I opened a sunbed shop at 18, I get 100s of customers a day – sure there are cons but that never stopped anyone smoking
WITH the return of butterfly clips, ballet flats and scrunchies it is fair to say that the trends of Y2K are well and truly back.
And one particular noughties trend that has made a surprising return has been the sunbed with Gen Z flocking to tanning salons to achieve a sunkissed glow.
According to recent data from the American Academy of Dermatology, 20% of Gen Zers believe that being tan is more important to them than protecting themselves from skin cancer, and 30% admitted that they would rather look “great” today with a tan “even if it means looking worse later in life.”
And one woman who knows this better than most is Darcy Lloyd-Williams who now sees hundreds of customers flocking to her tanning salon daily.
The business-minded woman was just 18 when she decided that she wanted to venture into the business world and open up her very own sunbed shop.
Now, at 20 years old, Darcy’s business, House of Tan, is booming, despite many assuming she’d be too young to succeed.
Darcy, from Prestatyn, Wales, says: “At the start I had a few people doubting me due to my age and I do occasionally have the odd person now and again but I’ve just learned that not everyone is going to be happy for someone else’s success.
“I had a lot of savings and I decided to just go for it.
“I came up with a plan and started looking for locations. When I was thinking of the idea I just knew I’d be able to do it better than the rest.”
Darcy originally entered the beauty world as an apprentice hairdresser but it did not take long for her to realise that it was not her thing.
Then, after speaking with her family, she realised that the only thing she wanted to do was run her very own sunbed shop.
Thrifty Darcy had been busy saving during her apprenticeship and she went on the hunt for the ideal building for her new business.
She found the perfect place, and with help from a business grant, Darcy was accepted for the building and she was able to turn her dream into reality.
After eight weeks of strenuous work, she turned the empty shell of a building into a fully-fledged sunbed shop.
She says: “I decided to start my own business because I was unhappy in the job I was previously in.
“I applied for jobs working in offices but I just knew it wasn’t the right fit for me and at the time my mum asked me if I could have any job, what would it be? I said, having my own sunbed shop.
“I put in an offer for the shop that I had found and I received a call back a week later saying it was mine, it felt like the longest week of my life!
“I also applied for a business grant and I put that towards it with my savings.
“It was an exciting process but definitely a stressful one, the day before opening, I was so worried that no one would turn up and I was so worried hoping I made the right decision.
“I had an idea of an opening date in mind so I only gave myself eight weeks to renovate the shop.
“I am now in my second year of business and it’s the best year yet. I’m constantly busy and welcoming new and regular customers.
I know there’s a fair bit of negativity behind sunbeds but so is there with smoking yet people still do it
Darcy Lloyd-Williams
“It’s so rewarding being able to say I have my own successful business.”
And successful it is with Darcy claiming she welcomes over 100 customers a day despite public health concerns over using sunbed use.
Sunbeds have long been linked to skin cancer and have even been banned in countries like Brazil and Australia.
According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), there is significant evidence to show that using tanning beds causes melanoma.
They report that sunbeds increase the risk of skin cancer by up to 20 per cent, and also state that they have no positive benefits to our health.
Sharing her expertise, Carol Cooper, Sun Doctor, previously explained: ”Let’s be clear about sunbeds. It’s not just ‘some’ experts that say they’re bad for your skin. It’s almost all of them.
' My cancer didn't stop me using sunbeds'
Self-confessed tanning addict Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace was just 17 when she started using sunbeds.
The reality TV star, 45, initially used them once every couple of months, but now does so up to twice a week.
Incredibly, she estimates that she has spent around £54,000 on more than 2,600 sunbed sessions during her lifetime. And despite a skin cancer scare, she is showing no signs of stopping.
“I’m addicted,” she admits. “I started using them after working with a gorgeous girl in a shop. She always had a tan and I felt so pasty next to her.
“I was living in hostels at the time, but I would save up the money and have them once a month, or every two months.
“Now I use them once a week, but if I have a big event, I’ll use them twice a week for four weeks beforehand.”
Each 10-15-minute session costs her £20, For Aisleyne, it’s about more than getting a golden glow — it’s how the sessions make her feel.
“To me, the endorphin high is worth more,” she says. “I give myself these little momentary drips of joy and it only costs me a few quid.”
”Actually, anyone who’s ever used a sunbed is at least 20% more likely to develop malignant melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer.
”UV rays damage the DNA in skin cells, so they’re more likely to mutate into cancer. You don’t even have to burn for it to happen.”
But Darcy argues there are plenty of dangers in the world.
She says: “I know there’s a fair bit of negativity behind sunbeds but so is there with smoking yet people still do it.
“Everyone has their own choice whether or not they want to use sunbeds but if it improves someone’s confidence I don’t see why it should matter.”
In fact the business owner has no problem hopping on a sunbed herself, if she can find the time.
“I do use the sunbeds myself, more so in the summertime,” she says.
“I’m here all day and finish at 8pm so I don’t have much time to go on them as much myself.
“It depends on the time of day how many minutes I will do, if the sunbeds are quite hot I just stick to six minutes but if it’s a bit cooler then I do twelve minutes.”
On the whole, Darcy says that most of her free time is taken up dealing with customers, with the young businesswoman ditching socialising in favour of her business.
“The shop is a 24/7 thing so I work six days a week but when it’s my day off or I’ve just finished work, I’m either out buying stock for the shop or replying to messages,” she says.
“I’m not really bothered by going out much anymore since I’ve done it all in the past.
“These are the years where I’d rather put my head down for a better future.”
Are sunbeds safe and do they cause cancer?
Are sunbeds bad for you?
In short: yes, they can be.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), sunbeds are as dangerous as smoking.
Like the sun, they give out harmful UV rays that damage the DNA in your skin cells.
Over time, this may lead to malignant melanoma – the deadliest form of skin cancer – studies have shown.
Are they linked to skin cancer?
Yes, many organisations say so.
According to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), there is significant evidence to show that using tanning beds causes melanoma.
They report that sunbeds increase the risk of skin cancer by up to 20 per cent, and also state that they have no positive benefits to our health.
Cancer Research back this statistic, adding that ” there is no such thing as a safe tan from UV radiation”.
One study found that sunbeds can almost double the risk of cancer compared to never using them – with women 83 per cent more likely to develop the disease.
While some people think tanning beds are safer than sitting out in the midday sun, according to Cancer Research, the risk is still twice as high when compared to spending the same amount of time in the Mediterranean sun at lunch time.
The Sunbed Association claim there is not enough evidence to link sunbed use with melanoma, adding: “It is over-exposure and burning that will increase a risk of skin cancer, not responsible UV exposure.”
But the WHO says: “The majority of tanning parlours provide inadequate advice to their customers.
“The use of eye protection such as goggles or sunglasses should be mandatory.
“However, as sunbed users aim to have an even tan, they often decide against protecting any part of their body.”
Referring to the link with skin cancer, the world health experts add: “Sunbeds for self-tanning purposes have been available for the last two decades and due to the long latency period for skin cancer and eye damage it has been difficult so far to demonstrate any long-term health effects.
“Even though the causes of malignant melanoma are not fully understood, tumour development appears to be linked to occasional exposure to intense sunlight.
“Sunbeds subject their users to intermittent high exposures of UVA and UVB radiation – this may provide the ideal setting for the development of malignant skin cancer.
“However, the few epidemiological studies that have been carried out to date have not provided any consistent results.”
Despite the WHO’s cautious stance on the skin cancer link, it discourages the use of sunbeds, quoting an expert who said the use of tanning parlours is like “an industrial-scale radiation exposure experiment”.
