In a world where perceptions of beauty evolve, the allure of sun-kissed glow remains timeless. Coco Chanel changed the perception of tanning — making it a symbol of health and leisure, and stars like Kim Kardashian or Jennifer Lopez perpetuate this ideal sense of beauty, despite being in an era that highlights the importance of a skincare routine and the use of SPF. Like so many beauty treatments, it goes beyond just the services they provide. People seek out beauty enhancements to help with their self expression, but also because of the deep emotional relationships that can develop between client and artist.
Sunny Tanning, located at 94 N Chestnut St., has been a part of the tanning industry for almost 25 years. The salon first opened its doors in 2000 at their original location on Main Street where The Lemon Squeeze now sits before switching to their current location. Owner Marylu Ciardiallo opened Sunny Tanning with her husband, originally called SUNY Tanning because of its proximity to campus. Ciardiallo opened the business when she was just 18 years old. Her and her husband were avid powerlifters and would tan in preparation for their competitions. After a while, the two decided to open their own tanning business in New Paltz.
SUNY Tanning was very popular among college kids when the business first opened. The original location was very close to campus and provided quality services at great prices. However, over the years, Ciardiallo has seen a shift in clientele coming in. “It shifted back in 2009,” she said. “Barack Obama wanted to pass the law — two laws actually — on tanning.” Back when Obama was president, he passed a law as part of the Affordable Care Act that said tanning businesses must collect a 10% tax on indoor tanning services. This caused prices to increase drastically because there was no tax on tanning services before. Other laws have also caused shifts in the tanning clientele. New York State Public Health Law “prohibits persons under eighteen years of age from using UV radiation devices” as of August 2018. In the past, minors were allowed to tan using tanning beds as long as they had a written consent from their parents.
Although these laws have been slight road blocks, Sunny Tanning persisted and has a lot of regular customers coming in. Ciardiallo said, “I have a lot of people coming in on the weekly, monthly basis. They come in to get a little bit of sunkiss just because of the shortage of Vitamin D.” She makes deep connections with every customer that comes through her door. “I was talking about this with one of my good clients. She was my first client that walked into my place when I first opened the doors and that happened Nov. 4 2000.”
Ciardiallo’s favorite thing about owning her business is all of the people she gets to meet, and the stories she gets to hear while interacting with her clients. “For me, this industry I don’t see it as work. I see it as fun,”she said. Society often makes us think that you can’t make a difference unless you do something extraordinary, but no task is too small to make an impression on someone. In a recent trip to Alcatraz, Ciardiallo reconnected with an old client on the ferry. “When she came up to me, all the memories came back.” Ciardiallo cultivates a warm and welcoming community. She has received multiple reviews online highlighting her amazing work ethic and bright personality.
