons for tanning coincide nicely with the slow times in the movie-rental business, so traffic is drawn to the combo stores fairly consistently. A store with a half-dozen beds typically will garner 40% of its revenue from tann
