Sun Tan City
Formerly known as The Screen Tile Company
Bottom line
- Total investment $1.0M – $1.8M including a $30K franchise fee, 8.0% ongoing royalty.
- Average unit revenue of $627K/year (median $587K).
- Rated MODERATE with a risk score of 57/100. SBA loan default rate of 0.0% across 2 loans (below the industry average).
- System contracting at -5.5% CAGR over 3 years. Investigate whether closures are franchisor-driven (consolidation) or franchisee-driven (economics).
Item 1 · who you're contracting with
The Franchisor
Yale framework · single-unit ROIC
Returns Analysis
Pulls Item 7 (investment) and Item 19 (revenue) from this brand's FDD into the Yale unlevered-ROIC formula. Override any input to stress-test it against your own assumptions.
The model · Yale framework
What would one SUN TAN CITY unit return on the cash you put in?
Unlevered ROIC · per unit
8%
Below typical band (30–60%)
Levered LBO scenario · Yale Crease Capital framing
What would 25 SUN TAN CITY units return on equity?
Equity IRR · 5-yr
49.9%
7.57× MOIC
Year-1 DSCR
1.88×
EBITDA ÷ debt service
Equity required
$1.6M
on $8.2M purchase
Total debt
$6.5M
SBA $4.1M + senior + seller note
Overview
About
Franchisees operate indoor tanning salons offering UV bed sessions, spray tanning services, and retail lotion/skincare products. Day-to-day operations include managing staff, maintaining tanning equipment, customer scheduling, cleanliness/sanitation compliance, and driving local marketing to attract and retain tanning customers.
Item 7 · what it costs
The Vitals
Item 19
Financial Performance
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 13 states with active franchisees
The Territory Map
Derived from franchisee contact records. Shows states with at least one current operator — not where the franchisor is registered to sell new units (that data is re-extracting in a future refresh).
States derived from franchisee phone area codes (Item 20). Approximate — ported numbers may show the original state, not the franchisee's current location.
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA 7(a) loan disclosures, public data unique to FranchiseVerdict.
FranchiseVerdict rating + FDD Items 3, 5, 6, 12, 17
Risk & Legal
Sun Tan City presents HIGH RISK due to a shrinking franchise system, undisclosed profitability metrics, questionable franchisor going concern status, and structural headwinds in a declining tanning industry.
Score breakdown · what drove the 57 / 100 rating
- 01MINORDeclining unit count (-3.7% YoY) indicates system contraction and potential market saturation in tanning industry
- 02MEDNo Item 19 financial disclosure (Net Income not disclosed) prevents validation of actual profitability claims
- 03HIGHGoing Concern status FALSE suggests potential franchisor financial instability or operational concerns
- 04MINORHigh initial investment ($1.0M-$1.8M) paired with declining unit economics creates significant franchisee risk
- 05MINORUnprotected territory exposes franchisees to internal competition and cannibalization from new units
- 06MINORAging business model: indoor tanning faces secular headwinds from UV health concerns and changing consumer preferences
- 07MED8% royalty on $627K average revenue ($50K+ annual fee) leaves limited margin for net profit with undisclosed expenses
Severity inferred from the FDD text · not a regulatory classification
FDD Items 5, 6, 12, 17 · continued from Risk & Legal
Contract & Territory Detail
Item 11
Training & Operations
Item 20
Franchisee Contacts
Phone numbers extracted directly from this brand's FDD Item 20. After purchase, you'll also receive a list of validation questions tailored to this brand.
Franchisee contacts
99 numbers
One-time purchase · CSV download · Validation questions included
FDD download
SUN TAN CITY · FDD (2026) PDF