Sun Tan CityFranchise Cost, Revenue & Review 2026
Data from FDD filing + SBA 7(a) records
FranchiseVerdict summary · 2026
A SUN TAN CITY franchise requires a total initial investment of $1.0M – $1.8M, including a $30K franchise fee and an ongoing 8.0% royalty[2]. Per the 2026 FDD, average unit revenue was $627K[2]. Verdict grade: A. Run a live ROI scan →
Data last verified June 21, 2026 · figures per the 2026 FDD issuance
Overview
- Investment
- $1.0M – $1.8M
- 48th pct Personal Care…
- Avg gross sales
- $627K
- 20th pct Personal Care…
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- 32nd pct Personal Care…
- Units
- 252
- 41st pct Personal Care…
- SBA default
- 0.0%
- system-wide median varies by category
Quick verdict · Personal Care & Beauty · color = vs category peers
Green = >15% above Personal Care & Beauty avg · No shading = within ±15% · Red = >15% below avg · Source: FDD filings + SBA 7(a)
Data from public FDD filings and SBA records. Not financial advice. Methodology
At 0.4x revenue per dollar invested, this system underperforms the typical 1.5-2.5x range.
Franchised units fell from 165 to 156 over 3 years. Investigate why operators are leaving.
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).
- Verdict A (Top Quintile) with a risk score of 44/100.
- 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
- Legal entity
- STC Franchising, LLC
- Parent company
- STC Consolidated Operations, LLC
- CEO title
- Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
- Richard D. Kueber, Jr.
- CEO experience
- 25 yrs
- Years in role or industry
- Founder active
- Yes
- Original founder still leading the business
- Incorporated in
- KY
- HQ
- 101 Catalog Drive, Elizabethtown, Kentucky 42701
- Auditor
- Mather & Co. CPAs, LLC
- Audited financials
- Franchisor revenue
- $6.6M
- vs $6.4M prior year
- Management churn noted
- Frequent turnover
- Item 2 disclosed frequent executive changes
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.
- CEO
- Richard D. Kueber, Jr.
- Headquarters
- KY
- Founded
- 2007
- FDD year
- 2026
- States available
- 18
FDD Item 7 · 2026 filing
Initial investment breakdown
| Cost component | Low | High |
|---|---|---|
| Initial franchise fee | $30K | $30K |
| Working capital (3–6 mo) | $50K | $100K |
| Equipment, build-out, other | $969K | $1.7M |
| Total initial investment | $1.0M | $1.8M |
Source: SUN TAN CITY 2026 FDD, Items 5 and 7[2]. “Equipment, build-out, other” is computed as total minus disclosed line items above.
Single-unit · estimated
Returns at a glance
Indicative numbers using FDD Item 7 / Item 19 inputs and category-benchmarked cost ratios. Full single-unit, 25-unit portfolio, and LBO models (with every input editable to stress-test your own scenario) live on the financials page.
Store EBITDA · annual
$125K
20.0% margin
Unlevered ROIC
8%
EBITDA / total invested capital
Payback
11.9 yrs
cash-on-cash, unlevered
Item 7 · what it costs to open + operate
The Vitals
- Total investment
- $1.0M – $1.8M
- Near category avg vs category
- Liquid capital req'd
- $50K – $100K
- Near category avg vs category
- Franchise fee
- $30K
- Better than avg vs category
- Royalty
- 8.0%
- percentage_of_gross · typical 6–8%
- Ad fund
- 2.0%
- typical 3–5%
- Total fee load
- 10.0%
- vs 9–13% typical
Ongoing fees · Item 6
| Fee | Amount |
|---|---|
| Royalty | 8.0% of gross sales |
| Marketing / ad fund | 2.0% of gross sales |
| Technology fee | $650 |
| Transfer fee | $5K |
| Renewal fee | $5K |
| Total fee load | 10.0% of rev |
Financial Performance
- Avg gross sales
- $627K
- Per unit, per year
- Median gross sales
- $587K
- Item 19 type
- Average and Median operating results (Total Revenues and Sessions)
- Sample size
- 162 units
- vs category median 35 · large
- Range (low → high)
- $200K→$1.5M
- Cohort dispersion (min → max)
- Reporting year
- 2025
- Fiscal year the figures cover
- Transparency
- 4 / 5
- vs category median 4 / 5 · typical
Compared against 186 Personal Care & Beauty brands
Revenue is only 0.4x the investment. This means each unit may take 5+ years to recoup the initial outlay at typical margins.
vs Personal Care & Beauty averages
How Sun Tan City Compares
Unit growth
Item 20 · unit dynamics
The Growth Chart
- Total units
- 252
- Opened
- 0
- Last reporting year
- Closed
- 3
- Terminated
- 3
- Franchisor ended the franchise (per Item 20)
- Non-renewed
- 0
- Term expired, not renewed (per Item 20)
- Turnover rate
- 1.2%
- Company-owned
- 96
- Corporate units in the system
- % franchised
- 62%
- vs corporate-owned
- Net growth (yr3)
- -3.7%
- Net unit change last year
- 3-yr CAGR
- -5.5%
- Compounded over last 3 years
3-year detail · Item 20
- Transfers (3yr)
- 0
- Termination rate
- 1.2%
- Franchisor-initiated terminations
Year-over-year franchised unit counts and net change. Source: FDD Item 20.
