Winner
Retail
In 1992, Rick Kueber graduated from college and entered into the world of video rental, a business his father was also involved in at the time. And it was at a video trade show that he was introduced to the world of tanning, originally seen as a way to compete with the seasonal difficulties the video store industry faced, as business slowed each year during the spring and summer months.
In 1999, Kueber and his brother combined their resources and Sun Tan City was born. At the time, there was no real leader in the tanning industry, and the first three years in which the business was running, it essentially ran itself while the two brothers continued to focus their efforts in the video industry. In 2002, the tides shifted and the brothers sold their video store to the larger Movie Gallery, so Kueber spent the next three years traveling the country talking and working with anyone and everyone in the tanning industry who would talk to him.
Kueber invested his money, and more importantly, his time, to understand the industry. He knew that in order for his company and vision to grow into what he wanted it to become, he needed the industry itself to gain the credibility it desperately needed.
Sun Tan City now has 123 locations, all of which are primarily corporate-owned. Kueber, STC’s CEO, plans to roll out national franchising in the next 12 months. This past year STC, opened its first “sunless” tan in the country and the sunless option across the country currently accounts for 30 percent of revenue. STC created its own private brand of tanning products, accounting for 25 percent of current revenue.
How to reach: Sun Tan City, (877) 362-1097 or www.suntancity.com
