The story of Year Round Brown is one that encompasses two generations and over 35 years. It all started in the ’70s, when Dennis Neugebauer was an insurance agent. He enjoyed tanning indoors, but his options were limited at the time. A local hair salon allowed customers to buy single sessions and schedule appointments for their taste of sunshine — which was a very popular option in South Dakota’s colder months. Unfortunately, Dennis kept long and odd hours, so he never seemed to make his appointments.

Pasty and frustrated, he bought a tanning bed of his own and put it in the basement. When word got out, neighbors and friends lined up to try it. The popularity created enough buzz for Dennis to bring beds into his insurance office. By 1979, he put a small handful of beds in his first stand-alone location called Year Round Brown.

“Back then, there was a lot of new excitement about tanning;; it was a real growth period, which made it easier to get into business. Because people were just figuring it out, you could afford to make mistakes and still be successful,” says his son, Zach Neugebauer. “My dad is an entrepreneur at hear, a real salesman, and he just wasn’t afraid to jump on an opportunity.”

As the business grew, so did the Neugebauer family. Zach grew up helping his father with the business, learning how things worked along the way.  By high school, he was already putting in 40 hours per week between the salon and a small distribution company his father started.

After years of working and traveling for the business, Zach took over in his sophomore year of college. His knowledge and vision helped the business evolve with the industry to become the upstanding and professional tanning salon it is today.

Click here to read the entire article in the latest issue of Smart Tan Magazine online.