Item 20 · 19 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 contact records (FDD Item 20). Shows states with at least one current operator on file. Full state registration data (Item 12) will appear on a future FDD refresh.
SBA loan performance
Government records
SBA Loan Data
Aggregated from SBA loan disclosures. This brand has only 3 7(a) loans on file; statistical reliability is limited below 10 loans.
- Total loans
- 3
- Loan volume
- $886K
- Median loan
- $179K
- 50th percentile
- Charge-off rate
- 0.0%
- rates vary by category · see methodology
Historical SBA 7(a) lending data, not predictive of future performance. How SBA charge-off rates are calculated
- Repayment rate (PIF)
- 100.0%
- 5-yr charge-off
- N/A
- Loans approved 2021+
- Active lenders
- 2
- Defaults
- 0
Explore lender portfolios on Bank Reports or regional data on State Reports.
Premium insight
SBA Lending Report
Deep-dive into Sun Tan City's SBA lending history: lender network, geographic footprint, interest rates, and more.
SBA Lending Report
- Principal loss rate and NAICS industry benchmark
- 2 lenders with concentration factor
- Per-state charge-off rates across 2 states
- Startup risk premium and job creation velocity
- 2-year lending trend
- SBA 504 real estate/equipment data
Instant access. No subscription.
Risk analysis
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.
Litigation (Item 3)
No litigation required to be disclosed
Bankruptcy (Item 4)
None disclosed
Audited financials (Item 21)
Yes · Mather & Co. CPAs, LLC
Franchisor revenue (Item 21)
Franchisor entity revenue (not unit-level)
Supplier relationship · Items 8 & 16
- Franchisor sells you products: Yes
- Kickbacks from required suppliers: No
- Must buy proprietary products: Yes
- Restricted to system-approved products: Yes
- Can negotiate own supplier terms: No
Score breakdown · what drove the 44 / 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
| Initial term | 10 years |
|---|---|
| Renewal term | 10 years |
| Allowed renewalsℹ | 1 |
| Territory type | radius |
| Protected territory | No |
| Exclusive territoryℹ | No |
| Territory radius | 2 mi |
| Online sales rightsℹ | Granted |
| Franchisor can compete | Yes |
| Hire a manager? | Allowed |
| Owner-operator | Required |
| Non-compete (years)ℹ | 2 years |
| Non-compete (miles)ℹ | 5 mi |
| Right of first refusalℹ | Yes |
| Transfer requires consent | Yes |
| Termination notice | 30 days |
| Mandatory arbitration | Yes |
| Arbitration location | Elizabethtown, Kentucky |
| Jury trial waiver | Yes |
| Governing law | Kentucky |
| Litigation count | 0 |
View Item 3 litigation summary
No litigation required to be disclosed
Items 10, 11
Training & Operations
- Classroom training
- 0 hrs
- On-the-job training
- 180 hrs
- Training location
- on-site at franchisee salon and franchisor company training salon
- Ongoing training
- Optional
- Field support
- 40 hrs/yr
- On-site visits per year
- Time to open
- 6 mo
- From signing to launch
- POS system
- approved point of sale ('POS') software
- Operating tech stack
Items 5 & 11
Franchisor Support
Technology: approved point of sale ('POS') software
Item 20 · call current owners
Franchisee Contacts
158 owners to call
Name · phone · city · state. Extracted from FDD Item 20
FDD download
SUN TAN CITY · FDD (2026) PDF
Frequently asked questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does it cost to open a SUN TAN CITY franchise?
The total investment to open a SUN TAN CITY franchise ranges from $1.0M – $1.8M, with an initial franchise fee of $30K. This includes real estate, equipment, inventory, and working capital as disclosed in their Franchise Disclosure Document (FDD).
What do SUN TAN CITY franchise owners earn?
According to Item 19 of the SUN TAN CITY FDD, the average gross sales per unit is $627K. The median is $587K. Note: this is gross revenue, not profit. Actual owner earnings vary based on location, operating costs, and management.
What is SUN TAN CITY's franchise failure rate?
SBA 7(a) loan charge-off data is not available for SUN TAN CITY (fewer than 10 loans on file). Charge-off rates are one way to gauge franchise risk, but not all franchise loans go through the SBA program. We recommend reviewing turnover and closure data in the FDD and speaking with current franchisees.
How many SUN TAN CITY franchise locations are there?
As of their most recent FDD filing, SUN TAN CITY has 252 total units in the United States, including 165 franchised units and 96 company-owned units.
Is SUN TAN CITY a good franchise to buy?
FranchiseVerdict rates SUN TAN CITY as a A-grade franchise with a risk score of 44 out of 100, based on our analysis of investment costs, revenue data, SBA loan performance, and growth trends. Our rating is based solely on publicly available FDD and government data; we recommend speaking with current franchisees before making any investment decision. This is not investment advice.
Data sourced from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) FOIA records. Not financial advice.
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Data extracted from public FDD filings and SBA 7(a) loan disclosures (FOIA). This information is provided for research purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Verify all figures with the franchisor's current Franchise Disclosure Document before making any investment decision.