When Westwood High School alum Tabitha Blevins took a small tanning salon business under her wing in 2002, she never imagined she would see it grow and thrive to become even more than that today.
Since taking ownership of Island Tans in 2002, Blevins has increased the number of tanning beds and services, added lumiere light therapy treatments and a 30-minutes circuit training program and expanded the store’s gift shop to offer over $100,000 in gift items to customers.
“A lot of people do not know everything we have here for our customers,” Blevins said in a Monday interview. “But we do have a lot to offer and are planning to deliver more through future renovations.”
Islands Tan was originally founded in 1997 by Gerald Blevins, who wed Tabitha after turning the business over to her in 2002.
“He started out with four beds and over the years I have added 10 more,” Tabitha Blevins said. “We now have 18 beds — both Sundash and Ergoline — and now offer Suddenly Sun spray tanning.”
Also part of the tanning salon is the Lumiere light therapy system, a state of the art anti-aging treatment that combines light therapy with topical skincare and dietary supplements to soothe problematic skin, even skin tone, lighten age spots, tighten skin and more.
“We added the Lumiere treatments pretty recently,” Blevins said. “There are not many places in the U.S. that offer it, and we are glad to bring it to the community.”
Island Tans Gift Boutique, located at the front of the salon, recently underwent a large expansion to increase its inventory from $20,000 to $100,000 in merchandise.
“We pushed back some walls, added paneling and increased our product offerings,” Blevins said. “We carry three kinds of candles — including Circle E, faith-based products like Demdaco, and Yellow Box shoes.
“Our purses and luggage sets, especially the animal prints, are very popular.”
Fine Lines Fitness for Women, the business’ fitness center, offers a 30-minute circuit training program that combines cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength and endurance and flexibility in one program.
“Despite a scary economy, business has been growing pretty well,” Blevins said. “It has been kind of a shock to see us continue to grow and thrive as well as we have.
“But more than just the business aspects, it has been so great to meet new people, build relationships and grow friendships among our customers,” she added. “It has gotten to the point where it is not work anymore — it’s just home.”
Island Tans Salon and Gift Boutique is located at 1901 Crockett Rd. in Palestine behind JJ’s Exxon. Hours are 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and closed on Sunday.
For more information about their products or services call 903-731-462i, e-mail islandtans@yahoo.com or visit www.island-tans.com.
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Mary Rainwater may be reached via e-mail at mrainwater@palestineherald.com
Business
December 10, 2008
Island Tans still going strong
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City, county tax allocations down
