Sun Tan City
Sun Tan City operates 250+ franchised indoor tanning and wellness salons across 20+ U.S. states, offering UV tanning, spray tanning, and wellness services (red light, cryotherapy, infrared) to individual consumers via memberships, per-visit pricing, and retail products.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1999
- HeadquartersLouisville, United States
- Headcount1,001–5,000
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Sun Tan City does
Sun Tan City is a Louisville, Kentucky-based franchise operator of indoor tanning and wellness salons, founded in 1999 and led by co-founder and CEO Rick Kueber. The company operates 250+ locations across 20+ U.S. states and serves individual consumers seeking UV tanning, spray tanning, and adjacent wellness services, with a cumulative customer base of more than 2 million over 25+ years of operation. Headcount is reported at 1,001–5,000 employees, and the company is structured as a private Kentucky LLC with no disclosed institutional ownership.
The service platform is built on premium third-party equipment — Ergoline, Soltron, and KBL tanning beds and VersaSpa Pro spray tan booths — supplemented by an in-salon wellness stack that includes red light therapy, infrared therapy, cryotherapy, vibration therapy, hydromassage, and salt therapy. A proprietary mobile app on iOS and Android supports member check-in, account management, deal redemption, and wait-time visibility. Revenue is generated through tiered monthly memberships ($17.99–$79.99 across Fast, Faster, Fastest, VIP All-Access, and Spray Tan Only tiers), per-visit pricing ($10–$35), retail product sales (lotions, bronzers, extenders), teeth-whitening add-ons (BleachBright), gift cards, and franchise fees of $30,000 plus buildout investment of $457,150–$780,700 per location.
Distribution is exclusively domestic and franchise-led. Marketing runs through the company website, social media (Facebook, Instagram, X, YouTube, Pinterest), SMS keyword opt-in, email, and word-of-mouth. Sun Tan City positions itself as a premium brand within a $2.9 billion U.S. indoor tanning market it cites for franchise marketing purposes. No AI/ML capabilities, public APIs, funding rounds, M&A activity, regulatory actions, or institutional ownership are disclosed in the source material.
Sun Tan City firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sun Tan City
- Legal name
- Sun Tan City, LLC
- Website
- https://suntancity.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1999
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1,001–5,000 employees
- Short description
- Sun Tan City operates 250+ franchised indoor tanning and wellness salons across 20+ U.S. states, offering UV tanning, spray tanning, and wellness services (red light, cryotherapy, infrared) to individual consumers via memberships, per-visit pricing, and retail products.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sun Tan City industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Tanning and Wellness Spa Services
- NAICS
- Beauty Salons (812112)
- SIC
- Perfumes, Cosmetics & Other Toilet Preparations (2844)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Spray Tanning (Airbrush/Booth) (HSALAJAB)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- UV Tanning (Tanning Beds/Booths) (HSALAJAA), Tanning Memberships & Subscription Programs (HSALAJAD), Tanning Packages & Sessions (Single/Bundle) (HSALAJAE), Sunless Tanning Product Retail (Self-Tanners/Branded Products) (HSALAJAH)
Keywords
Where Sun Tan City is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Louisville
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Sun Tan City business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others
Revenue model
- Membership Subscriptions: Monthly recurring membership fees offering unlimited or tiered access to tanning beds, spray tanning, and wellness spa services. Multiple tiers from Fast ($17.99/mo) to VIP All-Access ($79.99/mo) with annual prepayment discounts available.
- Per-Visit Tanning Sessions: Single-visit pricing for tanning bed sessions (Fast $10, Faster $15, Instant $35), spray tan visits ($25), and day passes ($19.99). No membership required.
- Tanning Products: Sale of tanning lotions, bronzers, tingle formulas, tan extenders, and skincare products. Also includes teeth whitening services and specialty accessories.
- Franchise Fees: Franchise fee of $30,000 plus investment of $457,150-$780,700 to build and equip new salons. Royalty fees based on Franchise Disclosure Document terms.
- Gift Cards: Gift cards sold in salon in various denominations, providing prepaid services and products.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | VIP All Access - Unlimited Tanning, Spray & Wellness |
| Subscription | Monthly | Fast + Spray Tan Membership |
| Subscription | Monthly | Faster + Spray Tan Membership |
| Subscription | Monthly | Fastest + Spray Tan Membership |
| Subscription | Monthly | Fast Level Membership |
| Subscription | Monthly | Faster Level Membership |
| Subscription | Monthly | Fastest Level Membership |
| Subscription | Monthly | Spray Tan Only Membership |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Per-Visit Pricing |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Sun Tan City product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sun Tan City operates a national chain of 250+ tanning and wellness spa salons offering UV indoor tanning beds (Fast, Faster, Fastest, Instant tiers), private-booth spray tanning using VersaSpa Pro technology, and a suite of non-UV wellness services including red light therapy, infrared therapy, cryotherapy, salt therapy, vibration therapy, and massage. Services are delivered via per-visit pricing or monthly/annual memberships, supplemented by retail tanning lotions, extenders, and teeth whitening add-ons, and expanded through a franchise program.
Product overview
Sun Tan City operates a national chain of 250+ tanning and wellness salons offering a unified platform of services centered around UV and spray tanning, complemented by wellness spa treatments and retail products. The core offerings consist of Tanning Beds (with Fast/Faster/Fastest/Instant speed tiers), Spray Tanning (VersaSpa Pro booth technology), and Wellness Spa Services (Red Light Therapy, Infrared Therapy, Vibration Therapy, Massage, Cryotherapy, Salt Therapy). The company bundles these through a Membership Program offering tiered subscriptions, while also selling complementary retail products (tanning lotions, extenders, spray tan products) and Teeth Whitening add-on services. A proprietary Mobile App enables member check-in, account management, and deal access. The business also extends through a Franchise program for entrepreneurs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Tanning Beds
Quantifiable outcome
- First spray tan always free for new customers
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Sun Tan City
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Sun Tan City technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature5 records
Sun Tan City partnerships and signals
Strategic signalScale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Sun Tan City competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Tan Republic: Multi-location tanning and wellness salon brand offering UV and spray tan services with membership tiers. Closely comparable customer proposition and franchise-style operations.
- Total Tan: Midwest-focused chain of tanning salons (UV and spray) with membership offerings. Comparable in scale and regional density to STC's Midwestern core, and competes head-to-head in overlapping states.
- Hollywood Tans: National US tanning salon franchise offering UV beds, spray tanning, and membership programs. Closely comparable franchise model, tiered pricing, and service bundle to Sun Tan City.
- Palm Beach Tan: One of the largest US indoor tanning and sunless-tanning salon chains, with a multi-state footprint of corporate and franchised locations. Directly comparable to Sun Tan City on core service mix (UV beds, spray tanning, wellness) and membership/subscription model.
- Ultratan: Regional tanning salon chain operating UV and sunless services across the Midwest. Comparable store-level service mix and membership model to Sun Tan City.
Broad incumbents
- Planet Fitness: National low-cost fitness chain that historically offered tanning as an included or premium member perk, competing for the same value-conscious consumer wallet share. Comparable distribution and subscription model, but operates in a broader category (fitness).
- Amazing Lash Studio: National beauty franchise with membership-driven recurring revenue in the personal-care category. Comparable multi-state franchised retail model and consumer profile.
- European Wax Center: Public personal-care franchise with a membership-based walk-in service model in the beauty/aesthetics space. Comparable subscription economics, multi-state franchise footprint, and consumer demographic to Sun Tan City.
- Massage Heights: Multi-unit massage and wellness franchise with membership subscriptions and walk-in service. Comparable subscription-plus-visit model and franchise structure to Sun Tan City.
- Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa: National franchise of massage and facial spa locations with a comparable membership-driven, multi-service model. Adjacent in the wellness/personal-care category where STC is expanding with red light, infrared, and massage services.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Sun Tan City social profiles
Digital presenceSun Tan City financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sun Tan City leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Sun Tan City funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sun Tan City M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sun Tan City
What does Sun Tan City do?
Sun Tan City operates a national chain of 250+ tanning and wellness spa salons offering UV indoor tanning beds (Fast, Faster, Fastest, Instant tiers), private-booth spray tanning using VersaSpa Pro technology, and a suite of non-UV wellness services including red light therapy, infrared therapy, cryotherapy, salt therapy, vibration therapy, and massage. Services are delivered via per-visit pricing or monthly/annual memberships, supplemented by retail tanning lotions, extenders, and teeth whitening add-ons, and expanded through a franchise program.
Is Sun Tan City a public or private company?
Sun Tan City is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Sun Tan City founded?
Sun Tan City was founded in 1999. It employs 1,001 to 5,000 people.
Where is Sun Tan City based?
Sun Tan City is headquartered in Louisville, United States, in the North America region.
How does Sun Tan City make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Membership Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are per-Visit Tanning Sessions, tanning Products, franchise Fees and gift Cards.
Who are Sun Tan City's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Tan Republic, Total Tan, Hollywood Tans, Palm Beach Tan and Ultratan. Broad incumbents are Planet Fitness, Amazing Lash Studio, European Wax Center, Massage Heights and Hand & Stone Massage and Facial Spa.
Does Sun Tan City have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sun Tan City.
What industry is Sun Tan City in?
Sun Tan City's product category is Tanning and Wellness Spa Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HSALAJAB, Spray Tanning (Airbrush/Booth), with a secondary code of HSALAJAA, UV Tanning (Tanning Beds/Booths). Its NAICS code is 812112 and its SIC code is 2844.